GaN Versus Silicon For 5G


The global race to launch 5G mmWave frequencies could provide a long-anticipated market opportunity for gallium nitride (GaN) as an alternative to silicon. GaN is more power-efficient than silicon for 5G RF. In fact, GaN has been the heir apparent to silicon in 5G power amplifiers for years, especially when it comes to mmWave 5G networks. What makes it so attractive is its ability to efficie... » read more

Week in Review: IoT, Security, Autos


Products/Services Synopsys agreed to acquire QTronic, a German company specializing in simulation, test tools, and services for automotive software and systems development. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of the company’s 2019 fiscal year. “The terms of the deal, which is not material to Synopsys financials, are not being disclosed,” Synopsys said in a statemen... » read more

Determining Where Power Analysis Matters Most


How much accuracy is required in every stage of power analysis is becoming a subject of debate, as engineering teams wrestle with a mix of new architectures, different use cases and increasing pressure to get designs out on time. The question isn't whether power is a critical factor in designs anymore. That is a given. It is now about the most efficient way to tackle those issues, as well as... » read more

Multiphysics Simulations For RFICs And SoCs For 5G Applications


System-on-chips (SoCs) and radio frequency integrated circuits (RFICs) for 5G smartphones and networks need to manage huge amounts of antenna data and offer significantly high processing capabilities in thermally and power-constrained environments. ANSYS multiphysics simulations simultaneously solve power, thermal, variability, timing, electromagnetics and reliability challenges across the spec... » read more

Week in Review: IoT, Security, Auto


Products/Services Rambus agreed to acquire Hillsboro, Ore.-based Northwest Logic, a purveyor of memory, PCIe, and MIPI digital controllers. The transaction is expected to close in the current quarter. Financial terms weren’t disclosed; Rambus said in a statement, “Although this transaction will not materially impact 2019 results due to the expected timing of close and acquisition accountin... » read more

Solving 5G’s Thorniest Issues


5G rollouts are beginning to hit the market, accompanied by a long list of unsolved technical and business issues surrounding this next-generation wireless technology. But progress is being made on some of the key challenges facing this technology, even though not all of those solutions will be in place at launch. The real challenges are with millimeter-wave implementations of 5G, which oper... » read more

Why Integrated SIM Will Unleash The Secure, Mobile IoT


Connected IoT devices such as sensors, object trackers, security cameras, intelligent traffic lights, wearables and smart meters are proliferating at a rapid pace. A significant number of connected IoT devices use cellular technology for communication. 5G is setting the stage for the next wave of devices to enable rapid IoT connectivity at an even greater scale. NB-IoT and LTE-M, which are low ... » read more

Power/Performance Bits: July 30


100GHz transceiver Engineers at the University of California Irvine built a new wireless transceiver that works above 100 gigahertz. The 4.4-millimeter-square silicon chip, called an "end-to-end transmitter-receiver," uses a digital-analog architecture that modulates the digital bits in the analog and radio-frequency domains to process digital signals quickly and energy-efficiently. "We cal... » read more

Verification Requirements For 5G To Enable A Perfect Storm Of New Applications


In my role as product management lead, to understand drivers for verification requirements and semiconductor markets I often exchange thoughts with customers what they think the next “killer app” would be. Ten years back, the drivers seemed pretty clear and segmented on a small number of applications, but the outlook today in 2019 is much more diverse. 5G networking seems to be a binding el... » read more

Week in Review: IoT, Security, Auto


Products/Services Arm rolled out its Flexible Access program, which offers system-on-a-chip design teams the capability to try out the company’s semiconductor intellectual property, along with IP from Arm partners, before they commit to licensing IP and to pay only for what they use in production. The new engagement model is expected to prove useful for Internet of Things design projects and... » read more

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