Semiconductor Reliability and Product Qualification

Semiconductor Reliability and Product Qualification
by Daniel Nenni on 08-25-2017 at 7:00 am

This week, we are continuing our discussion of various topics that Semitracks addresses in their training activities. One area that they focus on quite a bit is Semiconductor Reliability and Product Qualification.

One of the key activities that a Product Engineer will coordinate is the qualification of new products before they… Read More


Introduction to Semiconductor Processing

Introduction to Semiconductor Processing
by Daniel Nenni on 08-09-2017 at 7:00 am

We introduced you to Semitracks last week with an interview of their CEO, Chris Henderson. This week, we thought it might be worthwhile to continue that introduction with an overview of one of their more popular online and in-houses courses:

Introduction to Semiconductor Processing.

One of the big challenges in our industry for… Read More


Samsung Sloppy Sailor Spending Spree!

Samsung Sloppy Sailor Spending Spree!
by Robert Maire on 07-31-2017 at 12:00 pm

Last week, TEL (which is the Japanese equivalent to AMAT & LRCX) reported a June quarter which saw revenues drop to 236B Yen from March’s 261B Yen and saw earnings drop from March’s 47B Yen to June’s 41B Yen, a respective 9.3% decrease and a 12.8% decrease in earnings.

We don’t think this is attributable… Read More


$100M China Investment for FD-SOI Ecosystem!

$100M China Investment for FD-SOI Ecosystem!
by Daniel Nenni on 05-23-2017 at 4:30 am

When GlobalFoundries first briefed me on 22FDX during a trip to Dresden in 2015, China was one of the first things that came to mind. The China semiconductor market was still on 28nm and FinFETs seemed far away for the majority of the Chinese fabless companies. A low cost, low power, low complexity 22nm process with a path to 12nm (12FDX)Read More


CEO Interview: Vincent Markus of Menta

CEO Interview: Vincent Markus of Menta
by Daniel Nenni on 05-15-2017 at 7:00 am

What is Menta all about?
Menta was founded to add hardware-programmability within SoCs. We deliver FPGAs in hard IP form that can be readily embedded within an SoC to make certain hardware functions reconfigurable at-will, post-production. This enables customers to dynamically adapt to evolving standards, perform security… Read More


An Overview of Jama Software in the Semiconductor Industry

An Overview of Jama Software in the Semiconductor Industry
by Daniel Payne on 05-01-2017 at 12:00 pm

Portland, Oregon is a hotbed of innovation for software development companies and I tend to scan the headlines of my local newspaper the Oregonian, which is where I first started to read about Jama Software a few years back. Curiosity and opportunity drove me to meet with Trevor Smith of Jama in their Portland office. We chatted for… Read More


Strong pickup in semiconductors in 2017

Strong pickup in semiconductors in 2017
by Bill Jewell on 02-26-2017 at 12:00 pm

World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) is an organization of semiconductor companies created to collect market data. The members of WSTS also meet twice per year to develop forecasts for the semiconductor market. The “forecast by committee” approach of WSTS usually results in conservative forecasts. However, WSTS called… Read More


Semiconductors flat for second straight year

Semiconductors flat for second straight year
by Bill Jewell on 12-20-2016 at 4:00 pm

The global semiconductor market posted strong 11.6% growth in 3[SUP]rd[/SUP] quarter 2016 from 2[SUP]nd[/SUP] quarter, according to WSTS. This strength is reflected in the 3[SUP]rd[/SUP] quarter revenue growth reported by the major semiconductor suppliers. Of the 12 companies, half (Intel, Samsung, Broadcom, TI, Micron… Read More


CEO Interview: Dündar Dumlugöl of Magwel

CEO Interview: Dündar Dumlugöl of Magwel
by Tom Simon on 12-19-2016 at 7:00 am

Magwel CEO Dündar Dumlugöl is well known from his days at Cadence, where I first met him, and for his more recent tenure at Magwel. At Cadence he led the team that first developed Spectre. He has come a long way from the start of his career at IMEC in Belgium. He and I had a chance to have a conversation recently where he offered insights … Read More


An End of Year View of Semi Consolidation

An End of Year View of Semi Consolidation
by Bernard Murphy on 12-14-2016 at 7:00 am

The last couple of years have been tumultuous for the semiconductor market. IC Insights just released a report showing just how much consolidation has concentrated market strength in a small number of companies. The report (which excludes fabs) shows that the 5 top companies – Intel, Samsung, Qualcomm, Broadcom and SK Hynix – … Read More