Running More Efficient AI/ML Code With Neuromorphic Engines


Neuromorphic engineering is finally getting closer to market reality, propelled by the AI/ML-driven need for low-power, high-performance solutions. Whether current initiatives result in true neuromorphic devices, or whether devices will be inspired by neuromorphic concepts, remains to be seen. But academic and industry researchers continue to experiment in the hopes of achieving significant ... » read more

Large-Scale Integration’s Future Depends On Modeling


VLSI is a term that conjures up images of a college textbook, but some of the concepts included in very large-scale integration remain relevant and continue to evolve, while others have fallen by the wayside. The portion of VLSI that remains most relevant for semiconductor industry is "integration," which is pushing well beyond the edges of a monolithic planar chip. But that expansion also i... » read more

An Energy Efficient, Linux-Capable RISC-V Host Platform Designed For The Seamless Plug-In And Control Of Domain-Specific Accelerators


A technical paper titled “Cheshire: A Lightweight, Linux-Capable RISC-V Host Platform for Domain-Specific Accelerator Plug-In” was published by researchers at ETH Zurich and University of Bologna. Abstract: "Power and cost constraints in the internet-of-things (IoT) extreme-edge and TinyML domains, coupled with increasing performance requirements, motivate a trend toward heterogeneous arc... » read more

Hardware Trojan Detection Case Study Based on 4 Different ICs Manufactured in Progressively Smaller CMOS Process Technologies


A technical paper titled "Red Team vs. Blue Team: A Real-World Hardware Trojan Detection Case Study Across Four Modern CMOS Technology Generations" was published by researchers at Max Planck Institute for Security and Privacy, Université catholique de Louvain (Belgium), Ruhr University Bochum, and Bundeskriminalamt. "In this work, we aim to improve upon this state of the art by presenting a... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test


Chipmakers Intel has announced a definitive agreement to acquire Tower, a specialty foundry vendor, for approximately $5.4 billion. With the acquisition of Tower, Intel expands its efforts in the foundry business, and put its rivals on notice. With Tower, Intel gains access to mature processes as well as specialty technologies, such as analog, CMOS image sensor, MEMS, power management and RF. ... » read more

VLSI Design Careers


If you're planning your career in the semiconductor industry, make sure you consider processor design. Now the aspiring VLSI engineers like you can implement the open-source processor RISC-V while learning from the textbooks. But why should a VLSI engineer understand the processor design? Does everyone implement the processor as an RTL designer? In this article, I will address these question... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test


Packaging and test TrendForce has released its ranking of the top OSATs in terms of sales in the first quarter of 2021. ASE remains in the top spot, followed in order by Amkor, JCET, SPIL and PTI. “Industry leaders ASE and Amkor posted revenues of $1.69 billion and $1.33 billion, which are YoY increases of 24.6% and 15.0%, respectively, in 1Q21,” according to TrendForce. “ASE graduall... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test


Government policy Semiconductor companies as well hardware and software vendors have announced the formation of the Semiconductors in America Coalition (SIAC). The group called on congressional leaders to appropriate $50 billion for U.S. manufacturing incentives and research initiatives. SIAC’s mission is to advance federal policies that promote semiconductor manufacturing and research in th... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test


Chipmakers and OEMs Intel wants $9.7 billion in subsidies for use in building a leading-edge fab in Europe, according to a report from Reuters. As reported, in March, Intel re-entered the foundry business, positioning itself against Samsung and TSMC at the leading edge, and against a multitude of foundries working at older nodes. Eighteen members of the European Union recently launched an ... » read more

Week In Review: Manufacturing, Test


Chipmakers SMIC’s shares fell following the resignation of the company co-CEO, according to a report from Bloomberg. Liang Mong Song, co-CEO of the Chinese foundry company, has proposed to resign and the company has become aware of Liang’s intention of conditional resignation, according to a filing. A former technologist at TSMC and Samsung, Liang has opposed the appointment of a new board... » read more

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