Even With AI Inroads, Human Chip Designers Still Essential


The proliferation of AI tools seems perfectly matched to fill a talent shortage, but a closer look shows the skills do not entirely overlap. Certain parts of the EDA pipeline require human engineers, and it seems likely to stay that way for the foreseeable future. The dark art of analog design, the final word on safety-critical functional safety, high-level architectural decisions, product i... » read more

Enhancing PCIe 6.0 Performance: Flit Sequence Numbers And Selective NAK Explained


The Flit Sequence Number is a mechanism introduced in the PCIe 6.0 specification, accompanying the transition to Flit Mode operation. This enhancement supersedes the legacy transaction layer packet (TLP) sequence numbering, along with its associated acknowledgment and replay protocols. What is a Flit Sequence Number? Historically, each TLP carried an explicit sequence number, which, while con... » read more

Advances In Formal Verification Technology


Experts at the table: Semiconductor Engineering sat down to discuss advances in formal verification tools and methodologies with Ashish Darbari, CEO for Axiomise; Jin Zhang, product management group director for the Verification Group at Cadence; Sean Safarpour, executive director for R&D at Synopsys; and Jeremy Levitt, principal engineer for Digital Verification Technology at Siemens EDA.... » read more

Ebook: The Impact of AI On Data Center Design


AI is reshaping the data center industry. Rising power demands, advanced cooling needs, and digital twin technology are redefining how facilities are designed and operated. Download our free ebook on AI-optimized data centers to learn: How AI workloads are driving massive increases in power and cooling requirements Why liquid cooling is becoming essential for AI infrastructure ... » read more

Blog Review: Oct. 29


Siemens' Ujjwal Negi and Prashant Dixit warn that while UCIe 3.0 improves performance and efficiency through higher data rates, runtime recalibration, priority sideband messaging, low-power sideband operation, and circular buffer transport, those enhancements also increase verification complexity. Cadence's Anika Sunda suggests that a unified digital thread that connects verification environ... » read more

Chip Industry Technical Paper Roundup: Oct. 28


New technical papers recently added to Semiconductor Engineering’s library: [table id=486 /] Find more semiconductor research papers here. » read more

Chip Industry Week in Review


Retaliations and countermoves leading up to planned trade talks between the U.S. and China led experts to wonder, 'Who's winning?' New activity on this front: China issued questionnaires to some U.S. semiconductor firms as part of an anti-dumping probe, demanding detailed data on sales, profit margins, logistics costs and Chinese customer names for analog chips. The probe appears aimed at ... » read more

Powering Efficiency: AI Transforms IC Manufacturing As ICs Fuel AI


The push to grow today’s $500 billion-plus semiconductor industry to $1 trillion in annual revenue is challenging every aspect of the broader supply chain to embrace AI. Artificial intelligence is transforming the way fabs are architected and run, how devices are manufactured, and how server farms are constructed going forward. At the same time, all of this is being enabled by advancements... » read more

Thermal Simulation And Optimization in 3D-IC Design (Intel, UCSB, Cadence)


A new technical paper titled "DeepOHeat-v1: Efficient Operator Learning for Fast and Trustworthy Thermal Simulation and Optimization in 3D-IC Design" was published by researchers at Intel Corporation, University of California, Santa Barbara and Cadence. Abstract "Thermal analysis is crucial in 3D-IC design due to increased power density and complex heat dissipation paths. Although operator ... » read more

Multiple Challenges Emerge With Physical AI System Design


Physical AI holds the promise of making everything from robots to a slew of mobile edge devices much more interactive and useful, but it will significantly alter how systems are designed, verified, and monitored. Physical AI systems need to work both independently and together. They need the ability to make decisions quickly and locally, typically using much less power than other types of AI... » read more

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