Glass Substrates Gain Foothold In Advanced Packages


Glass substrates are starting to gain traction in advanced packages, fueled by the potential for denser routing and higher signal performance than the organic substrates used today. There are still plenty of problems to solve before this approach becomes mainstream. While glass itself is cheap and shares some important physical similarities to silicon, there are challenges with buildup, stre... » read more

Pressure Builds On Failure Analysis Labs


Failure analysis labs are becoming more fab-like, offering higher accuracy in locating failures and accelerating time-to-market of new devices. These labs historically have been used for deconstructing devices that failed during field use, known as return material authorizations (RMAs), but their role is expanding. They now are becoming instrumental in achieving first silicon and ramping yie... » read more

Plugging Gaps In The IC Supply Chain


Multiple touch points in manufacturing and packaging are exposing gaps in the data used to track different components, making it difficult to identify the source of issues that can affect yield and reliability, and opening the door to counterfeit or sub-standard parts. This involves more than just assigning a simple identifying code to a chip. At different points in a device's lifecycle, new... » read more

SRAM’s Role In Emerging Memories


Experts at the Table — Part 3: Semiconductor Engineering sat down to talk about AI, the latest issues in SRAM, and the potential impact of new types of memory, with Tony Chan Carusone, CTO at Alphawave Semi; Steve Roddy, chief marketing officer at Quadric; and Jongsin Yun, memory technologist at Siemens EDA. What follows are excerpts of that conversation. Part one of this conversation can be ... » read more

Visa Shakeup On Tap To Help Solve Worker Shortage


Governments around the world are racing to train workers to design, manufacture, and package chips, but they are facing a talent shortfall that is expected to continue despite their best efforts — particularly for those engineers capable of designing and producing the most advanced chips. The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) predicts a U.S. chip worker shortfall of 67,000 by 2030, ... » read more

How Secure Are FPGAs?


The unique hybrid software/hardware nature of FPGAs makes them tempting targets for cyberattacks, while also enabling them to rebuff attacks and change the attack surface before significant damage can be done. But it's becoming increasingly challenging to address all the potential vulnerabilities. FPGAs are often included in larger systems, each with their own unique attack vectors as well a... » read more

Trendspotting: Automotive IC Startup Funding In 2023


Consumers expect a lot from the electronics in their cars. The parts in the safety-critical systems need to be reliable for up to 18 years, able to handle a range of temperatures, voltages, and vibrations — and all the while be fault-tolerant and make zero errors. On top of those basic requirements, automakers trying to appeal to consumers are adding in more features that communicate with the... » read more

Money Pours Into New Fabs And Facilities


Fabs, packaging, test and assembly, and R&D all drew major funding in 2023. Companies poured money into offshore locations, such as India and Malaysia, to access a larger workforce and lower costs, while also partnering with governments to secure domestic supply chains amid ongoing geopolitical turmoil. Looking ahead, artificial intelligence (AI), quantum computing, and data applications... » read more

Top Tech Videos of 2023


In 2023, heterogeneous integration, RISC-V, and advanced node logic scaling and advanced packaging dominated the semiconductor industry. All of those topics spurred deep discussions at conferences, and they were the subject of Semiconductor Engineering's most popular videos. Of the videos published in 2023, here are the highlights from our five channels: Manufacturing, Packaging & Mater... » read more

A New Approach For Sensor Design


Pawel Malinowski, program manager at imec, sat down with Semiconductor Engineering to discuss what's changing in sensor technology and why. What follows are excerpts of that discussion. SE: What's next for sensor technology? Malinowski: We are trying to find a new way of making image sensors because we want to get out of the limitations of silicon photodiodes. Silicon is a perfect materi... » read more

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