Applied Buys Kokusai For $2.2B

By Mark LaPedus - 01 Jul, 2019 - Comments: 0

Applied Materials has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Kokusai Electric for $2.2 billion in cash from investment firm KKR. For years, Kokusai Electric was a subsidiary of Hitachi. It sells epitaxial, thermal processing and other equipment. Then, as part of a complex business deal, KKR in 2017 acquired the semiconductor equipment business of Hitachi Kokusai Electric from Hitachi. ... » read more

Automotive Trends Create New Challenges For Wiring Harness Development

By Mentor, a Siemens Business - 01 Jul, 2019 - Comments: 0

The rapid introduction of new technologies and the influx of automotive start-ups into the market has led to a multitude of challenges for harness development. OEMs and startups alike must consider the number and sophistication of technology features they integrate into their vehicles as they have a direct effect on harness weight, bundle diameter, and cost. Electrification, autonomous drive an... » read more

Application Driven Network On Chip Architecture Exploration And Refinement For A Complex SoC

By Arteris - 01 Jul, 2019 - Comments: 0

This white paper summarizes the various features a NoC is required to implement to be integrated in modern SoCs, describes a top-down approach based on the progressive refinement of the NoC description from its functional specification (Sect. 4) to its verification (Sect. 8), and it uses use cases to show how to identify bottlenecks and converge towards the NoC implementation. To read more, ... » read more

EUV, Deep Learning Issues In Mask Making

By Mark LaPedus - 01 Jul, 2019 - Comments: 0

Semiconductor Engineering sat down to discuss extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography, photomask technologies and machine learning issues with Emily Gallagher, principal member of the technical staff at Imec; Harry Levinson, principal at HJL Lithography; Chris Spence, vice president of advanced technology development at ASML; Banqiu Wu, senior director of process development at Applied Materials;... » read more

Controlling Variability Using Semiconductor Process Window Optimization

By Benjamin Vincent - 01 Jul, 2019 - Comments: 0

To ensure success in semiconductor technology development, process engineers must set the allowed ranges for wafer process parameters. Variability must be controlled, so that final fabricated devices meet required specifications. These specifications include critical dimensions, electrical performance requirements, and other device characteristics. Pre-production or ramp-up production Si wa... » read more

How To Navigate The Open Source Risk Landscape

By Synopsys - 01 Jul, 2019 - Comments: 0

Open source use isn’t risky, but unmanaged use of open source is. Open source software forms the backbone of nearly every application in every industry. Chances are that includes the applications your company develops as well. If you can’t produce an accurate inventory of the licenses, versions, and patch status of the open source components in your applications, it’s time to assess yo... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test

By Mark LaPedus - 28 Jun, 2019 - Comments: 0

Market research What’s the CapEx outlook for 2020? Semiconductor capital spending is down in 2019, but the industry faces another slump in 2020, according to IC Insights. The firm sees a 15% decline in CapEx for 2019 with a 5% drop expected in 2020. New 300mm fab construction in Korea is still going strong despite the memory downturn, according to SEMI. “Korea’s fab construction spen... » read more

Week In Review: Design, Low Power

By Jesse Allen - 28 Jun, 2019 - Comments: 0

VESA published the DisplayPort 2.0 standard, which allows for a max payload of 77.37 Gbps, a 3X increase in data bandwidth performance compared to DisplayPort 1.4a. The latest release also includes capabilities to address beyond 8K resolutions, higher refresh rates and HDR support at higher resolutions, multiple display configurations, and support for 4K-and-beyond VR resolutions. It is backwar... » read more

Week in Review: IoT, Security, Auto

By Jeff Dorsch - 28 Jun, 2019 - Comments: 0

Products/Services Visa agreed to acquire the token and electronic ticketing business of Rambus for $75 million in cash. The business involved is part of the Smart Card Software subsidiary of Rambus. It includes the former Bell ID mobile-payment businesses and the Ecebs smart-ticketing systems for transit providers. Meanwhile, Rambus expanded its CryptoManager Root of Trust product line. “Sec... » read more

Rethinking What Goes On A Chip

By Ed Sperling - 27 Jun, 2019 - Comments: 0

There are hints across the chip industry that chipmakers are beginning to reexamine one of the basic concepts of chip design. For more than 50 years, progress in semiconductors was measured by the ability to double the density of transistors on a piece of silicon. While that approach continues to be useful, the power and performance benefits have been dwindling for the past couple of nodes. ... » read more

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