New TSMC 28nm Design Ecosystem!

New TSMC 28nm Design Ecosystem!
by Daniel Nenni on 05-28-2011 at 9:23 pm

TSMC rolled out the new reference flows for 28nm design as part of the Open Innovation Platform. The biggest surprise (to me) is that Cadence is STILL in the TSMC reference flows!

The updated TSMC OIP wiki is here, the Reference Flow 12.0 wiki can be found here, the AMS 2.0 reference flow wiki is here, and the official TSMC PR is here. Read More


65nm to 45nm SerDes IP Migration Success Story

65nm to 45nm SerDes IP Migration Success Story
by Daniel Nenni on 05-25-2011 at 3:43 pm

The problem:To move a single lane variable data rate SerDes (serializer-deserializer) from a 65nm process to a 45nm process, achieving a maximum performance of up to 10.3 Gbps. This is a large piece of complex mixed-signal IP with handcrafted analog circuits. Circuit performance and robustness are critical and must be maintainedRead More


3D IC @ #48DAC

3D IC @ #48DAC
by Daniel Nenni on 05-23-2011 at 4:54 pm

A three-dimensional integrated circuit (3D IC ) is a chip in which two or more layers of active electronic components are integrated both vertically and horizontally into a single circuit. The semiconductor industry is hotly pursuing this emerging technology in many different forms, as a result the full definition is still somewhat… Read More


48th Annual Design Automation Conference

48th Annual Design Automation Conference
by Daniel Nenni on 05-23-2011 at 8:08 am

The 48[SUP]th[/SUP] Design Automation Conference (DAC) is now upon us. DAC is billed as “the premier event for the design of electronic circuits and systems, and for EDA and silicon solutions” for which I would have to agree with 100%.

The first DAC I attended was in 1984, Albuquerque New Mexico, which was one of the first to allow … Read More


Adjusting Custom IP to Process Changes

Adjusting Custom IP to Process Changes
by Daniel Nenni on 05-16-2011 at 1:57 pm

A High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) IP core was being implemented in an advanced process technology. This fairly large and complex analog mixed-signal (AMS) IP comprising over 130K devices was close to being finalized and shipped to the customer. But many design rules at the foundry were unexpectedly changed fromRead More


Cadence EDA360 is Paper!

Cadence EDA360 is Paper!
by Daniel Nenni on 05-08-2011 at 4:02 pm

Hard to believe a year has gone by since the big announcement of the Cadence Blueprint toBattle ‘Profitability Gap’; Counters Semiconductor Industry’s Greatest Threat! Having spent more time on it that I should have, here is my opinion on EDA360 on its first anniversary.

Richard Georing did a very nice anniversary piece “Ten KeyRead More


Mentor 2 : Carl Icahn 0

Mentor 2 : Carl Icahn 0
by Daniel Nenni on 05-01-2011 at 9:46 am

The corporate raiders are still throwing rocks at Mentor Graphics. I have followed this reality show VERY closely and find their latest assault seriously counterproductive. Disinformation is common in EDA but I expected more from Carl Icahn and the Raiderettes. They are quite the drama queens. Here is a billion dollar question:… Read More


TSMC Conference Call is a 6.5 on the Richter Scale

TSMC Conference Call is a 6.5 on the Richter Scale
by Daniel Nenni on 04-28-2011 at 12:17 am

TSMC continues to drive the economic recovery with impressive Q1 numbers and an even more impressive Q2 and Q3 outlook. TSMC is my economic bellwether due to its diverse customer base and shear volume of consumer electronics silicon. The big surprise in the 1 hour Q1 conference call is a new Giga Fab (#15) ground breaking this year… Read More


Semiconductor Industry Security Threat!

Semiconductor Industry Security Threat!
by Daniel Nenni on 04-17-2011 at 1:12 pm

The IBM X-ForceTrend and Risk Report reveals how 2010 was a pivotal year for internet security as networks faced increasingly sophisticated attacks from malicious sources around the world. The X-Force reportedly monitors 13 billion real-time security events every day (150,000 events per second) and has seen an increase in … Read More


2011: A Semiconductor Odyssey!

2011: A Semiconductor Odyssey!
by Daniel Nenni on 04-15-2011 at 10:08 pm

Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey showed us a world where machine vision allowed a computer to watch and interact with its human colleagues. Yet after 40 years of incredible progress in semiconductor design, the technology to make computer-based image and video analysis a reality is still not practical.

While working with… Read More