Reliability On The Rise In IC Design


Reliability has been an important factor in the semiconductor industry for decades. A closer look reveals three main priorities: In the area of technology development and optimization, the microscopic mechanisms that lead to degradation must be identified and understood before they can be fixed. Microanalytical methods are used here as well as TCAD simulations. If it’s not possible to... » read more

4 Ways To Design More Reliable Automotive Electronics


From engine management systems (fuel injection rate, emissions control, cooling systems) and autonomous controls (lane, speed, park assist, adaptive cruise control) to infotainment systems and comfort systems (climate control, electronic seat adjustment, automatic wipers, etc.), the modern-day gas-powered and electric vehicles have more electronic devices than ever. Indeed, the microprocessors ... » read more

IC Reliability Burden Shifts Left


Chip reliability is coming under much tighter scrutiny as IC-driven systems take on increasingly critical and complex roles. So whether it's a stray alpha particle that flips a memory bit, or some long-dormant software bugs or latent hardware defects that suddenly cause problems, it's now up to the chip industry to prevent these problems in the first place, and solve them when they do arise. ... » read more

Design For Reliability


Circuit aging is emerging as a mandatory design concern across a swath of end markets, particularly in markets where advanced-node chips are expected to last for more than a few years. Some chipmakers view this as a competitive opportunity, but others are unsure we fully understand how those devices will age. Aging is the latest in a long list of issues being pushed further left in the desig... » read more

Multi-Physics Combats Commoditization


The semiconductor industry has benefited greatly from developments around digital circuitry. Circuits have grown in size from a few logic gates in the 1980s to well over 1 billion today. In comparison, analog circuits have increased in size by a factor of 10. The primary reason is that digital logic managed to isolate many of the physical effects from functionality, and to provide abstractions ... » read more

Design For Reliability


By Arvind Shanmugavel Faster processors, lowered power targets and shrinking technology have increased the complexity of integrated circuit (IC) reliability analysis. With the 20nm node becoming mainstream, IC design teams are fast re-tooling their analysis methodologies to simulate and capture various reliability failure mechanisms. Electromigration (EM) analysis, thermal analysis and Electro... » read more