Intel already testing 22nm chips

Intel may have only just launched its latest Sandy Bridge chips, but working samples of its 22nm successors are already being tested, according to the firm.

The company reported strong financial results for 2010, and during a briefing covering the results, chief executive Paul Otellini indicated that Intel already has working 22nm CPU samples, which could mean that its next generation of processors will appear earlier than expected.

Intel officially introduced its latest family of Core processors at CES earlier this month. The Sandy Bridge chips are based on a new micro-architecture, but manufactured using the firm's current 32nm fabrication process.

The next step will be to take the same micro-architecture and put it onto a new fabrication process, which is Intel's now familiar 'tick-tock' development model.

These chips, codenamed Ivy Bridge, could be ready by the end of this year, although the smart money is on Intel's introducing them a year after Sandy Bridge, at CES 2012.

Ivy Bridge chips are expected to offer next-generation graphics technology supporting Microsoft's DirectX 11 APIs, and to feature four to eight processor cores compared with the two to four in Sandy Bridge.

Intel said that its Atom chips aimed at mobile devices will be among those making the transition to the 22nm process.

UPDATE: In response to our queries, an Intel spokesman told V3.co.uk that its 22nm products are "on track for production in Q4 2011 ".