Batteries Charge To The Edge


Long-awaited advances in battery chemistry and materials science are beginning to roll out, opening the door for higher capacity, faster charging, and much lower likelihood of thermal runaway. This is a high-stakes race, fueled by an insatiable demand for power everywhere from handheld devices to data centers. When Finland's Donut Lab claimed earlier this year that it had developed a solid-s... » read more

IC Security Threats Spike With Quantum, AI, And Automotive


Key Takeaways: The top challenge for the chip architect is building post‑quantum cryptography securely into real hardware from the start, not just selecting approved algorithms. Security must be treated as a core silicon architecture decision early on, especially for long‑lived, automotive, and multi‑vendor systems. Automotive cybersecurity now requires a holistic approach span... » read more

The One Bit Problem That Can Break a System


Key Takeaways: Bit flipping is no longer a rare reliability issue but a systemic risk driven by shrinking process nodes, higher clock speeds, lower voltages, and radiation exposure, leading to silent data corruption and potential system failure. The same mechanisms that cause accidental bit flips can be deliberately exploited through techniques such as clock, voltage, laser, and rowhamm... » read more

Flexible ICs, MEMS, Metal Oxides Solve Fresh Problems


Key Takeaways: Flexible ICs are durable and form-fitting, but they add manufacturing challenges to already complex processes, while printed flex sensors lack infrastructure. MEMS are finding new popularity in massively parallel systems, on one device, or in many devices distributed across a network. Metal oxide-based sensors are more scalable than those relying on photonic crystals, ... » read more

Environmental Sensors Catch More Data For A Greener World


Sensors to detect temperature, pressure, and gases, such as CO2, have been around for centuries. However, the latest devices can measure a growing list of substances and process the data in real-time. Likewise, single-use sensors to measure pH levels in water are well established, but the latest water sensors can be deployed all along the pipeline from source to processing to outlet or tap, sav... » read more

The Future of Powering AI


We are at the dawn of the next technological revolution. A revolution driven by Artificial Intelligence (AI) and accelerating at an unprecedented speed. At the end of 2022, with the launch of ChatGPT, our world changed significantly; within two months, it gained 100 million active users. AI not only has the potential to transform every area of life, be it financial services, digital assistants,... » read more

SDVs And AI Forcing Big Changes In Automotive


The automotive industry is undergoing a fundamental transformation that includes everything from software-defined vehicles, the injection of AI into nearly every facet of the design and use case of a vehicle, and a complete overhaul of traditional relationships between different tiers and OEMs. The switch to software-defined vehicles is a top priority for the automotive ecosystem. It enables... » read more

Chip Industry Technical Paper Roundup: June 24


New technical papers recently added to Semiconductor Engineering’s library: [table id=442 /] Find more semiconductor research papers here. » read more

Domain Adaptation for Image Classification of Defects in Semiconductor Manufacturing (Infineon, U. Padova et al.)


A new technical paper titled "Domain Adaptation for Image Classification of Defects in Semiconductor Manufacturing" was published by researchers at Infineon Technologies, University of Padova and University of Bologna. Abstract "In the semiconductor sector, due to high demand but also strong and increasing competition, time to market and quality are key factors in securing significant marke... » read more

Chip Industry Week in Review


Check out the Inside Chips podcast for our behind-the-scenes analysis of changes at Intel Foundry. Intel rolled out its updated process technology roadmap this week, along with early process design kit (PDK) for its 14A gate-all-around process technology. That node will utilize high-NA EUV, and include direct contact power delivery, the second generation of its backside power delivery techno... » read more

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