Executive Insight: Grant Pierce


SE: What worries you most? Pierce: At the very top of my list is continuing to attract the talent into the company that we’ve managed to build up over time. Inside of Sonics, it’s a unique situation. We’re at the boundary between system-level architecture and chip-level micro-architecture for having what the system guys are looking for in the silicon. We need expertise in any IP that t... » read more

Reduced Power To The People!


Fifteen years ago, many of us involved in writing the design chapter of the ITRS (International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors) already knew that power/energy consumption eventually would become a major problem for the industry’s growth. Engineers developing microprocessors (CPUs and DSPs) and graphics engines (GPUs) led the wave of predictions, because extrapolating known trend data s... » read more

Blog Review: May 28


Ansys’ Robert Harwood examines the crossover between drones and 3D printing—particularly ones that can make repairs in inaccessible or hazardous areas. That could make both of them more popular. Mentor’s Mathew Clark puts a new spin on the term “gumming up the works.” Poor little things. Cadence’s Brian Fuller drills into Google’s Project Ara, the magnetic LEGO architecture ... » read more

Executive Insight: Prakash Narain


SE: What’s your biggest concern? Narain: We are a smaller company, and ultimately we compete on the basis of the quality of the solutions we provide to customers. What’s the value proposition? How many X better will our solution be compared to the existing solutions that are in deployed in the market? You make a projection about it in your mind, and you make investments, and until they�... » read more

System Bits: May 27


Making sheets of grapheme more easily Graphene’s promise as a material for new kinds of electronic devices, among other uses, has led researchers around the world to study the material in search of new applications but one of the biggest limitations to wider use of the strong, lightweight, highly conductive material has been the hurdle of fabrication on an industrial scale. Initial work w... » read more

The Week In Review: Design


M&A Mentor Graphics acquired Nimbic, which makes simulation software for power and signal integrity and electromagnetic interference. No purchase price was given. Synopsys’ Coverity subsidiary acquired Kalistick, which makes cloud-based software solutions to boost test efficiency. Terms of the deal were not provided. Tools and IP Sonics introduced a new development environment for... » read more

Self-Service Comparisons Come To SoC Design


Under the guise of enabling self-service comparison of its compilable memories and providing self-service online quoting of TSMC technology, semiconductor design and manufacturing services provider eSilicon Corp. detailed the latest evolution of its business model—and one that could have interesting implications for the IP and memory markets. This move reflects the changing dynamics of cus... » read more

EDA Economics Changing


From most perspectives, there has never been a better time to be in the EDA business. Automation tools are in demand as complexity rises, and new companies jumping into the semiconductor business are starting out with commercially available tools rather than developing their own—and taking years, sometimes even decades, to replace them. EDA’s slice of the semiconductor market consistent... » read more

Tech Talk: The New Cost Per Gate Equation


eSilicon's Javier DeLaCruz talks with Semiconductor Engineering about new types of interposers, why just shrinking features is doomed, and what progress has been made in building 2.5D chips. [youtube vid=akj8r8nNktM] » read more

New Business Model: Flexible Silos


Operational silos within organizations have a long history of streamlining processes and maximize efficiency. In fact, that approach has made enterprise resource planning applications a must-have for most companies, and cemented the fortunes of giants such as SAP and Oracle, as well as the giant consulting companies that recommend them. But those kinds of delineations don’t work so well fo... » read more

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