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Silvaco at the TSMC 2014 Open Innovation Platform

Silvaco at the TSMC 2014 Open Innovation Platform
by Daniel Payne on 10-31-2014 at 7:00 am

The success of our semiconductor eco-system depends on collaboration, so the annual TSMC OIP Event just held on September 30 at the San Jose Convention Center was a prime example of that. I didn’t attend this year, but I did follow up with Amit Nandaof Silvaco this week to hear about what they presented. As a consultant I’ve… Read More


Improving Verification by Combining Emulation with ABV

Improving Verification by Combining Emulation with ABV
by Tom Simon on 10-30-2014 at 4:00 pm

Chip deadlines and the time to achieve sufficient verification coverage run continuously in a tight loop like a dog chasing its tail. Naturally it is exciting when innovative technologies can be combined so that verification can gain an advantage. Software based design simulators have been the mainstay of verification methodologies.… Read More


Microprocessors: Will ARM Rule the World?

Microprocessors: Will ARM Rule the World?
by Paul McLellan on 10-30-2014 at 12:00 pm

Last week was the Linley Microprocessor Conference. Not the mobile one, which I find the most interesting since smartphones are such a bit part of what drives process technology these days, this is the one focused on networking and servers. But increasingly both markets are being driven by the same thing, namely mobile data. In … Read More


Adding a Digital Block to an Analog Design

Adding a Digital Block to an Analog Design
by Daniel Payne on 10-30-2014 at 7:00 am

My engineering background includes designing at the transistor-level, so I was drawn to attend a webinar today presented by Tanner EDAand Incentia about Adding a Digital Block to an Analog Design. Many of the 30,000 users of Tanner tools have been doing AMS designs, so adding logic synthesis and static timing analysis from IncentiaRead More


Viva the New Industrial Revolution! What Etsy, 3D Printing, and Kickstarter Means to Semiconductor Companies?

Viva the New Industrial Revolution! What Etsy, 3D Printing, and Kickstarter Means to Semiconductor Companies?
by Charles DiLisio on 10-29-2014 at 4:00 pm

The world is changing and IC companies need to adapt to this to stay competitive — moving to systems (hardware and software) vs. just product (hardware). Three key trends that are underway that change the way IC vendors need to think about their customer and the customer’s customer:

  • Markets are Fragmenting: We are moving away from
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Cadence Mixed Signal Technology Forum

Cadence Mixed Signal Technology Forum
by Paul McLellan on 10-29-2014 at 7:00 am

Yesterday was Cadence’s annual mixed-signal technology forum. I think that there was a definite theme running through many of the presentations, namely that wireless communication of one kind or another is on a sharp rise with more and more devices needing to connect to WiFi, Bluetooth and so on. This was most obvious during… Read More


Who Really Needs USB 3.1?

Who Really Needs USB 3.1?
by Eric Esteve on 10-29-2014 at 4:58 am

USB is certainly the most ubiquitous of the Interface protocols. I would bet that everybody is using USB everyday (I mean activate a USB connection, as we also use PCIe or SATA even if we don’t realize that we do it), but which application will get benefit of the 10 Gbps delivered by USB 3.1? Before precisely answering the question, … Read More


IBM leaves semiconductors – end of an era

IBM leaves semiconductors – end of an era
by Bill Jewell on 10-29-2014 at 2:00 am

IBM last week agreed to transfer its semiconductor business to GlobalFoundries. GlobalFoundries will acquire wafer fabs in East Fishkill, New York and Essex Junction, Vermont; IBM’s commercial microelectronics business, which includes ASIC and foundry; over 10,000 IBM patents related to semiconductor manufacturing;… Read More


The GF IBM Deal Explained!

The GF IBM Deal Explained!
by Daniel Nenni on 10-28-2014 at 10:00 pm

I have it on pretty good authority that IBM has in fact come to terms with GlobalFoundries on the sale of their semiconductor business, or so I blogged last month. Did I mention that my grandparents and their many siblings settled in Upstate NY in the early 1900s from Italy via Ellis Island? So yes, I do qualify as an insider:

Insider Read More


ECDH Key Exchange is Practical Magic

ECDH Key Exchange is Practical Magic
by Bill Boldt on 10-28-2014 at 7:00 pm

nsa

What if you and I want to exchange encrypted messages? It seems like something that will increasingly be desired given all the NSA/Snowden revelations and all the other snooping shenanigans. The joke going around is that the motto of the NSA is really “Yes We Scan,” which sort of sums it up.

Encryption is essentially scrambling a
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