Technology Update With Andrew Faulkner and Jim Lipman of Sidense

Technology Update With Andrew Faulkner and Jim Lipman of Sidense
by Daniel Nenni on 01-23-2017 at 7:00 am

Sidense is an interesting company in a very important market segment. Sidense was founded in 2004 and their 1T-OTP memory macros are now used in hundreds of chips from 180nm to 16nm for code storage, secure encryption keys, analog and sensor trimming and calibration, ID tags, and chip and processor configuration.

If you are designing… Read More


Get ready for hypergrade in automotive

Get ready for hypergrade in automotive
by Don Dingee on 04-18-2016 at 4:00 pm

With use cases expanding, the meaning of “automotive qualified” semiconductors is changing. What we’re now hearing about now is beyond the AEC-Q100 Grade 0 upper end of 150°C, while still meeting other reliability, retention, and security requirements. What does hypergrade mean for complex digital chip… Read More


Sidense NVM IP clears TSMC9000 at 28nm

Sidense NVM IP clears TSMC9000 at 28nm
by Don Dingee on 05-29-2014 at 7:00 pm

Maybe I’ve spent too many years whiffing solder flux fumes and absorbing doses of X-band radiation in anechoic chambers, but I’m a firm believer in the axiom: “Give me enough engineers, and I can get 10 of anything to work right, once.” We have to make this … fit into this … using only this stuff … is what legends are made of.… Read More


180nm still a big deal

180nm still a big deal
by Don Dingee on 05-07-2014 at 3:00 pm

When I was reading the recent Daniel Payne article “Designing Change Into Semiconductor Techonomics” with commentary on a recent presentation from Aart de Geus of Synopsys, one chart jumped out at me: the most popular process node for new design starts today is 180nm.

Upon mentioning that to a few of my IoT counterparts, they quickly… Read More


Smart cards hard for the US to figure out?

Smart cards hard for the US to figure out?
by Don Dingee on 02-18-2014 at 3:30 pm

Every once in a while, I just scratch my head and wonder just what in the wide, wide world of tech is going on. More than ever, it seems the big barriers to adoption aren’t a lack of technology – instead, barriers come from a system that staunchly defends the old way of doing things, even when the participants are battered, broken, and … Read More


Using OTP Memories for High-performance Video

Using OTP Memories for High-performance Video
by Paul McLellan on 11-01-2013 at 4:15 pm

One of the most demanding applications where semiconductors are used is in the various applications of digital video from tablet computers, to home entertainment. iPad with a retina display is already at high-definition (HD) resolution (2048×1536) and all indications are that video is racing towards what is known as 4K… Read More


Using OTP Memories To Keep SoC Power Down

Using OTP Memories To Keep SoC Power Down
by Paul McLellan on 09-20-2013 at 1:43 pm

Virtually all SoCs require one-time programmable (OTP) memory. Each SoC is different, of course, but two main uses are large memories for holding boot and programming code and small memories for holding encryption keys and trimming parameters, such as radio tuning information and so on.

There are alternatives to putting an OTP… Read More


OTP @ 2013 Common Platform Technology Forum

OTP @ 2013 Common Platform Technology Forum
by Daniel Nenni on 01-06-2013 at 9:00 pm

Sidense will be exhibiting at the Common Platform Technology Forum in Santa Clara, California on February 5, during which time they will be discussing their one-transistor, one-time programmable (1T-OTP) memory IP products. Based on their patented 1T-Fuse™ bit cell, Sidense antifuse-based 1T-OTP macros offer a secure, reliable,… Read More