Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test


The more than 1,400 attendees at this week’s IEDM, which celebrated the 75th anniversary of the transistor, were clearly focused on making the next 75 years of semiconductors even more remarkable than the last. Intel, Samsung, TSMC, STMicroelectronics, GlobalFoundries and imec announced breakthrough devices, materials, and even integration approaches. These included: Intel showcased adva... » read more

Week In Review: Semiconductor Manufacturing, Test


With the European Council’s adoption of its negotiating mandate for the European Chips Act, member states and the Czech Presidency of the Council have reached a critical milestone in supporting Europe’s efforts to advance manufacturing and supply of critical components, while bolstering R&D capacities for development of next-generation semiconductor innovations, according to SEMI. Ch... » read more

Week In Review: Auto, Security, Pervasive Computing


Automotive, Mobility The U.S. space agency NASA entered a $57.2 million contract with ICON to develop technology to build roads on the moon. ICON, a Texas-based 3D printing construction company, has been working with NASA and the U.S. Air Force on construction technologies that can use local materials to build infrastructure on Mars. NASA is working on advanced 3D printing construction systems... » read more

Week In Review: Design, Low Power


Tools and IP Renesas released a family of configurable clock generators with an internal crystal oscillator for PCIe and networking applications in high-end computing, wired infrastructure and data center equipment. “Timing needs can vary greatly between different applications and equipment, and often change during a product design cycle,” said Zaher Baidas, Vice President of the Timing Pr... » read more

Week In Review: Semiconductor Manufacturing, Test


U.S. President Joe Biden appears ready to increase pressure on Japan and the Netherlands to help block the flow of advanced chip technology to China, where it can be used to develop cutting-edge weapons. "You will see Japan and Netherlands follow our lead," U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo told CNBC. Japan plans to budget ¥350 billion ($2.38 billion) in a research collaboration with th... » read more

Chip Industry Earnings: A Mixed Bag


Editor's Note: Updated the week of Oct. 31 and Nov. 7 for additional earnings releases. Although most companies reported revenue growth, this latest round of chip industry earnings releases reflected a few major themes: Lower future quarter guidance to varying degrees, due to the recent U.S. export restrictions related to China; Negative impact of the inflationary environment on corn... » read more

Week In Review: Semiconductor Manufacturing, Test


This week saw more fallout from U.S. export controls: SK hynix may consider selling its memory chip production facilities in China if recently imposed controls make it too difficult to continue operations there, according to Nikkei Asia. "As a contingency plan, we are considering selling the fab, selling the equipment or transferring the equipment to South Korea," said Kevin Noh, SK hynix ... » read more

Which Foundry Is In The Lead? It Depends.


The multi-billion-dollar race for foundry leadership is becoming more convoluted and complex, making it difficult to determine which company is in the lead at any time because there are so many factors that need to be weighed. This largely is a reflection of changes in the customer base at the leading edge and the push toward domain-specific designs. In the past, companies like Apple, Google... » read more

Wafer Cleaning Becomes Key Challenge In Manufacturing 3D Structures


Wafer cleaning, once a rather mundane task as simple as dipping wafers in cleaning fluid, is emerging as one of the top major engineering challenges for manufacturing GAA FETs and 3D-ICs. With these new 3D structures — some on the horizon but some already in high-volume manufacturing — semiconductor wafer equipment and materials suppliers in the wet cleaning business are at the epicenter... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test


On Sunday, a 6.8-magnitude earthquake struck the southeast region of Taiwan, causing devastation. TSMC officials reported “no known significant impact for now.” Market research firm TrendForce arrived at a similar conclusion based on its analysis of individual fabs. The Biden administration announced appointment of the leadership team charged with implementing the US CHIPS and Science Ac... » read more

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