Blog Review: Jan. 29


Mentor's Shivani Joshi introduces the basics of PCB layout and the importance of being familiar with a manufacturer's specs. Cadence's Paul McLellan takes a look at why Design Technology Co-Optimization is increasingly necessary as 3nm approaches and new transistor types like CFET and gate-all-around are on the horizon. Synopsys' Sai Karthik Madabhushi recounts an alarming incident that h... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test


Market research What are the hot chip markets for 2020? IC Insights released its rankings of sales growth rates for each of the 33 IC product categories defined by the World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) organization. “After posting the two worst growth rates among all IC product categories in 2019, NAND flash and DRAM are forecast to be among the top three fastest-growing IC segment... » read more

Week In Review: Design, Low Power


Xilinx filed a patent infringement countersuit against Analog Devices, alleging infringement of eight U.S. patents including technologies involving serializers/deserializers (SerDes), high-speed ADCs and DACs, as well as mixed-signal devices targeting 5G and other markets. The counterclaims are in response to Analog Devices' December lawsuit alleging unauthorized use by Xilinx of eight ADI pate... » read more

Is This The Year Of The Chiplet?


Customizing chips by choosing pre-characterized — and most likely hardened IP — from a menu of options appears to be gaining ground. It's rare to go to a conference these days without hearing chiplets being mentioned. At a time when end markets are splintering and more designs are unique, chiplets are viewed as a way to rapidly build a device using exactly what is required for a particul... » read more

Finding Defects In EUV Masks


Extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography is finally in production at advanced nodes, but there are still several challenges with the technology, such as EUV mask defects. Defects are unwanted deviations in chips, which can impact yield and performance. They can crop up during the chip manufacturing process, including the production of a mask or photomask, sometimes called a reticle. Fortunately... » read more

5/3nm Wars Begin


Several foundries are ramping up their new 5nm processes in the market, but now customers must decide whether to design their next chips around the current transistor type or move to a different one at 3nm and beyond. The decision involves the move to extend today’s finFETs to 3nm, or to implement a new technology called gate-all-around FETs (GAA FETs) at 3nm or 2nm. An evolutionary step f... » read more

Blog Review: Jan. 22


Synopsys' Taylor Armerding explains different types of social engineering scams that target everyone from CEOs to gamers to smart appliance users, and what training and tools can better protect people and their organizations. Mentor's Dennis Joseph points to some important things to consider if you're thinking about switching from GDS to OASIS and some tips for converting files. Cadence's... » read more

Week In Review: IoT, Security, Autos


Internet of Things Sensors that see in the dark, look deep into our faces and hear the impossible, were all part of ams’ CES lineup this week. ams announced that it has designed an advanced spectral ambient light sensor (ALS) for high-end mobile phone cameras. The ALS, called the AS7350, identifies the light source and makes an accurate white balance under low-light and other non-ideal condi... » read more

Blog Review: Jan. 8


Synopsys' Taylor Armerding digs into the privacy and security concerns surrounding connected toys and argues that the current practice of consumers bearing much of the burden to determine what is safe is not viable. In a podcast, Mentor's John McMillan looks back at the past decade in technology and what the next may hold in store as areas like AI and automotive get going. Cadence's Madha... » read more

The Week In Review: Semiconductors


The tech-centric NASDAQ index this week broke 9,000, which was a first. Key to the latest run-up were reports of a breakthrough on the trade war with China and continued low interest rates. Chuck Peddle, who helped democratize computing and fuel Moore's Law with his $25 processor chip, passed away last week. Peddle designed the MOS Technology 6502, which was the basis for the KIM-1 single-bo... » read more

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