What Will 2012 Bring The Semiconductor Ecosystem?

What Will 2012 Bring The Semiconductor Ecosystem?
by Daniel Nenni on 12-18-2011 at 4:30 pm

During my annual holiday meal with one of my favorite EDA icons some rather bold predictions were made. On his side it was more of what he would LIKE to see happen, on my side it was more of what will HAVE to happen for the semiconductor ecosystem to thrive in the coming years.

Mike Gianfagna (Viva Italia!) spent 15+ years with RCA/GE Semiconductor… Read More


Synopsys Eats Magma: What Really Happened with Winners and Losers!

Synopsys Eats Magma: What Really Happened with Winners and Losers!
by Daniel Nenni on 12-10-2011 at 6:00 pm

Conspiracy theories abound! The inside story of the Synopsys (SNPS) acquisition of Magma (LAVA) brings us back to the 1990’s tech boom with shady investment bankers and pump/dump schemes. After scanning my memory banks and digging around Silicon Valley for skeletons with a backhoe here is what I found out:

The Commission… Read More


Taiwan Trip Report: Semiconductors, EDA, and the ASIC Business!

Taiwan Trip Report: Semiconductors, EDA, and the ASIC Business!
by Daniel Nenni on 12-04-2011 at 7:00 pm

Just returning from my monthly trip to Taiwan and I find myself energized! Semiconductors, EDA, and the ASIC business have never been more exciting! The travel itself is not so exciting but since I make frequent trips the airline and hotel treat me like a king. And let me tell you, it is good to be a king!

Speaking of royalty, I saw Dr. Read More


GlobalFoundries Versus Samsung!

GlobalFoundries Versus Samsung!
by Daniel Nenni on 11-27-2011 at 7:00 pm

Some call it co-opetition (collaborative competition), some call it keeping your enemies close. Others call it for what it is, unfair competition and/or other types of legally actionable behavior. GlobalFoundries calls it“Fab Syncing”, which in reality will SINK their FABS!

“With this new collaboration, we are making one Read More


What happens in Las Vegas Gets Blogged on SemiWiki!

What happens in Las Vegas Gets Blogged on SemiWiki!
by Daniel Nenni on 11-23-2011 at 7:00 pm

Interesting story, for my wife’s 50th birthday we went to Las Vegas to see Sir Elton John in concert. My wife is an Elton fan and this may be her last chance to see him live so off we went. I saw Elton and Billy Joel in a dueling piano concert a while back and it was simply amazing! The underlying purpose of the trip however was to earn “Perfect… Read More


GlobalFoundries’ Expansion on Hold! Trouble in Abu Dhabi?

GlobalFoundries’ Expansion on Hold! Trouble in Abu Dhabi?
by Daniel Nenni on 11-20-2011 at 7:00 pm

When AMD sought to shed its costly manufacturing operations, Ibrahim Ajami saw an interesting opportunity, one that promised to bring semiconductor manufacturing to Abu Dhabi. Let’s start with the January 2010 interview with Ajami, the 35 year old Chief Executive Officer of Advanced Technology Investment Company (ATIC), … Read More


The Power of the Platform!

The Power of the Platform!
by Daniel Nenni on 11-16-2011 at 10:06 am

The Nintendo Wii is one of the most successful gaming platforms with the most diverse set of games — from fun games that can be enjoyed by the whole family to fitness programs that can be used by adults. They beat the dominant Sony Playstation and the Microsoft Xbox by thinking outside the box and creating a platform that was really… Read More


Semiconductor Power Consumption and Fingertop Computing!

Semiconductor Power Consumption and Fingertop Computing!
by Daniel Nenni on 11-13-2011 at 4:38 pm

Can semiconductor devices change the temperature of the earth? The heat from my Dell XPS changes the temperature of my lap! A 63” flat screen TV changes the temperature of my living room. I just purchased six of the latest iPhones for my family (under duress) and signed up for another two years with Verizon, so our carbon footprint … Read More


3D Transistors @ TSMC 20nm!

3D Transistors @ TSMC 20nm!
by Daniel Nenni on 11-06-2011 at 12:51 pm

Ever since the TSMC OIP Forum where Dr. Shang-Yi Chiang openly asked customers, “When do you want 3D Transistors (FinFETS)?” I have heard quite a few debates on the topic inside the top fabless semiconductor companies. The bottom line, in my expert opinion, is that TSMC will add FinFETS to the N20 (20nm) process node in parallel with… Read More


High-efficiency PVT and Monte Carlo analysis in the TSMC AMS Reference Flow for optimal yield in memory, analog and digital design!

High-efficiency PVT and Monte Carlo analysis in the TSMC AMS Reference Flow for optimal yield in memory, analog and digital design!
by Daniel Nenni on 11-01-2011 at 9:00 am

Hello Daniel,
I am very interested on the articles on the PVT simulation, I have worked in that area in the past when I worked in process technology development and spice modeling and I also started a company called Device modeling technology (DMT) which built a Spice model library of discrete components, such as Bipolar/MOS /POWER
Read More