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Chips Are Going 3D, DRC Needs to Go 3D Too

Chips Are Going 3D, DRC Needs to Go 3D Too
by Paul McLellan on 02-10-2015 at 7:00 am

The last paradigm shift in DRC was around 0.35um when designs got too large to handle as flat data, and hierarchical approaches were required. Back then the design rules themselves were not that complex, the explosion of data volume came from the complexity of the design itself. But each process node added more design rules intricacies… Read More


Open Forum for Semiconductor Professionals!

Open Forum for Semiconductor Professionals!
by Daniel Nenni on 02-09-2015 at 8:00 pm

The semiconductor industry has never been more exciting than it is today, at least not in my 30 years of experience. Things are moving faster than ever before making collaboration at all levels a requirement. At SemiWiki we are afforded the privilege of passes to semiconductor conferences around the world. We also have access to… Read More


Writing the unwritten rules with ALINT-PRO-CDC

Writing the unwritten rules with ALINT-PRO-CDC
by Don Dingee on 02-09-2015 at 11:30 am

EDA verification tools generally do a great job of analyzing the written rules in digital design. Clock domain crossings (CDCs) are more like those unwritten rules in baseball; whether or not you have a problem remains indefinite until later, when retaliation can come swiftly out of nowhere.

Rarely as overt or dramatic as a bench-clearing… Read More


A Public Synchronizer

A Public Synchronizer
by Jerry Cox on 02-09-2015 at 7:00 am

You might ask yourself “Why would anyone want to have a public synchronizer available to download?” Usually designers just grab a flip-flop from his or her company’s or a standard cell vendor’s library. However, are these handy solutions the best course of action today? Current SoC designs have numerous clock domains providing… Read More


Webinar: How IoT Designs Driven by Cost Power Security

Webinar: How IoT Designs Driven by Cost Power Security
by admin on 02-08-2015 at 8:30 pm

SoCs being developed for the fast growth Internet-of-Things market will sell for and operate on a small fraction of the power of mobile devices’ chips. More importantly, IoT SoCs will be far more vulnerable to hacker attacks than the much better protected chips in portable devices. As a result, designers developing SoCs targeting… Read More


Integrated Spec Design & Documentation for SoC

Integrated Spec Design & Documentation for SoC
by Daniel Payne on 02-08-2015 at 1:00 pm

One challenge in SoC projects is maintaining consistency between the specification, design and documentation throughout the product lifecycle. Imagine the chaos if your specification for power is 300 mW, the design is actually 350 mW and the documentation promises 250 mW. Traditionally the design and documentation process… Read More


FD-SOI at Samsung

FD-SOI at Samsung
by Paul McLellan on 02-08-2015 at 7:00 am

Various foundries have made announcements about licensing FD-SOI technology from ST Microelectronics and then fallen quiet. GlobalFoundries made an announcement a couple of years ago. Samsung made an announcement just before DAC last year. But neither company has said anything much since. Of course the big noise at 14/16nm… Read More


Has the Semiconductor Industry Gone Mad?

Has the Semiconductor Industry Gone Mad?
by Daniel Nenni on 02-07-2015 at 7:00 pm

The weather in Taiwan last week was very strange. It was so cold I tried to turn on the heat in my hotel room only to find out it was not possible. If you want more heat they bring a portable heater because who needs central heat in Hsinchu? Even stranger is all of the media hyperbole on the next process nodes:

Intel CFO: We’re so farRead More


Product Review: Bose – SoundTrue Around-Ear Headphones

Product Review: Bose – SoundTrue Around-Ear Headphones
by Daniel Payne on 02-07-2015 at 7:00 am

My old headphones with microphone lost a channel, so it was time to upgrade and I went shopping for something that had high fidelity and fit over my ears, instead of on my ears. After some online research I opted for the Bose headphones, because that brand has been around for decades, they offer many models to choose from, and are readily… Read More


Why Would You Leave Yahoo to Go Into EDA?

Why Would You Leave Yahoo to Go Into EDA?
by Paul McLellan on 02-06-2015 at 7:00 am

I sat down this afternoon with Peter Theunis, the CTO of Methodics. Conveniently their office is about a 15 minute walk from where I live so we could chat face to face.

Peter started programming when he was 8 and his first “product” was a weather system for orchards where sensors in the orchards would send information … Read More