Executive Viewpoint: Qualcomm On Process Technology


Semiconductor Engineering sat down to discuss current and future process technology challenges with Geoffrey Yeap, vice president of technology at Qualcomm. SE: You have pointed out there is a fundamental shift taking place at the 28nm logic node. This is the first node in which mobile chips have been ramped up first within the foundries, ahead of computing-based ICs. Many believe that 28nm ... » read more

Beyond The CES Hype


Now that the dust has settled, it’s time to realistically assess all the activity at CES 2014. The big screen TVs, the shiny new cars and all the excitement over Internet of Things certainly dazzled the CES show floor. But how much of it is hype and what will really become sustainable products? Smart lighting, smart refrigerators, smart cars, and a smart thermostat are all part of what is... » read more

Defining The Next Standard Cell


Synopsys, Intel and IBM all contributed technology to Si2 to create a standard version of parameterized cells, or PCells, for mixed-signal designs. The move is an attempt to smooth out design incompatibilities using Synopsys and Cadence technology. Cadence is the clear market leader in this space. But as more technology is developed using different vendors'  tools for integration in complex... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Design, Test


A new study from Crucial.com reveals that on some days, 64% of U.S. parents spend more time with their computers than with family or close friends. TSMC posted mixed results in the fourth quarter of 2013. It also announced flat CapEx targets for 2014. TSMC also addressed Intel’s recent comments about TSMC’s finFET plans. Morris Chang, chairman of TSMC, said Intel’s comments are mislead... » read more

Week In Review: System-Level Design


Cadence rolled out a new version of its functional verification platform, greatly improving performance and updating it to deal with the big increases in third-party and re-used IP in designs. For IP and block verification, the company said it increased formal analysis performance by up to 20% and simulation by up to 10 times. The debugger also reduces the database size by 10 times and the time... » read more

The Next Big Threat


In just the past year, tens of millions of Target store customers had their customer and credit card records stolen, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal were hacked, Adobe software had a security breach, Yahoo! was infected with malware, and Snapchat was hit with a bug that exposed user phone numbers. And this was just what was reported in the mainstream media. The threat, it turns o... » read more

The Week In Review: Manufacturing And Design


Crucial.com reveals a surprising way to gain more time for improving one's personal health: fix a slow computer. A nationwide survey revealed that U.S. adults think they waste an average of 16 minutes per day waiting for their computer to load or boot up. Equating to two hours each week and four days per year lost to the wiles of a slow computer, it's no surprise that 66% of Americans say that ... » read more

The Week In Review: System-Level Design


Cadence won a deal with Fraunhofer, which licensed its MPEG codecs for Tensilica HiFi DSP. (Cadence acquired Tensilica last year.) The AAC codecs combine speech and general-purpose audio into a unified system, which simplifies design because it works at any bit rate. Sonics won a deal with MediaTek, which licensed its NoC technology for an upcoming line of SoCs. MediaTek, based in Taiwan, is... » read more

GlobalFoundries Names New CEO


Sanjay Jha, a former executive at Motorola Mobility and Qualcomm, has been named as the new chief executive of GlobalFoundries. In the position, Jha replaces Ajit Manocha, who served as CEO for the silicon foundry vendor since 2011. Manocha, who was an advisor to the company’s largest shareholder prior to being appointed CEO, will return to that role and will work closely with Jha on his ... » read more

The Week In Review: Manufacturing And Design


Blocking cell phone use and texting while driving have been proposed by the U.S. government and for good reason. About 10 people a day are killed in “distraction-affected” car accidents in the U.S., according to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. As a result, some companies are developing technologies that can block texts while driving. But according to Strategy Analyt... » read more

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