Firmware Skills Shortage


Good hardware without good software is a waste of silicon, but with so many new processors and accelerator architectures being created, and so many new skills required, companies are finding it hard to hire enough engineers with low-level software expertise to satisfy the demand. Writing compilers, mappers and optimization software does not have the same level of pizazz as developing new AI ... » read more

Timing Challenges In The Age Of AI Hardware


In recent years, we have seen a clear market trend towards dedicated integrated circuits (ASICs) that are much more efficient in performance and energy consumption than traditional general-purpose computers for processing AI workloads. These AI accelerators harden deep learning algorithm kernels into circuits, enable higher data ingestion bandwidth with local memory, and perform massively paral... » read more

Advancing IC And Systems Design With The Digital Twin


As many of you may have seen, we’ve passed a major milestone since Siemens announced its intent to acquire Mentor Graphics four years ago. As of January 1, 2021, “Mentor, a Siemens business” has become “Siemens EDA” and remains a segment of the larger Siemens Digital Industries Software organization. Siemens is bringing together one of the world’s most comprehensive EDA portfolios w... » read more

Hyperscaling Cyber-Physical Systems


As consumers, we are not always aware of all the data created around us by our cars, mobile devices, computers, and day-to-day consumer products. In most cases, we are even less aware of what's going on during the development and production of today's devices and systems that we have gotten so used to. During the most recent DATE 2021 conference, the special day on cyber-physical systems gave s... » read more

Verification Knowledge At Your Fingertips


If you’re like most engineers, you’re curious about how other engineers tackle some of the most difficult challenges. What can you absorb from them and apply to your own projects? Learning from experience has tremendous value but learning from others’ experiences is arguably more valuable since the cost to acquire that knowledge is significantly cheaper. At OneSpin, we’ve lowered... » read more

When Is Verification Done?


Even with the billions of dollars spent on R&D for EDA tools, and tens of billions more on verification labor, only 30% to 50% of ASIC designs are first time right, according to Wilson Research Group and Siemens EDA. Even then, these designs still have bugs. They’re just not catastrophic enough to cause a re-spin. This means more efficient verification is needed. Until then, verificati... » read more

Big Challenges In Verifying Cyber-Physical Systems


Semiconductor Engineering sat down to discuss cyber-physical systems and how to verify them with Jean-Marie Brunet, senior director for the Emulation Division at Siemens EDA; Frank Schirrmeister, senior group director for solution marketing at Cadence; Maurizio Griva, R&D Manager at Reply; and Laurent Maillet-Contoz, system and architect specialist at STMicroelectronics. This discussion was... » read more

Customizing An Existing RISC-V Processor


In a previous post, we considered how you could create an optimized ISA for a domain-specific processor core by profiling software and experimenting with adding/removing instructions. Using the open RISC-V ISA can be a great starting point for a processor that combines application-specific capabilities and access to portable software. The old-fashioned way to modify the instruction set wo... » read more

Surviving The Three Phases Of High Density Advanced Packaging Design


The growth of High Density Advanced Packages (HDAP) such as FOWLP, CoWoS, and WoW is triggering a convergence of the traditional IC design and IC package-design worlds. To handle these various substrate scenarios, process transformation must occur. This paper discusses the three phases of HDAP design and provides tips on how to survive their challenges. To read more, click here. » read more

Part Average Tests For Auto ICs Not Good Enough


Part Average Testing (PAT) has long been used in automotive. For some semiconductor technologies it remains viable, while for others it is no longer good enough. Automakers are bracing for chips developed at advanced process nodes with much trepidation. Tight control of their supply chains and a reliance upon mature electronic processes so far have enabled them to increase electronic compone... » read more

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