EUV’s Uncertain Future At 3nm And Below


Several foundries have moved extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography into production at both 7nm and 5nm, but now the industry is preparing for the next phase of the technology at 3nm and beyond. In R&D, the industry is developing new EUV scanners, masks and resists for the next nodes. 3nm is slated for 2022, followed by 2nm a year or two later. Nonetheless, it will require massive funding... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test


Chipmakers TSMC has announced its intention to build and operate an advanced semiconductor fab in the U.S. The fab, to be built in Arizona, will utilize TSMC’s 5nm technology and will produce 20,000 wafers per month. TSMC’s total spending on this project will be approximately $12 billion from 2021 to 2029. Construction is planned to start in 2021 with production targeted to begin in 202... » read more

Week In Review: Auto, Security, Pervasive Computing


Security Ninety-one percent of commercial applications contain outdated or abandoned open-source components —a security threat, says Synopsys in its recently released report 2020 Open Source Security and Risk Analysis (OSSRA). In the fifth annual edition of the report, Synopsys’ research team in its Cybersecurity Research Center (CyRC) found that 99% of the 1,250 commercial codebases revie... » read more

Big Changes For eFPGAs


Geoff Tate, CEO of Flex Logix, talks with Semiconductor Engineering about the state of embedded FPGAs, why this is easier for some companies than others, why this is important for adding flexibility into an ASIC, and what are the main applications for this technology. » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test


Chipmakers The Trump administration has held talks with Intel and TSMC to build more leading-edge fabs in the U.S., according to the Wall Street Journal and other news outlets. IC Insights has released its rankings of the top-10 chip vendors in terms of sales for the first quarter. Intel remains in first place, followed by Samsung and TSMC. The big surprise is China-based fabless IC supplie... » read more

Week In Review: Design, Low Power


Tools & IP Ansys' RedHawk-SC multiphysics signoff software was certified for all TSMC advanced process technologies, including N16, N12, N7, N6 and N5. The certification includes extraction, power integrity and reliability, signal electromigration (EM) and thermal reliability analysis and statistical EM budgeting analysis. Aldec launched a new FPGA accelerator board for high performance... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test


Chipmakers Select foundries are beginning to ramp up their new 5nm processes with 3nm in R&D. There are already signs that the foundries have pushed out their 3nm production schedules. So, expect 7nm and 5nm to become long-running nodes. At 3nm, Samsung and TSMC are going in different directions. Samsung is developing a gate-all-around (GAA) technology called nanosheet FETs. TSMC will e... » read more

Week In Review: Auto, Security, Pervasive Computing


PCs get work-from-home bump Rather than using Intel chips, Apple will be making its own chips for its Mac computers, using Arm cores, Bloomberg reports. TSMC will manufacture the chips. Intel, meanwhile, was up 14% quarter year-over-year its PC business, which it attributes to more people working from home and needed new equipment. Despite a strong quarter, however, the company pulled its 2... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test


Chipmakers TSMC posted mixed results for the quarter, although there was a capital spending surprise. “It maintained its 2020 capex at $15B-$16B despite smartphone softness, primarily to support a strong 5nm ramp, led by demand from 5G and HPC customers,” said Weston Twigg, an analyst at KeyBanc, in a research note. “Despite lowering its industry outlook, TSMC still expects to grow its o... » read more

Taking A Pulse On The IC Biz


It’s been a difficult period for the semiconductor industry. The coronavirus outbreak has put a damper on what was supposed to be a strong year in the semiconductor industry in 2020. Many are holding out hopes for a rebound in the second half of the year. That’s still a big unknown. The forecasts are gloomy. For example, VLSI Research has three different scenarios for the semiconduc... » read more

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