With the premier conference for semiconductor design enablement just around the corner I would like to take this time and space to talk about what is really happening at the #54DAC and that would be the parties! Granted the DAC parties are nothing like we used to have in the 1980s and the 1990s since we have matured as an industry but … Read More




GlobalFoundries 7nm and EUV Update!
Scott Jones and I had the opportunity to talk again with Gary Patton, GlobalFoundries CTO and SVP of R&D for a quick update on 7nm and EUV. Gary has been at GF for two years now with more than 500 other technologists from the IBM semiconductor acquisition. 7nm is the first IBM based process from GF (14nm was licensed from Samsung),… Read More
An Approach to TFT and FPD Design
Webinars are a powerful way for engineers to get updated on EDA and IC design approaches, so I’m sharing what I viewed last month at a Silvaco webinar on TFT and FPD design. You probably are using a TFT LCD display in your TV, monitor, mobile phone, video game system, GPS device or projector. The custom IC design flow offered by… Read More
Design Rule Development Platform @ #54DAC!
While some might have expected the exponential growth in design rules number and complexity to cool down a little, it looks as if these are only heating up more. The multiplicity of technology nodes, lithography options, , fundamental technology options (Bulk, FD-SOI, FinFET), different process flavors and specific applications,… Read More
Visual Quality
A few years ago, I started looking at data visualization methods as a way to make sense of large quantities of complex data. This is a technique that has become very popular in big data analytics where it is effectively impossible to see patterns in data in any other way. There are vast numbers of different types of diagram – treemap,… Read More
Cadence Design Systems @ #54DAC!
This year Cadence Design Systems is showcasing system design enablement in their booth, capitalizing on the industry shift from naked chip design to system level chip design. Apple started it with making the chips inside the iProducts as part of the system and now other systems companies are looking to take more control over their… Read More
Mentor a Siemens Business @#54thDAC
This year the Mentor booth will be quite interesting now that they are part of Siemens. I expect zero changes to their DAC presence but we shall see. It will certainly be good to see Wally again. More importantly, I will be afforded the opportunity to talk personally with both Wally Rhines, CEO of Mentor ANDChuck Grindstaff executive… Read More
Photonics at DAC – Integrated Electronic/Photonic Design Flow to be Presented at Cadence Theater
I recently wrote an article on SemiWiki talking about the integrated Electronic/Photonic Design Automation (EPDA) flow that is being developed by Cadence Design Systems, Lumerical Solutions and PhoeniX Software and how that flow is now expanding into the system level through SiP (system in package) techniques.
Up till recently,… Read More
Samsung Details Foundry Roadmap
Samsung recently held a meeting where they laid out a detailed roadmap for their foundry business. On Tuesday June 1st, Daniel Nenni and myself had an interview with Kelvin Low, senior director of foundry marketing and business development to discuss the details of Samsung’s plans.… Read More
Simplifying Requirements Tracing
Requirements traceability is a necessary part of any top-down system specification and design when safety or criticality expectations depend on tightly-defined requirements for subsystems. Traceability in this context means being able to trace from initial documented requirements down through specification and datasheet… Read More
Intel’s Pearl Harbor Moment