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Ann Mutschler

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Ann Mutschler is senior executive editor at Semiconductor Engineering.

Author's Latest Posts

System Bits: May 5
By Ann Mutschler - 05 May, 2015 - Comments: 0

Fight counterfeiting with fingerprint chips Given that no two human fingerprints are exactly alike, an MIT spinout uses random variations in silicon chips as authentication identifiers for consumer products. Silicon chips are similar as manufacturing processes cause microscopic variations in chips that are unpredictable, permanent, and effectively impossible to clone. MIT spinout Verayo ... » read more

System Bits: April 28
By Ann Mutschler - 28 Apr, 2015 - Comments: 0

Transistor encasing for better device performance ECE Illinois researchers have discovered a more effective method for closing gaps in atomically small wires. Led by Professor Joseph W. Lyding and graduate student Jae Won Do, the team reported this new transistor technology comprised of carbon nanotube wires shows promise in replacing silicon because it can operate 10 times as fast and is ... » read more

What Not To Verify
By Ann Mutschler - 23 Apr, 2015 - Comments: 0

It is well understood that [getkc id="10" kc_name="verification"] is all about mitigating and managing risk, and success here begins with a good verification planning process. During the planning process, the project team creates a list of specific design functions and use cases that must be verified—and they identify the technique used to verify each specific item on the list. That list c... » read more

Blurring The Lines On Prototyping
By Ann Mutschler - 23 Apr, 2015 - Comments: 0

Prototyping is an integral part of every [getkc id="81" kc_name="SoC"] today, with two main approaches being used: virtual or software-based, and physical, which includes FPGA-based boards as well as hardware emulation systems. [getkc id="104" kc_name="Virtual prototyping"] is typically used for software development in the early stages of SoC design, even before SoC [getkc id="49" kc_name="R... » read more

System Bits: April 14
By Ann Mutschler - 14 Apr, 2015 - Comments: 0

Antennas on a chip In what is being called the missing piece of the puzzle of electromagnetic theory, a team of researchers at the University of Cambridge have figured out one of the mysteries of electromagnetism, that they believe could allow the design of antennas small enough to be integrated into a chip. These ultra-small antennas – the so-called ‘last frontier’ of semiconductor desi... » read more

UPF 3.0 Moves Toward Ratification
By Ann Mutschler - 09 Apr, 2015 - Comments: 0

[gettech id="31044" t_name="UPF"] (Unified Power Format) 3.0 — the fourth incarnation in 10 years — is moving closer to the IEEE ballot process. Erich Marschner, verification architect at [getentity id="22017" e_name="Mentor Graphics"] and vice chair of the [gettech id="31043" comment="IEEE 1801"] working group, explained the working group is as close as possible to being on schedule for... » read more

Fighting Dark Silicon With Specialized Hardware
By Ann Mutschler - 09 Apr, 2015 - Comments: 1

Looking at an SoC design from an architecture viewpoint, I’m hearing more discussion lately about the option of offloading tasks to specialized hardware. Especially where dark silicon is concerned, rather than having four or eight ARM processors — all with the same complexity — or cores like graphics processors, if you cannot use them all at full performance and they have to be shut o... » read more

Is Dark Silicon Wasted Silicon?
By Ann Mutschler - 09 Apr, 2015 - Comments: 0

The concept of dark silicon sounds almost mysterious, but it is a simple matter of physics. With advances in technology nodes and the ability to pack more and more transistors on the same die, design engineers are reaching a wall where only a fraction of a design can be powered on due to power and thermal implications. Moreover, the challenges that force this kind of complex power managemen... » read more

System Bits: April 7
By Ann Mutschler - 07 Apr, 2015 - Comments: 0

Ultra-efficient magnetic-field detector In a development that could lead to miniaturized, battery-powered devices for medical and materials imaging, contraband detection, and even geological exploration, MIT researchers have developed a new, ultrasensitive magnetic-field detector they say is 1,000 times more energy-efficient than its predecessors. Magnetic-field detectors, or magnetometers,... » read more

IoT Is For Chickens
By Ann Mutschler - 02 Apr, 2015 - Comments: 1

As a backyard chicken enthusiast in my spare time, I was pleasantly surprised to find that other technology-minded folks are interested in chickens too. A simple Internet search revealed a ‘Chicken Tender’ project recently presented at the Intel IoT Roadshow in Seattle that I wish were already commercialized! This ingenious system tracks and monitors egg laying for individual chickens in... » read more

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