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Ann Mutschler

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Ann Mutschler is senior executive editor at Semiconductor Engineering.

Author's Latest Posts

Does Power Analysis Need To Be Accurate?
By Ann Mutschler - 11 Aug, 2016 - Comments: 1

The mere mention of accuracy in power analysis and optimization today can trigger a contentious discussion, even among typically reserved engineers. What is needed and where? Which tools are truly as accurate as claimed? And how much accuracy is actually needed for power analysis, [getkc id="112" kc_name="estimation"], and optimization? First of all, the accuracy required really depends o... » read more

Reaching The Power Budget
By Ann Mutschler - 11 Aug, 2016 - Comments: 1

Everything related to power in chip design today is a big deal—and it’s just getting bigger. Meeting the power budget is becoming harder at each new node, but it's also becoming difficult in a number of new application areas at existing nodes. That's a big problem because [getkc id="108" kc_name="power"] is now considered a competitive advantage in many markets. It's also one of the most... » read more

System Bits: Aug. 9
By Ann Mutschler - 09 Aug, 2016 - Comments: 0

Using trapped ions as quantum bits MIT researchers reminded that quantum computers are largely hypothetical devices that could perform some calculations much more rapidly than conventional computers can, and instead of the bits of classical computation — which can represent 0 or 1 — quantum computers consist of quantum bits, or qubits, which can, in some sense, represent 0 and 1 simultaneo... » read more

Automotive Design Requires Rigor
By Ann Mutschler - 04 Aug, 2016 - Comments: 0

Playing in the automotive space means a significant investment in terms of resources, and it brings other challenges as well, not to mention the specific engineering challenges of ADAS. According to Mike Stellfox, a Cadence Fellow, the challenges are adding up for current Tier 2 suppliers. “Mostly what we see is the same kinds of customers — at least in the Tier 2s — for the hardware ... » read more

The Higher Cost Of Automotive
By Ann Mutschler - 04 Aug, 2016 - Comments: 0

A revolution is occurring under the hoods of vehicles today, as the automotive industry continues to add sophistication via electronics to vehicles at a pace never seen before. But because of the automotive ecosystem’s tiered structure, system companies, IP and embedded software developers and tools vendors must invest more just to participate. Robert Bates, chief safety officer in [getent... » read more

System Bits: Aug. 2
By Ann Mutschler - 02 Aug, 2016 - Comments: 0

Helping drones navigate urban environments While it has been widely discussed, Amazon wants to start using drones to deliver packages by 2017, but if you live in a high-rise apartment, you might be waiting a bit longer because because UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) use GPS for localization and navigation but in urban areas, high-rise buildings may block the line of sight to GPS satellites, ca... » read more

What’s Holding Back Analog?
By Ann Mutschler - 01 Aug, 2016 - Comments: 2

The uneasy relationship between digital and analog, coupled with tools that are either ineffective or outright ignored by the analog community, may be limiting the growth potential and technological advances in that market. That certainly doesn’t mean analog isn’t growing. In fact, analog is an increasingly critical component of ICs and the electronic devices they inhabit. The global ele... » read more

Making Verification Easier
By Ann Mutschler - 28 Jul, 2016 - Comments: 0

SoC design teams increasingly are confronting complexity in the quest to target application segments, but at the same time they are struggling to more quickly reduce risk in their designs while also speed up testing to make sure everything works. Those often-conflicting goals have transformed [getkc id="10" kc_name="verification"] IP from an interesting concept to a must-have tool for advanc... » read more

How Cache Coherency Impacts Power, Performance
By Ann Mutschler - 27 Jul, 2016 - Comments: 0

As discussed in part one, one of the reasons cache coherency is becoming more important is the shared common memory resource in designs today. Various agents in the design want to access the data the fastest they can, putting pressure on the CPU complex to manage all of the requests. Until a generation ago, it was okay for the CPU to control that memory and have access to it, as well as be t... » read more

System Bits: July 26
By Ann Mutschler - 26 Jul, 2016 - Comments: 0

Mixing topology, spin MIT researchers are studying new compounds, such as topological insulators (TIs), which support protected electron states on the surfaces of crystals that silicon-based technologies cannot as part of the pursuit of material platforms for the next generation of electronics. They report new physical phenomena being realized by combining this field of TIs with the subfiel... » read more

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