AMD promises doubled energy efficiency with the graphics generation Arctic Islands

After more than five years as the current manufacturing process for high-performance graphics circuits, 28 nanometers will receive not just one, but two, regular replacements in 2016. These are 16 nanometers from TSMC and 14 nanometers from Samsung, both with so-called Finfet or 3D transistors for improved energy efficiency .

We are also focused on delivering our next generation GPUs in 2016 which is going to improve performance per watt by two times compared to our current offerings, based on design and architectural enhancements as well as advanced FinFET products process technology.

In connection with the latest quarterly report, the company’s CEO, Lisa Su, once again spoke about a real step forward in terms of energy efficiency. The transition to a new process and not least architectural changes is said to double energy efficiency compared to today. In other words, AMD could increase performance twice without increasing power consumption.

The next generation Radeon goes by the code name Arctic Islands and according to previous information will include at least three graphics processors named Greenland, Baffin and Ellesmere. The former is expected to be the most lavish and is thus probably the sequel to today’s Fiji, which is used in the Radeon R9 Fury series.

In addition to lower current leakage, the new manufacturing technologies also enable higher transistor density. For Greenland, there is talk of a massive circuit with no less than 18 billion transistors – up from 8.9 billion for Fiji. This rumor dispels speculation that a graphics card with Greenland could double the performance of the flagship Radeon R9 Fury X.

Whether AMD has chosen TSMC, Globalfoundries or a combination of both for the production of the Arctic Islands is not yet known, but the company has so far only spoken fluently about a Finfet process. Associated graphics cards will appear sometime in 2016.