ESL Architectural Power Estimation Support from TSMC — yes, TSMC

ESL Architectural Power Estimation Support from TSMC — yes, TSMC
by Tom Dillinger on 09-22-2016 at 11:00 am

Electronic system level (ESL) modeling for system architecture exploration is rapidly gaining momentum. The simulation performance requirements for hardware/software co-design are demanding — an abstract model for SoC IP cores is required. Typically, soft IP will include a number of model configuration parameters.… Read More


TSMC and Solido to Share Experiences with Managing Variation in Webinar

TSMC and Solido to Share Experiences with Managing Variation in Webinar
by Tom Simon on 09-10-2016 at 7:00 am

TSMC knows better than anyone the effect that variation can have at advanced process nodes. Particularly in memory designs and in standard cell designs, variation has become a very critical because of its effects on yield and because of the high-cost of compensating for it. Smaller feature sizes combined with lower voltage thresholds… Read More


The 2016 Leading Edge Semiconductor Landscape

The 2016 Leading Edge Semiconductor Landscape
by Scotten Jones on 09-03-2016 at 7:00 am

The leading edge semiconductor logic landscape has in recent years collapsed to just four companies. The following is a summary of what is currently known about each company’s plans and how they compare. ASML has analyzed many logic nodes and developed a formula that normalizes processes to a “standard node”.… Read More


Pushing automotive-grade embedded flash to 28nm

Pushing automotive-grade embedded flash to 28nm
by Don Dingee on 09-02-2016 at 4:00 pm

18 months ago Renesas announced they were prototyping their SG-MONOS eFlash on 28nm, and at the time we said it would be a couple of years before actual product. Yesterday, Renesas revealed their partner in this effort is TSMC – no surprise – and hinted things are moving, with better performance than expected but on a longer qualification… Read More


Flex Logix validating EFLX on TSMC 40ULP

Flex Logix validating EFLX on TSMC 40ULP
by Don Dingee on 08-29-2016 at 4:00 pm

Flex Logix has been heads-down for the last several months working toward customer implementations of their EFLX reconfigurable RTL IP cores. Today, they’ve announced a family of 10 hard IP cores ready in TSMC 40ULP, and provided an update to their roadmap for us.… Read More


MediaTek is on the Move with TSMC!

MediaTek is on the Move with TSMC!
by Daniel Nenni on 08-23-2016 at 4:00 pm

MediaTek (MTK) recently made the news for announcing their first leading edge SoC (Helio X30), a 32% increase in quarter over quarter sales, and an expected 30% increase for the year. Both of which deserve a closer look as we move into the second half of 2016 which should be very strong for MTK TSMC, and the fabless semiconductor ecosystem.… Read More


What is Inside the iPhone 7?

What is Inside the iPhone 7?
by Daniel Nenni on 08-20-2016 at 7:00 am

TSMC is the bellwether for not only the foundry business, since they are the dominant player, but also the semiconductor industry as a whole. You could also argue that TSMC is a sneak peek into the world economy since they build capacity based on their customer’s forecasts and the world now revolves around semiconductors.

The other… Read More


TSMC and Pokemon Go!

TSMC and Pokemon Go!
by Daniel Nenni on 08-09-2016 at 4:00 pm

As Pokemon Go invades the world, let me give you a firsthand player’s description of the game and why the next generation of augmented reality apps will energize the fabless semiconductor ecosystem and greatly benefit TSMC.

While I am not a “gamer” per say, I am a technologist and am always looking for new semiconductor market drivers.… Read More


Xilinx is Killing Altera!

Xilinx is Killing Altera!
by Daniel Nenni on 06-28-2016 at 4:00 pm

At a recent outing with FPGA friends from days gone by, the long running Xilinx vs Altera debate has come to an end. The bottom line is that Xilinx has used the FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt) of the Intel acquisition quite effectively against Altera and is racking up 20nm and 16nm design wins at an alarming rate. It will be a while … Read More


ARM vs Intel: The New War Frontiers

ARM vs Intel: The New War Frontiers
by Prakash Mohapatra on 06-28-2016 at 12:00 pm

With Intel’s exit from smartphone processor market, the competitive zones are redefined with its rivalry with ARM. Is ARM’s domination the only reason for Intel’s exit? With no competing architecture, is ARM a monopoly in smartphone processor IP market? What are the new areas of competition between ARM and Intel? I will attempt… Read More