Smart Test Collides With The Data Chain


Key Takeaways: The promise of smart test is a data-chain problem before it is an algorithm problem. A device can pass every checkpoint and still carry a latent defect the test record never captured. As test grows more adaptive, the validity of the measurement environment matters as much as the measurement itself. For years, the test roadmap has pointed toward more adaptive f... » read more

Powering AI At Scale: Why 3D-ICs Demand A New Approach To Power Integrity


By Muhammad Hassan and Sudarshan Deo The semiconductor industry is undergoing a fundamental transition. Performance scaling is no longer driven primarily by transistor density, but by advanced packaging—2.5D, 3D-ICs, chiplets, and heterogeneous integration. Fig. 1: 3D-IC and 2.5D structure. These architectures are essential to meeting the extreme performance and bandwidth demands... » read more

2.5D + 3D = “3.5D”!


The semiconductor industry is no longer defined solely by transistor scaling. As Moore's law decelerates, advanced packaging has become the primary lever for achieving system-level performance gains. Within this landscape, the equation 2.5D + 3D = 3.5D—defying the instincts of basic math and physics—captures a pivotal architectural evolution: one that balances performance, manufacturabilit... » read more

Foundry Capacity Is Limiting Who Competes At Leading Edge Nodes


Key Takeaways: Leading-edge node access is increasingly reserved for hyperscalers, squeezing smaller chip developers. Chiplets and advanced packaging offer a path forward, but raise cost, complexity, and risk — especially for smaller teams. Chip architecture is now driven as much by capacity, yield, and economics as by technical goals. The benefits of device scaling are sl... » read more

How To Streamline Your Advanced Package Interconnect Designs


Monolithic system-on-chip (SoC) designs was once a popular choice. However, they face significant constraints in the era of AI. By forcing all chip functions into a single die and process node, they reduce engineering, manufacturing, and design cost flexibility. In contrast, the multi-die nature of chiplets enables different SoC functions to be designed and verified independently and fabrica... » read more

Energy-Efficient Liquid Cooling for Advanced Semiconductor Packaging (KAIST)


A new technical paper, "Highly energy-efficient manifold microchannel for cooling electronics with a coefficient of performance over 100,000," was published by researchers at KAIST. The study presents a CMOS-compatible manifold microchannel cooler that removes over 2,000 W/cm² using single-phase water at only 8 kPa pressure drop, achieving a record COP of 106,000—a significant improvement... » read more

Building An AI Chip: Silicon Design And Advanced Packaging


AI has become a key driver for the semiconductor industry as it is applied to ever more aspects of daily life. Many startups and established vendors are designing AI chips to accelerate algorithms and yield the best results. AI designs are large and complex, requiring advanced process nodes and putting stress on every step of the development process. Multi-die, or chiplet-based, design is becom... » read more

When Semiconductor Materials Misbehave


Key Takeaways Material behavior in production depends on the process context that no development environment can fully replicate. In advanced packaging, the interactions that cross domain boundaries are increasingly where failures originate. The most accurate materials data is also the most commercially sensitive, leaving simulation models calibrated against generic inputs rather tha... » read more

System-in-Package Challenges


Systems companies and leading-edge chipmakers are pushing past reticle limits with chiplet-based designs, often breaking compute-intensive functions into different chiplets and coupling those with other chiplets that may have been developed by different teams and at different process nodes. This is harder than it sounds, and results can vary widely even under the best circumstances. Nir Sever, ... » read more

TSV Complexity Leads To Manufacturing Bottleneck


Key Takeaways: Through-silicon vias are the biggest enabler of 3D chip stacking and chip-to-PCB connections through silicon interposers. The AI boom is causing HBM and advanced assembly shortages, straining the supply chain. Optimization around etch, fill and reveal help reduce TSV cost. Through-silicon vias (TSVs) provide essential interconnects between DRAM dies inside hig... » read more

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