For all the time we spend thinking and talking about silicon design, it’s easy to forget just how important package design is. Semiconductor packages have evolved over the years from very basic containers for ICs into very specialized and highly engineered elements of finished electronic systems. They play an important role … Read More
A Brief History of IP Management
As RTL design started to increase in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, it was becoming apparent that some amount of management was needed to keep track of all the design files and their associated versions. Because of the parallels to software development, design teams looked to the tools and methodologies that were in use by software… Read More
Delivering Innovation for Regulated Markets
When delivering devices to markets that require heavily audited compliance it is necessary to document and demonstrate development processes that follow the various standard(s) such as IEC65108, IATF16949, ISO26262.
For complex multi-disciplinary designs this can be difficult as they are often developed by multiple teams… Read More
Webinar: Next Generation Design Data & Release Management
Design Data Management (DDM) is a bit like insurance. It’s something every semiconductor company has to have, and as a result it’s probably something taken for granted. In order to make their products more useful, the DDM vendors have added more functionality to manage more of the lifecycle of design data.
Dassault’s Synchronicity… Read More
IP Traffic Control
From an engineering point of view, IP is all about functionality, PPA, fitness for use and track record. From a business/management point of view there are other factors, just as critical, that relate less to what the IP is and more to its correct management and business obligations. The problems have different flavors depending… Read More
Synchronizing Collaboration
Much though some of us might wish otherwise, distributed development teams are here to stay. Modern SoC design requires strength and depth in expertise in too many domains to effectively source from one site; competitive multi-national businesses have learned they can very effectively leverage remote sites by building centers… Read More
Behind the 3DEXPERIENCE for silicon
We’ve been covering the Dassault Systèmes “Silicon Thinking” platform for a while here, but, as I’m often prone to do, I wanted to explore the backstory to uncover more about the concept. With over 25M users of their product lifecycle management (PLM) solutions, why is Dassault Systèmes becoming so interested in semiconductor… Read More
Latest Pinpoint release tackles DRC and trend lines
After reading previous SemiWiki coverage on Dassault Systèmes and their ENOVIA Pinpoint solution, one big item seemed missing: how does this thing actually work? With all due respect to our other bloggers who covered when Dassault Systèmes acquired Pinpoint from Tuscany Design Automation, why Qualcomm is using Pinpoint, and… Read More
Sustainability, Semiconductor Companies and Software Companies
I certainly want to leave the Earth a better place to live for my children and generations to come, so sustainability is a value that resonates with me. How is a consumer like me to know which companies are the most sustainable in areas that matter, like:… Read More
The Mechanical Reliability of IC Packages
At Intel back in the late 1970’s we were designing DRAM chips and mounting them in ceramic and plastic packages, however there were problems when some of the die would crack inside of the package because of thermal mismatch issues with how the die was attached to the heat spreader inside the package. Back then we really didn’t… Read More
Podcast EP4: Can China Really Become Self-Sufficient in Semiconductors?