What Is An Integrated Circuit?


In our modern world, just about everything is woven together by electronics. From microwaves to satellites, electronics-powered devices are infused into our every waking moment. Today, even our sleep includes digital acoustics, haptics, and analytics. But while the systems that light, connect, and move our lives can vary greatly, nearly every electronic device has one or more of the same fundam... » read more

Enablers And Barriers For Connecting Diverse Data


More data is being collected at every step of the manufacturing process, raising the possibility of combining data in new ways to solve engineering problems. But this is far from simple, and combining results is not always possible. The semiconductor industry’s thirst for data has created oceans of it from the manufacturing process. In addition, semiconductor designs large and small now ha... » read more

Beyond The Water Cooler: 2020 Report On IC/ASIC Design And Verification Trends


Verification and design engineers like to talk shop and discuss their experiences and visions. But even though engineers sharing stories around the water cooler (whatever form that takes—conferences, blogs, etc.) does provide all kinds of valuable insights, it doesn’t provide the full picture into the very large and complicated and extremely dynamic global semiconductor industry. To better ... » read more

Trust Assurance And Security Verification of Semiconductor IPs And ICs


Connected autonomous vehicles, 5G networks, Internet-of-things (IoT) devices, defense systems, and critical infrastructure use ASIC and FPGA SoCs running artificial intelligence algorithms or other complex software stacks. Vulnerable or tampered ICs can compromise the safety of people and the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of sensitive information. This paper analyzes the trust... » read more

Semiconductor Fab Materials Outlook


By Dan Tracy While segments of the global economy are slowing and uncertainty is once again on the rise, fundamental unit trends for semiconductor materials have improved in recent months and growth expectations for the fab materials market remain modest for 2012 and into 2013. Three-month shipment data shows silicon shipments—from the wafer suppliers to the fabs—during the current cycl... » read more

Solutions For Mixed-Signal IP, IC, And SoC Implementation


Traditional mixed-signal design environments, in which analog and digital parts are implemented separately, are no longer sufficient and lead to excess iteration and prolonged design cycle time. Realizing modern mixed-signal designs requires new flows that maximize productivity and facilitate close collaboration among analog and digital designers. This paper outlines mixed-signal implem... » read more

Smarter Co-design With Models


By Ann Steffora Mutschler IC, package and PCB co-design methodologies are starting to be adopted by semiconductor companies. However, the existing die abstract file used in these flows to exchange data between the IC designer and the downstream package design team may not contain enough detail to drive advanced planning and optimization with the package and PCB interfaces. Engineering teams... » read more