South Korea's Hynix Semiconductor has claimed it has developed the world's fastest and smallest 512 megabit dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chip for mobile handsets.

The chip's data processing speed is 1.5 times faster than the MHz firm's existing ones for mobile handsets, operating at 200 and processing 1.6 gigabit of data per second, Hynix said in a statement.

The chips measures eight millimeters by 10 millimeters (0.4 inches), the smallest in size to meet a market need to miniaturize handsets, it said. Moreover, Hynix is expected to combine 512Mb mobile DRAM and NAND Flash in a multi-chip package (MCP), which will enable the design of slimmer mobile phones.

The new chip offers "the memory capacity and speed required for third generation mobile phones that provide new services, such as DMB (Digital Media Broadcast)", the statement added.