Future-proofing AI Models


Experts At The Table: Making sure AI accelerators can be updated for future requirements is becoming essential due to the rapid introduction of new models. Semiconductor Engineering sat down to discuss the challenges of future-proofing these designs with Marc Meunier, director of ecosystem development at Arm; Jason Lawley, director of product marketing for AI IP at Cadence; Paul Karazuba, vic... » read more

More Data, More Redundant Interconnects


The proliferation of AI dramatically increases the amount of data that needs to be processed, stored, and moved, accelerating the aging of signal paths through which that data travels and forcing chipmakers to build more redundancy into the interconnects. In the past, nearly all redundant data paths were contained within a planar chip using a relatively thick silicon substrate. But as chipma... » read more

AI Accelerators Moving Out From Data Centers


Experts At The Table: The explosion in AI data is driving chipmakers to look beyond a single planar SoC. Semiconductor Engineering sat down to discuss the need for more computing and the expanding role of chiplets with Marc Meunier, director of ecosystem development at Arm; Jason Lawley, director of product marketing for AI IP at Cadence; Paul Karazuba, vice president of marketing at Expedera; ... » read more

Photonics Speeds Up Data Center AI


Photonics is playing an increasingly vital role in the acceleration of AI within data centers. The global market for optical components is already substantial, accounting for $17 billion in revenue last year. Historically, telecommunications — such as undersea cables and fiber-to-the-home — dominated demand. However, the datacom sector, especially AI-driven data centers, now accounts for... » read more

Research Bits: April 22


PIC heterogeneous integration Researchers from Hewlett Packard Labs, Indian Institutes of Technology Madras, Microsoft Research, and University of Michigan built an AI acceleration platform based on heterogeneously integrated photonic ICs. The PIC combines silicon photonics along with III-V compound semiconductors that functionally integrate lasers and optical amplifiers to reduce optical l... » read more

Photonic-SRAM Bitcell for High-Speed On-Chip Photonic Memory and Compute Systems (UW, USC, GF)


A new technical paper titled "Design of Energy-Efficient Cross-coupled Differential Photonic-SRAM (pSRAM) Bitcell for High-Speed On-Chip Photonic Memory and Compute Systems" was published by researchers at University of Wisconsin–Madison, USC and GlobalFoundries. Abstract "In this work, we propose a novel differential photonic static random access memory (pSRAM) bitcell design using fabri... » read more

Research Bits: Apr. 1


Neuro-synaptic RAM Researchers from the National University of Singapore (NUS) and King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) found that a standard silicon transistor can function like a biological neuron and synapse when arranged and operated in a specific way. The team was able to replicate both neural firing and synaptic weight changes by adjusting the resistance of the b... » read more

High-Speed High-Capacity Mixed-Signal Simulation Of Silicon Photonics


Many of today’s computing and communications applications demand almost unimaginable processing capability and high-bandwidth access to memory. For example, many data center systems using high-end Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) often need to transfer multiple terabytes per second. Traditional copper-based interconnects, limited to speeds of hundreds of megabits per second (Mbps), cannot ... » read more

Big Changes Ahead For Interposers And Substrates


Interposers and substrates are undergoing a profound transformation from intermediaries to engineered platforms responsible for power distribution, thermal management, high-density interconnects, and signal integrity in the most advanced computing systems. This shift is being driven by AI, high-performance computing (HPC), and next-generation communications, where the need for heterogeneous ... » read more

Silicon Photonics Raises New Test Challenges


Semiconductor devices continuously experience advancements leading to technology and innovation leaps, such as we see today for applications in AI high-performance computing for data centers, edge AI devices, electric vehicles, autonomous driving, mobile phones, and others. Recent technology innovations include Angstrom-scale semiconductor processing nodes, high-bandwidth memory, advanced 2.5D/... » read more

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