Intel today announced that it is the first company to reach an important milestone in the development of 45 nanometer (nm) logic technology, and that it has produced what it believes to be the first fully functional processors using that technology. Intel says that the company is well on its way to manufacturing the new smaller, more efficient chips, which boast more than one billion transistors and expects to ship them sometime next year using 300mm wafers. The company's 45nm process technology will allow chips with more than five times less leakage power than those made today, improving battery life for mobile devices and increasing opportunities for building smaller, more powerful platforms.

Intel currently leads the industry in volume production of semiconductors using 65nm process technology with two manufacturing facilities churning out 65nm chips in Arizona and Oregon, while two more are expected to come online this year in Ireland and Oregon.