Chip Architectures Becoming Much More Complex With Chiplets


The migration from monolithic SoCs to chiplet-based designs is creating a confusing array of options and tradeoffs for design teams working at the leading edge, and the number of choices is only going to increase as third-party chiplets begin pouring into the market. That hasn't dampened the appetite for chiplets, however, which are deemed essential for future generations of semiconductors f... » read more

Chiplets Still A Challenge With UCIe 2.0


Plug-and-play chiplets are a popular goal, but does UCIe 2.0 move us any closer to that becoming a reality? The problem is that the current drivers of the standard are not after interoperability in the way that plug-and-play requires. Released in August 2024, UCIe 2.0 touts higher bandwidth density and improved power efficiency, as well as new features supporting 3D packaging, a manageable s... » read more

Chip Industry Week In Review


Updated for 12/20 government fundings and 12/23 for China trade investigation announcements. President Biden announced a trade investigation into "China's unfair trade practices in the semiconductor sector."  The announcement stated "PRC semiconductors often enter the U.S. market as a component of finished goods. This Section 301 investigation will examine a broad range of the PRC’s non-m... » read more

Redefining XPU Memory For AI Data Centers Through Custom HBM4: Part 3


This is the third and final of a series from Alphawave Semi on HBM4 and gives and examines custom HBM implementations. Click here for part 1, which gives an overview of the HBM standard, and here for part 2, on HBM implementation challenges. This follows on from our second blog, where we discussed the substantial improvements high bandwidth memory (HBM) provides over traditional memory tec... » read more

Strain, Stress In Advanced Packages Drives New Design Approaches


Thermal and mechanical stresses are creating significant challenges in heterogeneous chiplet assemblies, increasing the time and cost required to work through all the possible physical effects, dependencies, and interactions, and driving demand for new tools. Unlike in the past, when various components were crammed into a planar SoC on a relatively thick substrate, the new substrates are bei... » read more

Redefining XPU Memory For AI Data Centers Through Custom HBM4: Part 2


This is the second in a three-part series from Alphawave Semi on HBM4 and gives insights into HBM implementation challenges. Click here for part 1, for an overview on HBM, and in part 3, we will introduce details of a custom HBM implementation. Implementing a 2.5D System-in-Package (SiP) with High Bandwidth Memory (HBM) is a complex process that spans across architecture definition, designi... » read more

Chip Industry Week In Review


Global chips sales hit a record $56.9 billion in October, a 22% increase versus October 2023, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association. Also, global semiconductor equipment billings reached $30.38 billion in Q3 2024, a 19% YoY increase and 13% growth QoQ, SEMI reported. TSMC commenced equipment installation for its 2nm fab in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, six months ahead of schedule. The 2n... » read more

The Evolution of HBM


High-bandwidth memory originally was conceived as a way to increase capacity in memory attached to a 2.5D package. It has since become a staple for all high-performance computing, in some cases replacing SRAM for L3 cache. Archana Cheruliyil, senior product marketing manager at Alphawave Semi, talks about how and where HBM is used today, how it will be used in the future, why it is essential fo... » read more

Redefining XPU Memory For AI Data Centers Through Custom HBM4: Part 1


This is the first of a three-part series on HBM4 and gives an overview of the HBM standard. Part 2 will provide insights on HBM implementation challenges, and part 3 will introduce the concept of a custom HBM implementation. Relentless growth in data consumption Recent advances in deep learning have had a transformative effect on artificial intelligence (AI) and the ever-increasing volume of ... » read more

Top-Down Vs. Bottom-Up Chiplet Design


Chiplets are gaining widespread attention across the semiconductor industry, but for this approach to really take off commercially it will require more standards, better modeling technologies and methodologies, and a hefty amount of investment and experimentation. The case for chiplets is well understood. They can speed up time to market with consistent results, at whatever process node work... » read more

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