The introduction of heterogeneous 3DIC packaging technology offers the opportunity for significant increases in circuit density and performance, with corresponding reductions in package footprint. Yet, the implementation of a complex 3DIC product requires a considerable investment in methodology development for all… Read More
How Intel Stumbled: A Perspective from the Trenches
Bloomberg did an interview with my favorite semiconductor analyst Stacy Rasgon on “How the Number One U.S. Semiconductor Company Stumbled” that I found interesting. Coupled with the Q&A Bob Swan did at the Credit Suisse Annual Technology Conference I thought it would be good content for a viral blog.
No Intel and Samsung are not passing TSMC
Seeking Alpha just published an article about Intel and Samsung passing TSMC for process leadership. The Intel part seems to be a theme with them, they have talked in the past about how Intel does bigger density improvements with each generation than the foundries but forget that the foundries are doing 5 nodes in the time it takes… Read More
Webinar: 5 Reasons Why Others are Adopting Hybrid Cloud and EDA Should Too!
With the complexity of transistors at an all time high and growing foundry rule decks, fabless companies consistently find themselves in a game of catch up. Semiconductor designs require additional compute resources to maintain speed and quality of development. But deploying new infrastructures at this current speed is a tall… Read More
China Semiconductor Bond Bust!
– Tsinghua $198M Bond Bust
– Good for memory: Samsung Micron LG Toshiba –
– Not good for chip equipment
– Could China Credit Crunch hit more than foundry embargo?
– Damage to China memory positive for other memory makers
– Not good for chip equip if customers can’t get money
China’s… Read More
Is Apple the Most Valuable Semiconductor Company in the World?
– The new M1 chip unveils previously hidden asset
– Could/should Apple sell semiconductors?
– Are servers next?
– The M1 chip appears to be a rousing success and the beginning of a new era
Essentially 100% of all early reports on the performance of the M1 chip have come back with stellar reviews. Great performance… Read More
Can Samsung Foundry Really Compete with TSMC?
The semiconductor foundry business has been front page news of late and for good reason, it’s an exciting time in the semiconductor industry and the foundries are where it all begins. Unfortunately, most of the “exciting” news has been overblown but this topic is of great interest, to me at least. Having been intimately involved… Read More
TSMC to Build first US Fab in Arizona!
Well, it’s official, the TSMC Board of Directors approved an investment to establish a wholly-owned subsidiary in Arizona with a paid-in capital of $3.5 billion. As history shows the investment may be more than that but $3.5B is a great starting point. This is being discussed in the SemiWiki Forum and I have been gathering inside… Read More
AMD and Intel Update with Xilinx
The AMD acquisition of Xilinx is certainly big news but as an insider looking at the media coverage I think there are a few more points to consider. While most of the coverage has been positive there will always be negatives and we can look at that as well.
Intel acquired Altera in 2015 for $16.7B at a 50% premium which was a major disruption… Read More
Leading Edge Foundry Wafer Prices
I have seen several articles recently discussing foundry wafer selling prices for leading edge wafers, these articles all quote estimates from a paper by the Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET). The paper is available here.
My company IC Knowledge LLC is the world leader in cost and price modeling of semiconductors… Read More