How FinFET Device Performance Is Affected By Epitaxial Process Variations

By Jacky Huang - 25 Sep, 2019 - Comments: 0

By Shih-Hao (Jacky) Huang and Yu De Chen As the need to scale transistors to ever-smaller sizes continues to press on technology designers, the impact of parasitic resistance and capacitance can approach or even outpace other aspects of transistor performance, such as fringing capacitance or source drain resistance. The total resistance in a device is comprised of two components: internal re... » read more

DC Bus Switching Performance as Determined by Commutation Loop Parasitics and Switching Dynamics

By Wolfspeed, a Cree Company - 19 Jun, 2019 - Comments: 0

In this article a 250 kW all-SiC inverter evaluation kit designed around low-inductance, high-speed power modules is used to demonstrate the DC bus switching performance resulting from the interaction among commutation loop parasitics and the switching dynamics. The interplay among the DC bus structure parasitics and near-RF switching dynamics can be quantified in both the time and frequency do... » read more

Using Less Power At The Same Node

By Brian Bailey - 14 Mar, 2019 - Comments: 0

Going to the next node has been the most effective way to reduce power, but that is no longer true or desirable for a growing percentage of the semiconductor industry. So the big question now is how to reduce power while maintaining the same node size. After understanding how the power is used, both chip designers and fabs have techniques available to reduce power consumption. Fabs are makin... » read more

Electromagnetic Analysis and Signoff: Cost Savings

By Magdy Abadir - 18 Sep, 2018 - Comments: 0

By Nikolas Provatas and Magdy Abadir We are often asked by SoC design teams about the benefits of an electromagnetic analysis and signoff methodology. Here is an overview of some of the big “cost savings”. Time to Market Savings Utilizing an EM crosstalk analysis and signoff methodology provides designers with an “insurance policy” against the risk of EM coupling in their SOC des... » read more

Managing Parasitics For Transistor Performance

By Katherine Derbyshire - 30 Jan, 2017 - Comments: 3

The basic equations describing transistor behavior rely on parameters like channel doping, the capacitance of the gate oxide, and the resistance between the source and drain and the channel. And for most of the IC industry's history, these have been sufficient. “Parasitic” or “external” resistances and capacitances from structures outside the transistor have been small enough to discoun... » read more

Reflecting Back On 2016

By Brian Bailey - 22 Dec, 2016 - Comments: 0

Anyone can make a prediction, and sometimes the more outlandish they are the more they get noticed. But at the end of the year some people hit the mark while others may have been way off. Many people simply make projections based on the current trajectory of trends, while others look for the potential discontinuities that may lie ahead. Semiconductor Engineering examines the projections made... » read more

Have Margins Outlived Their Usefulness?

By Aveek Sarkar - 20 Apr, 2016 - Comments: 0

To automate the process of solving complex design problems, the traditional approach has been to partition them into smaller, manageable tasks. For each task, we have built the best possible solution which we continuously refine over time. Additionally, we have managed the interdependencies between tasks by defining boundaries or margins; these often have been best- and worst-case values used t... » read more

Internet of FD-SOI Things?

By Katherine Derbyshire - 18 Feb, 2016 - Comments: 0

Are fully-depleted silicon-on-insulator (FD-SOI) wafers having a moment? Certainly SOI wafers are not new. Soitec’s SmartCut layer transfer technology was patented in 1994, and wafers with implanted oxide layers were available before that. Still, adoption of SOI wafers has been limited. Though they offer improved device isolation and reduced parasitics, the increased wafer cost has been an ob... » read more

New System Requirements Demand a Creatively Choreographed Ecosystem

By Jim Feldhan - 17 Sep, 2015 - Comments: 0

In the past, integrated circuits, packages and boards were all designed independently, and yet in most cases still managed to fit together with very few functional or technical problems. However, recent advances in chip performance have changed this process dramatically. New designs, processes and materials already have been seen in packaging as high-performance semiconductor chips need to c... » read more

Package Modeling Needs For A Robust IC Power Integrity Sign-Off

By Chris Ortiz - 12 Mar, 2015 - Comments: 0

Progress in IC technology has allowed chip designers to pack more functionality and continually make better use of silicon area. This trend, coupled with the need to maintain low power using techniques such as voltage islands and power and clock gating, has caused the power consumption to vary across the chip and over time. This has introduced considerable amount of transient current peaks in t... » read more

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Knowledge Centers
Entities, people and technologies explored

Shift Left Is The Tip Of The Iceberg

A transformative change is underway for semiconductor design and EDA. New languages, models, and abstractions will need to be created.

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Partitioning In The Chiplet Era

Understanding how chiplets interact under different workloads is critical to ensuring signal integrity and optimal performance in heterogeneous designs.

by Ann Mutschler

3.5D: The Great Compromise

Pros and cons of a middle-ground chiplet assembly that combines 2.5D and 3D-IC.

by Ed Sperling

AI’s Role In Chip Design Widens, Drawing In New Startups

Focus is on letting engineers do much more with the same or fewer resources — and less drudgery.

by Karen Heyman

Key Technologies To Extend EUV To 14 Angstroms

Alongside high-NA EUV will be better-performing photoresists, reduced roughness using passivation and etch, and lateral etching to reduce tip-to-tip dimensions.

by Laura Peters

What Comes After HBM For Chiplets

The standard for high-bandwidth memory limits design freedom at many levels, but that is required for interoperability. What freedoms can be taken from other functions to make chiplets possible?

by Brian Bailey

Memory Fundamentals For Engineers

eBook: Nearly everything you need to know about memory, including detailed explanations of the different types of memory; how and where these are used today; what's changing, which memories are successful and which ones might be in the future; and the limitations of each memory type.

by The SE Staff

Why Small Fab And Assembly Houses Are Thriving

Megafabs churning out the most advanced processors are not the only game in town.

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tag: parasitics