EUV – So late to the party it may already be over!

EUV – So late to the party it may already be over!
by Robert Maire on 09-29-2015 at 12:00 pm

Stocks in the semiconductor equipment space continue to fall only this time along with the broad market. We had recently pointed out that LRCX was the last to fall among the large cap companies in the space but now the question becomes when have they fallen enough to say its over, and which stocks have more to fall……

ASMLRead More


Xilinx Skips 10nm

Xilinx Skips 10nm
by Paul McLellan on 09-28-2015 at 7:00 am

At TSMC’s OIP Symposium recently, Xilinx announced that they would not be building products at the 10nm node. I say “announced” since I was hearing it for the first time, but maybe I just missed it before. Xilinx would go straight from the 16FF+ arrays that they have announced but not started shipping, and to the… Read More


How to Build an IoT Endpoint in Three Months

How to Build an IoT Endpoint in Three Months
by Tom Simon on 09-27-2015 at 7:00 am

It is often said that things go in big cycles. One example of this is the design and manufacturing products. People long ago used to build their own things. Think of villagers or settlers hundreds of years ago, if they needed something they would craft it themselves. Then came the industrial revolution and two things happened. One… Read More


New Sensing Scheme for OTP Memories

New Sensing Scheme for OTP Memories
by Paul McLellan on 09-22-2015 at 7:00 am

Last week at TSMC’s OIP symposium, Jen-Tai Hsu, Kilopass’s VP R&D, presented A New Solution to Sensing Scheme Issues Revealed.

See also Jen-Tai Hsu Joins Kilopass and Looks to the Future of Memories

He started with giving some statistics about Kilopass:

  • 50+ employees
  • 10X growth 2008 to 1015
  • over 80 patents (including
Read More

TSMC OIP: What to Do With 20,000 Wafers Per Day

TSMC OIP: What to Do With 20,000 Wafers Per Day
by Paul McLellan on 09-17-2015 at 4:42 pm

Today it is TSMC’s OIP Ecosystem Innovation forum. This is an annual event but is also a semi-annual update on TSMC’s processes, investment, volume ramps and more. TSMC have changed the rules for the conference this year: they have published all the presentations by their partners/customers. Tom Quan of TSMC told… Read More


SoC and Foundry Update 2H 2015!

SoC and Foundry Update 2H 2015!
by Daniel Nenni on 09-01-2015 at 10:00 pm

Rarely do I fly first class but I did on my recent trip to Asia. It was one of the new planes with pod-like seats that transforms into a bed. The flight left SFO at 1 A.M. so I fell asleep almost immediately missing the first gourmet meal. About half way through the flight I found myself barely awake staring straight up and what do I see? STARS!… Read More


TSMC is the Top Dog in Pure-Play Foundry Business

TSMC is the Top Dog in Pure-Play Foundry Business
by Pawan Fangaria on 09-01-2015 at 12:00 pm

We all have echoed the fact that the arrival of fabless business model in the semiconductor industry has transformed it completely. The book, “Fabless: The Transformation of the Semiconductor Industry” provides several stories around that. In the backdrop of that, one key point to ponder upon is the start of pure-play foundries;… Read More


Older Nodes Get New Life With Ultra Low Power Variants for IoT

Older Nodes Get New Life With Ultra Low Power Variants for IoT
by Tom Simon on 08-20-2015 at 12:00 pm

Ever since I can remember, and I’ve been in EDA since the early 80’s, new process development has largely focused on the latest nodes. Trailing nodes were quickly put into support mode. New nodes benefited the most from static and dynamic voltage reduction efforts, as well as improvements in flows and performance. Only a small number… Read More


Build Low Power IoT Design with Foundation IP at 40nm

Build Low Power IoT Design with Foundation IP at 40nm
by Pawan Fangaria on 07-28-2015 at 12:00 pm

In a power hungry world of semiconductor devices, multiple ways are being devised to budget power from system to transistor level. The success of IoT (Internet of Things) Edge devices specifically depend on lowest power, lowest area, optimal performance, and lowest cost. These devices need to be highly energy efficient for sustained… Read More