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Ann Mutschler

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Ann Mutschler is senior executive editor at Semiconductor Engineering.

Author's Latest Posts

Getting Power Management Right
By Ann Mutschler - 14 Nov, 2017 - Comments: 0

Getting power management right in the era of heterogeneous SoCs is a multi-pronged effort, there's no getting around it. Engineering teams daily try to squeeze more and more power from their designs, which many times includes adding human resources and expertise to the project. Take an example where a design team leader gets the mandate to include high level synthesis in the design metho... » read more

Lots Of Little Knobs For Power
By Ann Mutschler - 09 Nov, 2017 - Comments: 3

Dynamic power is becoming a much bigger worry at new nodes as more finFETs are packed on a die and wires shrink to the point where resistance and capacitance become first-order effects. Chipmakers began seeing dynamic power density issues with the first generation of [getkc id="185" kc_name="finFETs"]. While the 3D transistor structures reduced leakage current by providing better gate contro... » read more

System Bits: Nov. 7
By Ann Mutschler - 07 Nov, 2017 - Comments: 0

Exposing logic errors in deep neural networks In a new approach meant to brings transparency to self-driving cars and other self-taught systems, researchers at Columbia and Lehigh universities have come up with a way to automatically error-check the thousands to millions of neurons in a deep learning neural network. Their tool — DeepXplore — feeds confusing, real-world inputs into the ... » read more

Chiplets Gaining Steam
By Ann Mutschler - 06 Nov, 2017 - Comments: 0

Building chips from pre-verified chiplets is beginning to gain traction as a way of cutting costs and reducing time to market for heterogeneous designs. The chiplet concept has been on the drawing board for some time, but it has been viewed more as a possible future direction than a necessary solution. That perception is beginning to change as complexity rises, particularly at advanced nodes... » read more

Big Trucks Go Electric, Autonomous
By Ann Mutschler - 02 Nov, 2017 - Comments: 0

As the automotive ecosystem increases efforts across the board including commoditization as part of the ramp to autonomous vehicles, the news feed is replete with examples. In the area of big trucks, Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation (MFTBC), part of Daimler Trucks, said at the recent Tokyo Motor Show that it would electrify its complete range of trucks and buses in upcoming years. F... » read more

Faster Commoditization In Cars
By Ann Mutschler - 02 Nov, 2017 - Comments: 0

Sensors are at the heart of assisted and autonomous driving, but even before these devices hit the road the average selling prices of these components will have to fall far enough to be affordable to a mass audience. Achieving economies of scale is what has made the semiconductor industry successful over the past half century. It has enabled semiconductors to proliferate and for electronics ... » read more

System Bits: Oct. 31
By Ann Mutschler - 31 Oct, 2017 - Comments: 0

Software enables cars to auto-report diagnostics Thanks to researchers at MIT, it may soon be possible to hop into a ride-share car, glance at a smartphone app, and tell the driver that the car’s left front tire needs air, its air filter should be replaced next week, and its engine needs two new spark plugs. [caption id="attachment_409967" align="alignnone" width="300"] A new smartphone a... » read more

Dealing With Deadlocks
By Ann Mutschler - 26 Oct, 2017 - Comments: 1

Deadlocks are becoming increasingly problematic as designs becoming more complex and heterogeneous. Rather than just integrating IP, the challenge is understanding all of the possible interactions and dependencies. That affects the choice of IP, how it is implemented in a design, and how it is verified. And it adds a whole bunch of unknowns into an already complex formula for return on inves... » read more

System Bits: Oct. 24
By Ann Mutschler - 24 Oct, 2017 - Comments: 0

Optical communication on silicon chips With the huge increase in computing performance in recent decades achieved by squeezing ever more transistors into a tighter space on microchips, at the same time this downsizing has also meant packing the wiring within microprocessors ever more tightly together. This has led to effects such as signal leakage between components, which can slow down commun... » read more

System Bits: Oct. 17
By Ann Mutschler - 17 Oct, 2017 - Comments: 0

Piezoelectric, ingestible sensors With an aim to help doctors diagnose gastrointestinal disorders that slow down the passage of food through the digestive tract, MIT and Brigham and Women’s Hospital researchers have built a flexible sensor that can be rolled up and swallowed. Once ingested, the sensor adheres to the stomach wall or intestinal lining, where it can measure the rhythmic con... » read more

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