Chip Market Brightens in 2017. The semiconductor industry may yet have been flat in 2016, but expects it is expected that the electronics industry rebounds in 2017, probably in the first half. Wall Streeter predicts return to 5% growth. Total IC business growth is expected to be around five percents for few years to come.There seems to several promises to this direction, especially in memory business. Chips Execs See Maturing Industry article says that pessimism about immediate revenue and R&D growth is a sign of a maturing industry.
Thanks to both rising prices and volume sales, the memory sector is expected to lead overall semiconductor sales growth. Sales of memory chips will increase 10% next year to a new record high of $85.3 billion, according to the latest report from IC Insights. NAND flash will grow almost as fast at 10% next year. The average annual growth rate for the memory market is forecast to be 7.3% from 2016-2021. Every year we need 5.6% more bits than previous year, and the unit prices are increasing on both DRAM and Flash.
There will be also other growth sectors. The data center will be the fastest growth segment next year, rising 10%, followed by automotive at 9% and communications at 7%. Consumer and industrial markets growing at about 4% in line with the overall industry. PCs will be the big drag on 2017, declining 2%.
China Dominates Planned Chip Fabs as more than 40% of front end semiconductor fabs scheduled to begin operation between 2017 and 2020 are in China, a clear indication that China’s long-stated ambition to build a significant domestic semiconductor industry is taking shape.
Trump Win Could Mean Big Questions for Manufacturing as while Trump vowed to keep American manufacturing jobs, he offered little in the way of stated policy other than the promise to punish companies that sent manufacturing job outside the US. Questions about trade also could directly affect US manufacturing. How that plays out is a big unknown.
Europe will try to advance chip manufacturing, but not much results in 2017 as currently there is almost no leading-edge digital chip manufacturing left in Europe as the local companies have embraced outsourcing of digital semiconductor manufacturing to foundries. The European Commission intends to reconvene a high-level group of European CEOs and executives to exchange views on Europe’s 10/100/20 nanoelectronics and chip manufacturing project and make adjustments as necessary for a wave of European Union investment supposedly starting in 2020. The two most advanced wafer fab locations left in Europe in terms of deep sub-micron miniaturization belong to Intel in Leixlip, Ireland and Globalfoundries in Dresden, Germany.
Smaller geometries are to be taken into use and researched in 2017. Several chipmakers ramp up their 10nm finFET processes, with 7nm just around the corner. As TSMC, GF/Samsung Battle at 7nm the net result is in the course of 18 months chip designers will see at least three variants of 7nm — separate immersion variants from TSMC and Globalfoundries and the EUV version from GF/Samsung. Intel has yet to detail its 7nm node.
At the same time R&D has begun for 5nm and beyond, but Uncertainty Grows For 5nm, 3nm as costs are skyrocketing. Both 5nm and 3nm present a multitude of unknowns and challenges. To put this in perspective, there are roughly two silicon atoms in 1nm of line width in a chip. Etching Technology Advances as atomic layer etch (ALE) moves to the forefront of chip-making technology—finally. TSMC recently announced plans to build a new fab in Taiwan at a cost of $15.7 billion targeted for TSMC’s 5nm and 3nm processes, which are due out in 2020 and 2022.
Moore’s Law continues to slow as process complexities and costs escalate at each node. Moore’s Law is dead, just not in the way everyone thinks. SiFive believes open source hardware is the way forward for the semiconductor industry. Technological advances keep allowing chips to scale, but the economics are another story – particularly for smaller companies that can’t afford chips in the volumes. The solution, according to San Francisco-based startup, SiFive, is open-source hardware, specifically an architecture developed by the company’s founders called RISC-V (pronounced “risk-five”). Done right SiFive, which was awarded Startup of the Year at the 2016 Creativity in Electronics (ACE) Awards, believes that RISC-V will do for the hardware industry what Linux has done for software. For example 5th RISC-V Workshop Points to Growing Interest in the RISC-V Platform.
Sensors are hot in 2017. These tiny, powerful solutions are creating the interface between the analog and the digital world. Data is everywhere, and sensors are at the very heart of that. While no one really knows what technology’s next “killer application” will be, we are confident that any killer app will rely on sensors.Appliance autonomy promises to make life simpler, but this field has still lots of to improve even after year 2017.
Interface ICs will continue to help simplify high-bandwidth designs while making them more robust and reliable. Application areas that will benefit include automotive, communications, and industrial. Both wired and wireless interface solutions have plenty of applications.
Analog’s status is rising as more sensors and actuators are added into electronic devices, pressure is growing to more seamlessly move data seamlessly back and forth between analog and digital circuitry. IoT pushes up demand for analog content and need for communication between these two worlds will continue to grow. Analog and digital always have fit rather uncomfortably together, and that discomfort has grown as SoCs are built using smaller feature sizes. The demand for analog silicon has always existed in the embedded space, but the advent of the Internet of Things (IoT) is increasing the demand for connected mixed-signal content. At 28nm and 16/14nm, standard “analog” IP includes a fair amount of digital content.
It seems that hardware designer is a disappearing resource and software is the king in 2017. It is becoming less and less relevant in what format the device is used in many applications. Card computers are standard products and are found in many different card formats that can be used in very many applications. Embedded development is changing to more and more coding. More software designers that understand some hardware are needed, but it is not easy to leap to move to the hardware to software.
The power electronics market is moving at very fast pace. Besides traditional industrial, renewable, and traction sectors, new applications such as energy-storage systems, micro-grids, and dc chargers are emerging. As the automotive world moves to electric vehicles, this creates challenges for IGBT and SiC-MOSFET ICs, and their associated gate drivers. New packages for high-voltage IGBTs and high-voltage SiC-MOSFETs are introduced.
More custom power distribution and higher voltages on data center computer systems in 2017. OpenRack and OpenCompute projects are increasing the distribution voltage inside the server itself. This approach, plus transitioning to new materials such as gallium nitride in the power-conversion systems, can reduce overall power consumption by 20% and increase server densities by 30-40%.”
Power Modules and Reference Designs will be looked at in 2017 even more than earlier in power electronics. The semiconductor and packaging technologies used in power modules have advanced considerably, and the industry is developing modules today that are denser, less expensive, and easier to use. Designers want to rely on power modules to speed up designs and optimize space using smaller, easy-to-use power modules. Module manufacturers hope that engineers will increasingly choose a module over a discrete design in many applications.
The bi-directional DC/DC converter has been around for a while, but new applications are quickly emerging which necessitate the use of this architecture in so many more systems. Battery back-up systems need bi-directional DC/DC converters. Applications today require better energy efficiency and such systems as green power with solar or wind generation, need storage so that when there is no wind or sun available the electricity flow is not interrupted.
Power supplies need to become more efficient. Both European Union’s (EU) Code of Conduct (CoC) Tier 1 and CoC Tier 2 efficiency standards are to be taken into use. The European Union’s CoC Tier 1 effectively harmonizes the EU with US DoE Level VI and became effective as a voluntary requirement from January 2014, two years ahead of Level VI. Its adoption as an EU Ecodesign rule is currently under review to become law with an implementation date of January 2017. The key difference between the CoC requirements and Level VI is the new 10% load measure, which imposes efficiency requirements under a low-load condition where historically most types of power supplies have been notoriously inefficient. CoC Tier 2 further tightens the no-load and active mode power consumption limits.
During 2016, wireless-power applications started to pick up across many fields in the semiconductor industry, and it will continue to do so. Wireless power will continue to gain traction with increased consumer demand. Hewlett Packard, Dell, jjPlus, and Witricity have already announced products based on Airfuel standards. And, products based upon the Qi standard will continue to grow at a rapid pace.
Other prediction articles:
In Power & Analog 2017 Forecast: What Experts Are Saying article representatives from major players in the semiconductor industry share their predictions for 2017 regarding power modules, wireless power, data converters, wireless sensing, and more.
Looking Ahead to 2017 article tells on to what SIA is focused on working with. “U.S. semiconductor technology should be viewed as a strategic national asset, and the Administration should take a holistic approach in adopting policies to strengthen this vital sector,” the letter says
Hot technologies: Looking ahead to 2017 article collection has EDN and EE Times editors explore some of the hot technologies in 2017 that will shape next year’s technology trends and beyond.
1,115 Comments
Tomi Engdahl says:
Chip Incubator Warms New Startups
On Semi joins Silicon Catalyst as partner
https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1332586&
Silicon Catalyst added ON Semiconductor as a partner and two new startups to the dozen it incubates. The accelerator focused on semiconductor startups hopes to expand its geographic footprint in January and launch its first graduates soon.
Like most of its partners, ON Semi joined Silicon Catalyst to get a better view of its pipeline of startups. The incubator screens hundreds of startups every year to select a handful that become portfolio companies, getting access to EDA and test tools and services from partners, including a shuttle run at TSMC.
“My role is to look outside the company and fill innovation and technology gaps,” said Mamoon Rashid, senior vice president of strategic ventures at ON Semi. “This partnership gives us a view of the semiconductor startup environment…there are a lot of incubators in software, but not a lot in semiconductors.”
Not surprisingly, one of Silicon Catalyst’s newest startups is designing an accelerator for machine learning, an area that has reawakened an otherwise sleepy area of venture investing in silicon.
Also in the Silicon Catalyst portfolio are the following startups with their products:
ACP Semi: Smart, integrated LEDs
Aeponyx: MEMS-based silicon photonics switches
Ayar Labs: Optical I/O blocks made in CMOS
Chaos Prime: An IoT radio to withstand factory interference
ClopTech: A 60 GHz radio
Rex Computing: A parallel processor
Spark Microsystems: A lot power IoT radio
Zeno: Designer of a 1T SRAM
Tomi Engdahl says:
Qualcomm touts deal with Chinese giants to really consider using $12bn of its chips
Non-binding ‘memorandum of understanding’ inked with four smartphone builders
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/11/10/qualcomm_chinese_mou/
Qualcomm says it has struck a deal, of sorts, with four major smartphone vendors in China that could possibly be worth $12bn.
Emphasis on the “possibly”.
The chip designer says the non-binding ‘memorandum of understanding’ agreements will bring Xiaomi, Guangdong OPPO, and Vivo Communications to the table in an attempt to hammer out licensing deals to use Qualcomm chips in its mobile phone designs.
The announcement was made as part of President Trump’s visit to China, where Qualcomm CEO Steve Mollenkopf attended as part of the White House trade delegation tagging along for the trip.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Mergers and Acquisitions: Broadcom, Qualcomm, and One Hundred Billion Dollars
https://hackaday.com/2017/11/05/mergers-and-acquisitions-broadcom-qualcomm-and-one-hundred-billion-dollars/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Making The Case For Digital Exploration
https://semiengineering.com/making-the-case-for-digital-exploration/
Why faster simulation is essential to meet the demands for more customized and complex products.
Simulation has been established as a proven, effective means of streamlining the product development process. It allows companies to analyze product behavior earlier to evaluate more design iterations in the concept/design stage to optimize products, components and systems. However, simulation is often still siloed away in the domain of expert analysts, preventing companies from fully capitalizing on its benefits.
http://www.ansys.com/resource-library/white-paper/digital-exploration?tli=en-us
Tomi Engdahl says:
Challenges And Trends In SoC Electromagnetic (EM) Crosstalk
https://semiengineering.com/challenges-and-trends-in-soc-electromagnetic-em-crosstalk/
Electromagnetic Crosstalk analysis is emerging as a fundamental necessity as a component of electronic system development. With the advent of advanced technologies and System on-Chip (SoC) architectures, ignoring electromagnetic crosstalk is highly risky resulting in significant delays in reaching the market on time as well significant cost over runs.
http://www.helic.com/news/technical-article/white-paper-challenges-trends-soc-electromagnetic-em-crosstalk/
Tomi Engdahl says:
LLC Resonant Converters Raise the Power-Efficiency Bar
http://www.electronicdesign.com/power/llc-resonant-converters-raise-power-efficiency-bar?NL=ED-003&Issue=ED-003_20171108_ED-003_71&sfvc4enews=42&cl=article_1_b&utm_rid=CPG05000002750211&utm_campaign=13970&utm_medium=email&elq2=ec7c3082d67b4a0ba4218f7970c3b0ad
Sponsored by: Texas Instruments. A new digital controller with ultra-low standby power consumption and improved transient response helps push these converters to meet global efficiency demands.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Qualcomm draws up plans to rebuff Broadcom’s $103 billion offer: sources
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-qualcomm-m-a-broadcom/qualcomm-draws-up-plans-to-rebuff-broadcoms-103-billion-offer-sources-idUSKBN1DC10V?utm_campaign=trueAnthem:+Trending+Content&utm_content=5a08cb6b04d3014ce3af13f8&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=twitter
(Reuters) – U.S. chipmaker Qualcomm Inc (QCOM.O) is making preparations to reject rival Broadcom Ltd’s (AVGO.O) $103 billion bid as early as this week, four people familiar with the matter said on Sunday, setting the stage for one of the biggest-ever takeover battles.
Qualcomm Chief Executive Steven Mollenkopf has spent the past few days soliciting feedback from Qualcomm shareholders, and feels that Broadcom’s $70-per-share bid undervalues the company and does not price in the uncertainty associated with getting the deal approved by regulators, according to the sources.
Qualcomm shares closed at $64.57 on Friday
Tomi Engdahl says:
Automotive Seen as Strongest Semiconductor Driver Through 2021
https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1332591&
The PC market, for many years the single biggest driving force for semiconductor sales, is headed toward its sixth consecutive year of decline. Meanwhile, the semiconductor industry is on pace for its best year ever.
As the PC has waned as the killer application for semiconductors, a host of new applications has risen in prominence. Among them is the automotive semiconductor market — a strong market for the semiconductor industry for years — which is becoming arguably the most important market for semiconductors as the amount of semiconductor content per vehicle rises.
In fact, market research firm IC Insights forecasts that the automotive semiconductor market will be the the strongest end market for chips through 2021. According to the firm, automotive electronic system sales are forecast to rise by a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.4 percent from 2016 through 2021.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Tech Talk: Near-Threshold Power
https://semiengineering.com/tech-talk-near-threshold-power/
A look at the power benefits and performance impact as designs move closer to voltage thresholds.
Tomi Engdahl says:
New Drivers For I/O
https://semiengineering.com/new-drivers-for-io/
Mobile phones are no longer driving I/O standards. Emerging industries take up the lead and idea sharing will help everybody.
Interface standards are on a tear, and new markets are pushing the standards in several directions at the same time. The result could be a lot more innovation and some updates in areas that looked to be well established.
Traditionally, this has been a sleepy and predictable part of the industry with standards bodies producing updates to their interfaces at a reasonable rate. Getting data into and out of a chip used to be considered a mundane necessity, which is why most companies willingly handed over this task to the IP industry.
Interface standards are all about interoperability. “Standardizing chip interfaces has benefited the semiconductor industry as it allowed individual chip companies to develop devices that interoperate with other chips on a PCB,” says Ravi Thummarukudy, CEO for Mobiveil. “Many of these standards started as shared parallel architectures but quickly moved to high-speed serial point-to-point technology in last 15 years or so.”
Standards usually are created for good reasons. “There is not always a close correlation between what might have driven a standard or when it came out and when it was deployed,” warns Dave Wiens, product line manager at Mentor, a Siemens Business. “We were hearing about DDR4, but it took a few years before there was much traction. We still have people using DDR2. There is always a ripple effect in deployment.”
New drivers
End markets drive the requirements for standards. “Today, the buzzwords in the industry include big data analytics, machine learning, automotive, and IoT,” says Nandra. “They all require chips to support those markets. We see chips being developed in leading edge technologies for machine learning and a huge number of multi-core devices that need cache coherency both at the memory and I/O level. These end markets drive the need for much faster interconnect or lower power interconnect or even more challenging – faster interconnects with lower power.”
This is especially evident in data centers. “If you look at the 10G space, it had a very long run,” says Rishi Chugh, senior product marketing group director in the IP Group of Cadence. “It was the predominant standard from 2000 until 2010. Then around 2010 we saw 100G introduced as a derivative of 10G where people used 10 x 10. When 40G became possible, the transition happened very rapidly. We went to 4 x 25 in 2014. Today we are talking about single lane 100G for 2018. It will not be mainstream for awhile, but we can expect to see pilot programs. So, in four years we have made three transitions.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
The Whole World Is Searching for the “Holy Grail” of Batteries
http://www.powerelectronics.com/automotive/whole-world-searching-holy-grail-batteries?NL=ED-003&Issue=ED-003_20171113_ED-003_595&sfvc4enews=42&cl=article_2_b&utm_rid=CPG05000002750211&utm_campaign=14033&utm_medium=email&elq2=52d775d76f854e56972b29b0a80fd5ba
The quest for a battery that can provide 300 miles EV driving range from a charge that takes minutes has attracted the interest of scientists throughout the world.
In the U.S., researchers in the Cockrell School of Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin have discovered a family of anode materials that can double the charge capacity of lithium-ion battery anodes. This means that the batteries that we use in everything from cellphones to large-scale energy storage systems could be more efficient in the future.
The new family of anode materials, which the researchers dubbed the Interdigitated Eutectic Alloy (IdEA) anode, saves time and materials by producing an anode using only two simple steps instead of the multiple steps traditionally required to mass-produce lithium-ion battery anodes.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Broad/Qual/NXP Battle Begins
https://www.eetimes.com/author.asp?section_id=36&doc_id=1332594&
A week after Broadcom made a bold $103 billion bid for Qualcomm, the mobile chip giant rejected it, and Broadcom quickly announced it is standing pat. Now the battle begins in earnest.
It’s not surprising the historically huge bid should be rebuffed. As Hock Tan noted in his offer letter, the two had privately discussed merger possibilities and clearly Qualcomm had not agreed, triggering Tan’s hostile bid.
At the very least, Qualcomm owes it to employees and shareholders to push for a higher price and better terms. That is indeed the big message it sent with its short public statement, offered without comment, that the $70/share offer “dramatically undervalues the company.”
Wall Street liked the move, sending Qualcomm shares up and Broadcom’s down each about a point, Reuters reported.
Qualcomm needs to strengthen its position given the slowdown ahead in smartphones and the historic consolidation of the semiconductor industry in the last three years. It cannot survive Wall Street and activist shareholder pressures as it is.
I disagree with the statement from chief executive Steve Mollenkopf that “No company is better positioned in mobile, IoT, automotive, edge computing and networking within the semiconductor industry.”
With NXP that might almost be true. But without it, Qualcomm has a relatively small foothold in automotive, and it’s not much better positioned than any of half a dozen ARM licensees in IoT and edge computing.
Tomi Engdahl says:
DRAM Price Increases Expected to Persist in Q4
https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1332597&
DRAM revenue climbed to a historic high of $19.2 billion in the third quarter as contract prices for DRAM chips rose by about 5 percent on average amid a memory chip capacity crunch, according to market research firm DRAMeXchange.
DRAM sales increased by 16 percent in the third quarter compared to the second quarter as the electronics industry geared up for the holiday season, DRAMeXchange (Taipei) said.
Avril Wu, a research director at DRAMeXchange, said she expects DRAM prices will increase about 10 percent in the fourth quarter. She attributed the price increase largely to influence of the booming mobile DRAM market.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Future graphics memory faster than expected
Next year, the first GDRR6 graphics graphics storage devices should come to the market. Originally, they were gearing up to 14 Gigabytes (Gigabytes), but apparently the districts that got Samsung’s first market are even quicker.
Samsung’s GDDR6 memory has now been released as one of the many award-winning products of the January CES Fair. Samsung now announces that every GDDR6 chip transfers data at 16GB per second.
If the GDDR6 memory uses the same 32-bit data connection, it can be reached in data transfer to 64 gigabytes per second. In practice, this would double the speed of the memory card memory card only by switching the RAM to a new one.
In addition, the GDDR6 memory consumes less power, as it operates at 1.35 volts instead of 1.5 volts of GDDR5.
Source: http://www.etn.fi/index.php/13-news/7154-tuleva-grafiikkamuisti-odotettua-nopeampi
Tomi Engdahl says:
Upgrade Power-Supply Efficiency with Precise Current Measurement
http://www.electronicdesign.com/power/upgrade-power-supply-efficiency-precise-current-measurement?NL=ED-003&Issue=ED-003_20171115_ED-003_191&sfvc4enews=42&cl=article_1_b&utm_rid=CPG05000002750211&utm_campaign=14085&utm_medium=email&elq2=83322053aeb74d08b30067094d4ea0a8
Sponsored by: Texas Instruments. The current-sense amplifier, which includes specialized features crafted to handle the most demanding applications, can play a key role in meeting efficiency goals for today’s power designs.
Tomi Engdahl says:
The Return Of Body Biasing
This technique lets engineering teams reach new power lows, but it’s not always so simple.
https://semiengineering.com/the-return-of-body-biasing/
Body biasing is making a comeback across a wide swath of process nodes as designers wrestle with how to build mobile devices with more functionality and longer battery life.
Consider an ultra-low-power IoT device with a wireless sensor, for example, which is meant to last for years without changing a battery. Body biasing can be used to create an ultra-low-leakage sleep state.
“In that world, you’d put the device in a state where the Vt was essentially as high as you could realistically make it without causing a whole realm of other things to happen if your operating voltage gets too close to your threshold voltage,” explained Arm fellow Rob Aitken. “It’s basically making the Vt high enough to shut off all the devices, and that would be worth it to you because in essentially all of these systems, the number one source of energy consumption is the sleep state. That dwarfs everything else. So if you make your sleep state 10X less power hungry, you have made your battery last pretty close to 10X longer.”
Body biasing is not new. In fact, this technique was used in the past even on bulk technologies. But after 40nm it loses its efficacy with bulk CMOS, which is why companies like GlobalFoundries and STMicroelectronics have swapped to FD-SOI.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Conductors and insulators can be 3D-printed with an ink jet
The University of Nottingham has made an innovation that promises to revolutionize the production of electronic circuits. Researchers have succeeded in 3D printing both conductive and insulating structures at the same light source. This enables fast and inexpensive printing of working circuits.
Researchers found that silicon particles with a diameter of 50 nanometers absorb light at a wavelength of 380-420 nanometers. They used an ultraviolet light of 395 nanometers to stain the silver bulb into a conductive structure.
Source: http://etn.fi/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=7157&via=n&datum=2017-11-14_15:15:22&mottagare=31202
Tomi Engdahl says:
Reuters:
Broadcom says it has closed its acquisition of network gear maker Brocade Communications
Broadcom closes $5.5 billion Brocade deal
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-brocade-commns-m-a-broadcom/broadcom-closes-5-5-billion-brocade-deal-idUSKBN1DH1T9
Broadcom Ltd said on Friday it closed its acquisition of network gear maker Brocade Communications Systems Inc, giving it a larger share of the data center products market.
Broadcom, which made a $103 billion unsolicited bid for smartphone chip supplier Qualcomm Inc earlier this month that was rejected, agreed to buy Brocade in November of last year. It won U.S. antitrust approval for the deal in July.
Tomi Engdahl says:
In the latest rankings, Broadcom, Qualcomm and Nvidia are the top three fabless design houses in terms of sales in the third quarter, according to TrendForce. MediaTek remains in fourth, but the company’s sales continue to fall.
Source: https://semiengineering.com/the-week-in-review-manufacturing-181/
Tomi Engdahl says:
GaN Enables RF Where LDMOS And GaAs Can’t
http://www.mwrf.com/active-components/gan-enables-rf-where-ldmos-and-gaas-cant?code=UM_Classics11217&utm_rid=CPG05000002750211&utm_campaign=14150&utm_medium=email&elq2=2f2596f4afdb44eca702c1c5752014b6
There is excitement for GaN as a disruptive technology for GaAs/LDMOS and enabling technology for high-power and high-frequency RF applications. But complex engineering solutions decisions with device technology are based on more than just raw performance.
More markets are incorporating RF technology into their operating systems for a cornucopia of reasons, which are often specific to the industry. As a result, RF engineers have many new applications in which they can ply their trade. The first step—no matter what the industry or application—is to select an RF technology. Ultimately, this comes down to finding a technology that meets the size, heat, cost, speed, power, efficiency, and advancement rate needed for the application. Among the RF semiconductors competing for these myriad applications are silicon-based, laterally diffused metal oxide semiconductor (LDMOS), gallium arsenide (GaAs), and gallium nitride (GaN). Because each technology has its advantages and limitations, it is up to a shrewd engineer to sift through the possibilities.
Tomi Engdahl says:
What’s the Difference Between Microstrip and Stripline?
http://www.mwrf.com/active-components/what-s-difference-between-microstrip-and-stripline?code=UM_Classics11217&utm_rid=CPG05000002750211&utm_campaign=14150&utm_medium=email&elq2=2f2596f4afdb44eca702c1c5752014b6
The two most popular RF/microwave transmission-line formats—microstrip and stripline—have distinguishing characteristics that designers need to know.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Samsung’s Capex Seen Crushing Memory Startups
https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1332610&
Samsung, which has nearly half of the global DRAM market, is likely to crush smaller rivals after more than doubling its plan for capital expenditures in its semiconductor unit for this year, according to market analyst IC Insights.
The world’s biggest chipmaker will boost 2017 capex from the $11.3 billion it spent last year to an unprecedented $26 billion.
Buoyed by strong prices for memory chips, Samsung said it sailed to a record quarterly operating income of 14.5 trillion won ($12.8 billion) in October. The outlook continues to be bullish as DRAM prices are expected to increase about 10 percent in the fourth quarter largely due to strong demand in the mobile DRAM market.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Broad/Qual/NXP Battle Begins
https://www.eetimes.com/author.asp?section_id=36&doc_id=1332594&
A week after Broadcom made a bold $103 billion bid for Qualcomm, the mobile chip giant rejected it, and Broadcom quickly announced it is standing pat. Now the battle begins in earnest.
It’s not surprising the historically huge bid should be rebuffed. As Hock Tan noted in his offer letter, the two had privately discussed merger possibilities and clearly Qualcomm had not agreed, triggering Tan’s hostile bid.
At the very least, Qualcomm owes it to employees and shareholders to push for a higher price and better terms. That is indeed the big message it sent with its short public statement, offered without comment, that the $70/share offer “dramatically undervalues the company.”
Wall Street liked the move, sending Qualcomm shares up and Broadcom’s down each about a point, Reuters reported.
Tomi Engdahl says:
ANSI/VITA 48.8 Urges More Convection Cooling for VPX-Based Systems
The newly ratified ANSI/VITA 48.8 standard looks to reduce the dependence on conduction cooling for 3U and 6U circuit cards with VPX connectors.
http://www.powerelectronics.com/power-management/ansivita-488-urges-more-convection-cooling-vpx-based-systems?NL=ED-003&Issue=ED-003_20171120_ED-003_847&sfvc4enews=42&cl=article_1_b&utm_rid=CPG05000002750211&utm_campaign=14166&utm_medium=email&elq2=00148c1342614baaaebccec5b924cab5
It’s not news that cooling and thermal management are never-ending issues for systems and their power supplies. Ironically, though, the emergence of smaller components with more processing capability while operating at much lower power has had the counterintuitive effect of actually increasing thermal density, with designers expected to pack even more functionality into ever-smaller spaces.
To accommodate this trend, a newly ratified industry standard encourages increased use of convection cooling and reduces the dependence on conduction cooling for designs using 3U and 6U circuit cards with VPX connectors. ANSI/VITA 48.8 is a mechanical form-factor standard that leverages air-flow-through (AFT) cooling, enabling designers to choose standard-compliant modules from a variety of vendors with the assurance they will be physically (and electrically) compatible.
Subsystems that adhere to the standard can use multiple air-flow arrangements, including air inlets at both card edges, as well as on the top circuit-card edge opposite the VPX connectors (Fig. 1). The standard reduces weight and cost in high-density, high-power electronic systems by eliminating wedgelocks and card-insertion/ejector retainers (levers), and instead replaces them with lighter-weight jackscrews that lock the cards into a subrack chassis.
Most conduction-cooling approaches remove heat via a physical path from the hot components, through the circuit card, through the card wedgelocks, through the chassis walls, and out to ambient air. In contrast, AFT cooling uses a heat exchanger integrated into the structural frame of each circuit card.
There’s a design tradeoff, though, of circuit-card pitch compared with more conventional approaches that focus on conduction cooling. ANSI/VITA 48.8 requires larger card-slot pitches of 1.0, 1.2, and 1.5 inches. The standard also specifies the use of gasketing to avoid particulate contamination that results from the airflow.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Marvell and Cavium to Combine Creating an Infrastructure Solutions Powerhouse
http://www.cavium.com/newsevents-Marvell-and-Cavium-to-Combine-Creating-an-Infrastructure-Solutions-Powerhouse.html
- Complementary portfolios and scale enable world-class end-to-end solutions
- Diversifies revenue base and end markets; increases SAM to $16 billion+
- Combined R&D innovation engine and IP portfolio accelerates product leadership
- Creates best-in-class financial model
Santa Clara, and San Jose Calif. (November 20, 2017) –Marvell Technology Group Ltd. (NASDAQ: MRVL) and Cavium, Inc. (NASDAQ: CAVM) today announced a definitive agreement, unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both companies, under which Marvell will acquire all outstanding shares of Cavium common stock in exchange for consideration of $40.00 per share in cash and 2.1757 Marvell common shares for each Cavium share. Upon completion of the transaction, Marvell will become a leader in infrastructure solutions with approximately $3.4 billion1 in annual revenue.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Semiconductor Wafer Demand: Growing Pains
https://semiengineering.com/semiconductor-wafer-demand-growing-pains/
Unit growth more than 13%, but selling prices are down and wafers are in short supply.
Semico Research is forecasting total semiconductor unit growth to exceed 13% this year, the first double-digit growth year since 2010. The exceptional unit growth is what the industry hopes for, but it does come with some growing pains.
MOS logic, optoelectronics, MEMS and sensors, and even analog and discrete products are experiencing more than 10% unit growth in 2017. The challenge is that ASPs (average selling prices) are taking a hit. For example, the MOS Logic ASP is expected to decline by 8%.
The growth in units is matched by a 9% growth in wafer demand. The increase in wafer demand would be even higher except that silicon wafers remain in a shortage situation and prices for silicon wafers are increasing.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Deals: Mentor-Solido, Marvell-Cavium
M&A activity heats up everywhere.
https://semiengineering.com/marvell-to-buy-cavium-for-6b/
Marvell today signed a definitive agreement to buy Cavium for roughly $6 billion, ending weeks of speculation about whether the deal would go through. And Mentor, a Siemens business, paid an undisclosed price to buy Solido Design Automation, which tracks variation in complex designs.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Samsung Likely to Unseat Intel as Top Chip Vendor
https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1332650&
Samsung Electronics is poised to unseat Intel as the world’s largest semiconductor company this year based on sales, as South Korea’s electronics giant benefits from strong demand for memory chips, according to market research firm IC Insights.
Intel, which has held the lead since 1993, is expected to fall to second place after Samsung in the 2017 sales ranking, with the two separated by a $4.6 billion gap, according to a report from the market research firm. The jump in sales by Samsung, the world’s largest memory-chip maker, is primarily attributable to soaring DRAM and NAND flash prices, the report said. Samsung first emerged in the top spot during the second quarter this year, displacing Intel during that period.
Surging memory prices are also helping SK Hynix and Micron
Tomi Engdahl says:
Analyst Warns on Semiconductor Stock Valuations
https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1332649&
The market capitalization of publicly-traded semiconductor companies has risen dramatically over the past three years, driven largely by a frenzy of merger and acquisition activity and the performance of the chip market as a whole, according to International Business Strategies (IBS).
The cumulative valuation of 15 selected non-memory companies studied by IBS rose from about $520 billion in 2015 to more than $1.07 trillion today. Expectations of additional M&A activity and a positive assessment of the long-term prospects for the semiconductor industry among analysts and investors have also helped the cumulative valuation of the group more than double, according to IBS, a research and consulting firm based in Los Gatos, Calif.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Siemens Acquires Solido Design Automation
https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1332639&
Siemens announced it agreed to buy Solido Design Automation, a Canadian provider of variation-aware design and characterization software to the semiconductor industry. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The deal is the first acquisition in the EDA arena for Munich-based Siemens since it bought Mentor Graphics for $4.5 billion earlier this year. Solido will become part of Mentor’s IC verification solutions division.
“We see a great opportunity to expand the reach of Solido’s technology across our customer base,”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Time to Look For Low-Cost DRAM Alternatives
https://www.eetimes.com/author.asp?section_id=36&doc_id=1332646&
DRAM is turning into a seller’s market, and it’s time to look at low-cost alternatives.
DRAM prices are heating up, and there is no easy solution to relieve this high price issue because it does not come from the imbalance between supply and demand, but instead from the end of Moore’s Law for planar DRAM (see related article, Why Memory Prices Are Heating Up).
This year, bit growth of DRAM will be the strong 23 years. Planar DRAM scaling has also slowed considerably in the last three years
Therefore, DRAM is transforming into a seller’s market and DRAM vendors are making record profits this year. Similar to oil crisis, customers are paying more for DRAM under the DRAM crisis. Therefore, I would like to discuss what kind of solutions we could find for low cost DRAM.
For the time being, emerging memories such as MRAM and phase-change memory (PCM) have been challenging planar DRAM. However, MRAM goes to embedded applications and PCM (i.e. 3D XPoint) is being used as high-end SSD applications. Realistically, it is difficult for them to directly replace planar DRAM considering cost-per-bit, performance and reliability. Thus, emerging memories are searching for their own niche market segments now.
DRAM fab expansion is one method to increase DRAM supply. However, DRAM vendors may be hesitant because the cost of a new fab is about six times higher than a fab upgrade. For the time being, DRAM vendors have increased DRAM output though fab upgrades for the lateral scaling of DRAM, which increased DRAM bit output exponentially by a power of two. In contrast, a new fab without lateral scaling would require signficantly more investment for just a linear increase in DRAM bit output, which, coupled with higher manufacturing costs, will make DRAM more expensive.
Tomi Engdahl says:
ANSI/VITA 48.8 Urges More Convection Cooling for VPX-Based Systems
The newly ratified ANSI/VITA 48.8 standard looks to reduce the dependence on conduction cooling for 3U and 6U circuit cards with VPX connectors.
http://www.powerelectronics.com/power-management/ansivita-488-urges-more-convection-cooling-vpx-based-systems?NL=ED-003&Issue=ED-003_20171122_ED-003_442&sfvc4enews=42&cl=article_1_b&utm_rid=CPG05000002750211&utm_campaign=14229&utm_medium=email&elq2=15b109e6ed504939bf66d653113a464c
Tomi Engdahl says:
Startup Demonstrates ReRAM Retention, Endurance
https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1332653&
An Israel-based semiconductor startup has reported positive results with its ReRAM technology.
Weebit Nano recently published preliminary evaluation results of endurance and data retention measurement on 4Kb arrays on 300nm cells. In a telephone interview with EE Times, CEO Coby Hanoch said the results successfully conclude the 300nm 4Kb characterization. The measurement was done under a variety of temperature and duration conditions at 150, 200 and 260 degrees Celsius, monitoring the ability of the ReRAM cells to maintain their resistivity levels within industry acceptable ranges.
Hanoch said 260 degrees Celsius is significant since it’s the temperature used when soldering chipsets into printed circuit boards. Weebit Nano’s 4Kb array kept its programmed data after 30 minutes at 260°C, exceeding the soldering requirement of 15 minutes at this temperature. This allows several soldering cycles. Data retention lifetime extrapolation showed the ability to keep written data for 10 years at above room temperature, he added, and high enough to meet the requirements of market segments such as industrial and automotive.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Magnetic Connective Wireless Charging and Data Transfer
https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1332450&
Magnetic connective wireless charging (Magconn) is an innovative magnetic connection technology that is a simple and safe low-cost alternative to induction charging and conductive wireless charging, with all the benefits of a direct plug-in connection, even for data transmission, data acquisition and sending pulse signals or audio. The product is most versatile and its potential applications are multiple. Magconn is proving to be of major interest to product designers working on devices destined for the Internet of Things, including rugged, smart, wearable, and wireless devices.
Magnetic connective wireless charging is the name given to the worldwide patented Magconn product technology. Although it may seem somewhat contradictory, the name Magconn is a most apt one, when one thinks about the term “wireless” in a different context. “Inductive and conductive wireless charging” have used the term “wireless”: in theory, it is correct usage of the word as the power is actually transmitted wirelessly, albeit at an extremely short range. However, the wireless device still has to be physically rested on or in a charging platform, hence eliminating the process of plugging in the device when it needs to be charged.
Magconn is a lower cost alternative that offers so much more! There is no charging efficiency loss, no energy loss and not heat loss, as effectively it is direct contact. Direct contact means no loss in charging times. Magconn uses magnets to automatically self position and self center the device to the charger.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Tektronix goes ATE with faceless oscilloscope
https://www.edn.com/electronics-products/other/4459084/Tektronix-goes-ATE-with-faceless-oscilloscope
Earlier this year, Tektronix introduced the MSO5 series of 12-bit oscilloscopes with four, six, or eight analog channels. This week, the company announced a “faceless” version aimed at ATE applications. As where the bench version MSO5 series competes with other bench oscilloscopes, the low-profile version competes with modular oscilloscopes and digitizers.
The low-profile MSO5′s case is rack mountable, making it suitable for automated test or machine monitoring. It delivers all the specs of its benchtop cousins. Basic specs include:
Four, six, or eight analog inputs.
FlexChannel feature lets you substitute eight digital channel for any analog channel.
1 GHz bandwidth on all channels.
Real-time same rate of 6.25 Gsamples/s.
12-bit ADC on each channel. High-res mode increases resolution to 16 bits (125 Msamples/s).
Effective number of bits, 7.6 @ 1 GHz, 8.9 @20 MHz.
Record length 125 Msamples/channel
Optional jitter and serial bus analysis
Channel math, FFT, cursors (for use in bench/dubug applications)
Connectivity: 6 USB host inputs, one USB device, LAN, DisplayPort, DVI-D, SVGA. No GPIB connectivity.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Research Program Seeks Advances in Wide-Bandgap Power Semiconductors
http://www.powerelectronics.com/alternative-energy/research-program-seeks-advances-wide-bandgap-power-semiconductors?code=UM_TopArticles_11217&utm_rid=CPG05000002750211&utm_campaign=14205&utm_medium=email&elq2=977f3403800940dfb5639a1b01a8f069
Tomi Engdahl says:
Low-Voltage Logic Inputs Turn 1000Vdc Loads On/Off
http://www.powerelectronics.com/regulators/low-voltage-logic-inputs-turn-1000vdc-loads-onoff
Computer logic controls up to a 1000Vdc load using a 22mm x 9mm x 5.16mm BGA micromodule employing an internal isolated Power Switch Controller that drives an external power MOSFET or IGBT.
The LTM9100 µModule (micromodule) from Linear Technology accepts logic inputs that enable its internal isolated Power Switch Controller to drive an external-power MOSFET/IGBT switching at up to1000Vdc. It uses a galvanic isolation barrier to separate logic inputs from its Power Switch Controller, which can turn high-voltage power sources on and off. In doing so, the isolation barrier protects its low-voltage logic inputs from the neighboring high-voltage Power Switch Controller.
Many computer-based applications employ high voltages that you can control with the LTM9100. One such application is industrial motor drives that may operate from 170Vdc to 680Vdc. Grid-tied solar systems can operate up to 600V or more. Primary power for some modern fighter aircraft is 270Vdc. Li-ion batteries in electric vehicles can reach up to 400V.
The key to the LTM9100’s power protection is its internal 5kVRMS galvanic isolation barrier that separates the digital input interface from the Power Switch Controller that drives an external N-channel MOSFET or IGBT switch
You can configure this isolated power switch controller for use in either high side or low side applications (hence, its Anyside name), as shown in Fig. 2. In addition, it can be used in floating applications.
Adjustable undervoltage and overvoltage lockout thresholds ensure that the load operates only when the input supply is in its valid range. A current-limited circuit breaker protects the supply from overload and short-circuits.
This isolated power switch controller minimizes inrush current by soft-starting the load. It is versatile enough to control inrush current in hot-swappable cards, ac transformers, motor drives, and inductive loads.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Led on silicon enables an optical CMOS circuit
The light would also be suitable for internal data transfer, but electronics and light do not fit in one common CMOS chip. Satente Dutta, a researcher at Twente University, has managed to bring light to the core of the semiconductor chip. The solution is attractive because no specialty materials or manufacturing methods are needed. Light comes from silicon.
The problem with piecing is that silicon emits only a small amount of infrared light while the silicon detector needs visible light. Dutta turned on the LED in reverse direction. With low voltages, the current does not run, but at high enough voltage a small stream is generated, with avalanches in the avalanche causing the LED to emit visible light.
In addition to the LED, the same process can be used to perform both the light and the light channel. The solution is considerably more compact than, for example, an optocoupler, but requires some optimization of power consumption.
One international research team has, in turn, developed a new ldn of GaN-based materials, but abandoning its awkward p-alloy. If technology can be used for high light output, a breakthrough could enhance the efficiency of LED lighting without the need to significantly enhance existing production technology.
The work involves a resonant tunnel diode (RTD) in the gallium nitride system.
Source: http://www.etn.fi/index.php/13-news/7220-ledi-piilla-mahdollistaa-optisen-cmos-piirin
Tomi Engdahl says:
Faster time-to-market clock oscillator: Easing emissions compliance for circuit designers
https://www.edn.com/electronics-products/electronic-product-reviews/other/4459057/Faster-time-to-market-clock-oscillator–Easing-emissions-compliance-for-circuit-designers
designer’s pain in trying to meet demanding release schedules for their systems while still meeting critical specs, reliability, and emissions compliance. So that’s why I am writing this product review for SiTime’s MEMS timing SiT9005, a spread spectrum oscillator (SSO).
So, what is it about this product that should excite circuit designers? Well, it is field programmable in a way that helps ensure emissions compliance. What this means to me is that there will be less troubleshooting, re-design and fewer production delays, not to mention re-testing/re-design costs to meet a failed or borderline emissions compliance test.
How do SiTime designers do that? First, there is the spread spectrum clocking as well as the ability to adjust the rise/fall time of the clock signal. Secondly, SiTime has a Time Machine II programmer that will help designers to reduce emissions pretty fast, before and even sometimes after sending the system for emissions compliance tests if the test results failed or were marginal in meeting compliance.
The frequency spectrum of typical square-wave clocks is composed of a fundamental tone as well as a slew of higher harmonics. Conventional techniques of filtering, shielding, and good PC layout practices can limit the EMI in a system, at added cost and using prime board space. The new device reduces EMI on the most dominant EMI sources. Let’s take a look how this is done.
This kind of noise can be reduced in two ways with this new SiTime device. First, by using the flex edge slew rate control, a neat feature of this device that can slow down rise/fall times which reduces harmonic power reduction.
Standard LVCMOS is OK for many applications, but when noise is an issue (when isn’t it?) then the SoftEdge technique by SiTime in this device really helps reduce noise.
The second way this device reduces noise on a clock trace is via Spread Spectrum.
Using Spread Spectrum Clock Generation (SSCG)1,2
Noisy processor EMI is getting worse with faster speeds and data rates being demanded by new applications like Cloud data centers and 5G infrastructure. Clock generators are often the largest or one of the largest sources of this noise.
The spreading of the energy in the clock signal is accomplished by frequency modulating (FM) the clock signal with a unique modulating waveform.
In a spread spectrum technique, instead of concentrating all the clock energy at a single frequency, the energy is spread out via frequency modulation of the clock. The modulation profile can be triangular or non-linear like the ‘Hershey-Kiss’ profile.
The non-linear Hershey-Kiss profile gives better EMI performance
Tomi Engdahl says:
Home> Tools & Learning> Products> Product Review
mCube motion tracking innovation
https://www.edn.com/electronics-products/electronic-product-reviews/other/4459061/mCube-motion-tracking-innovation
Looking at the size of their MC3672, a three-axis accelerometer, at a size of only 1.1×1.3 mm WLCSP chipscale package, immediately said to me ‘low parasitics’ and more possibilities to use such a device in an unobtrusive wearable design as well as a whole new set of applications to come that might not have been possible before.
Low power motion tracking solutions will abound
This MEMS device, coupled with mCube’s recent acquisition of Xsens just days ago, now brings sensor fusion software with their tiny accelerometer to achieve such areas of body motion capture solutions for entertainment, health, and fitness as well as inertial measurement units for control and stabilization in industrial applications and more.
The sensor interface
Achieving small system size and low power consumption can only be accomplished with all components in the system design adhering to those important features. Using a Silicon, CMOS-based, circuit in the sensor interface function of this system, will amplify, filter and properly fit the A to D input so the processor can do its magic.
mCube is able to achieve a monolithic, single-chip design by integrating both the MEMS and CMOS in a clever extension that uses a standard CMOS process as a base that is reliable producing high volumes with excellent yields. The interconnectivity between the MEMS and the CMOS is done very efficiently.
Their technology platform allows the production of single-chip MEMS+CMOS sensors in volume and is unique to mCube, and protected by 100 approved patents.
Vertical integration
mCube has integrated an MCU in a SiP package but not yet Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE). In the future, their goal is to realize IoMT-on-a-Chip by integrating RF such as BLE.
mCube’s MC3672 has been named 2018 CES Innovation Award Honoree under the ‘Embedded Technologies’ section.
Xsens contributions
The Xsens acquisition gave mCube a 3D motion tracking technology in the world of sensor fusion. Xsens brought to the party their highest-precision modules for motion sensing in 9 degrees of freedom (DoF), as well as 10 DoF. Its multi-chip modules combine an accelerometer, magnetometer, and gyroscope for 9 DoF – horizontally integrating different types of motion data.
Xsens also has unique 3D motion-tracking body suits which enable CGI animation in popular movies we see in the theater. Character animation as well as robotics are other areas that benefit from this amazing technology
mCube comes in with their monolithic single-chip MEMS+CMOS sensors!
Tomi Engdahl says:
Historical Turn: Intel dropped to second place
Samsung passed this year as the world’s largest semiconductor device. In IC Insights’ forecast, the Korean company will grow as much as $ 4.6 billion in excess of processor losses.
Intel has been the world’s largest semiconductor company ever since 1993, when it announced its first Pentium processors. At that time, the company’s net sales were $ 7.6 billion. Samsung was then a $ 3.1 billion semiconductor company.
In 2000, Intel had grown to 29.7 billion and Samsung ranked fourth with its top 10 billion dollar turnover. In 2006, Samsung was already the second largest manufacturer with its $ 19.7 billion sales
This year, Samsung will rise to 65.6 billion thanks to the tremendous success of the memory circuits. Intel’s net sales also grow, but “only” to $ 61 billion. SK Hynix’s net sales will grow to 26.2 billion this year, Micron’s 23.4 billion and Broadcom’s 17.6 billion.
Next year, the list will be partly new if the planned deals are realized. First, NXP is embedded in Qualcomm, bringing Qualcomm to the top four. Broadcom has already offered a bid for Qualcomm’s shares, and if realized, this deal would clearly be the third largest company.
Source: http://www.etn.fi/index.php/13-news/7225-historiallinen-kaanne-intel-putosi-kakkoseksi
Tomi Engdahl says:
Washable, Wearable Electronic Circuits Printed onto Fabric
Researchers at the University of Cambridge have used graphene-based ink and an inkjet-printing process to print integrated circuits onto fabric.
https://www.designnews.com/electronics-test/washable-wearable-electronic-circuits-printed-fabric/196368842957863?ADTRK=UBM&elq_mid=2183&elq_cid=876648
Some of the latest work comes from researchers at the University of Cambridge, where a team—leveraging the multifaceted material graphene—has successfully incorporated washable, stretchable, and breathable electronic circuits into fabric. The research—a collaboration with scientists in Italy and China in addition to the United Kingdom—paves the wave for new designs in smart textiles and wearable electronics that are more comfortable, environmentally and user-friendly, and can withstand repeated laundering, said Felice Torrisi, a researcher in the Cambridge Graphene Centre.
“Turning textile fibers into functional electronic components can open to an entirely new set of applications from healthcare and wellbeing to the Internet of Things,” he said. “Thanks to nanotechnology, in the future our clothes could incorporate these textile-based electronics, such as displays or sensors and become interactive.”
http://www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/fully-integrated-circuits-printed-directly-onto-fabric
Tomi Engdahl says:
Supply Meets Demand: Use Multiphase Converters to Solve Tough Power Design Challenges
http://www.electronicdesign.com/power/supply-meets-demand-use-multiphase-converters-solve-tough-power-design-challenges?NL=ED-003&Issue=ED-003_20171129_ED-003_302&sfvc4enews=42&cl=article_1_b&utm_rid=CPG05000002750211&utm_campaign=14313&utm_medium=email&elq2=5c8ce537d2474d839c0926f4070c5284
Sponsored by: Texas Instruments. As DSPs and microprocessors try to wring more from their power supplies, designers can turn to multiphase buck converters to obtain higher efficiency, lower output ripple voltage, and better transient performance.
Tomi Engdahl says:
China IC sector must develop large IDMs, says expert
http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20171128PD203.html
China’s semiconductor industry must move to establish major IDM (integrated device manufacture) enterprises with global competitiveness to fill up the deficiency of domestic IDM deployments, while continuing to strengthen its IC design and foundry businesses, according to Ye Tianchun, director of the Institute of Microelectronics of Chinese Academy of Sciences (IMECAS).
Low profit margins
Ye said China is now the world’s largest manufacturer of electronics and information technology products, generating annual production value of over CNY12 trillion (US$1.8167 trillion), with profits, however, reaching only CNY600 billion for a profit margin of 4-5% as the market for high-end chips with much higher profitability is still dominated by foreign players.
Tomi Engdahl says:
South Korea Takes Bigger Slice of Mobile DRAM Market
https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1332659&_mc=RSS_EET_EDT
Mobile DRAM sales grew by more than 4 percent sequentially in the third quarter, with South Korea’s memory chip giants taking a bigger slice of the pie, according to memory price tracking firm DRAMeXchange.
While the gradual recovery of the smartphone market and the arrival of the year-end holiday cycle boosted the market for mobile DRAM chips in the third quarter, the average selling price of devices increased by less than 5 percent during the quarter, according to DRAMeXchange. The firm expects mobile DRAM sales growth to increase in the fourth quarter.
South Korea’s Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix continued to dominate the market, holding a combined 85.6 percent of the mobile DRAM market in the third quarter, up more than 2 percent compared with the second quarter, DRAMeXchange said.
Tomi Engdahl says:
How to reconfigure a buck converter for multiple outputs
https://www.edn.com/design/power-management/4459115/How-to-reconfigure-a-buck-converter-for-multiple-outputs-
This article will highlight various isolated/non-isolated DC/DC converter topologies and demonstrate how they can be implemented using a single synchronous buck converter.
The beauty of generating various converter topologies based on a single buck converter is that an opto-coupler and its related circuitry are not required. This provides the benefit of a smaller footprint, lower component count, reduced complexity and cost savings. Besides generating multiple outputs, the buck converter is configurable to operate as an inverting buck-boost converter, essentially providing a voltage step-up function. In addition, designers can create an isolated buck-boost converter using a similar concept.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Home> Analog Design Center > Design Idea
Cancel PWM DAC ripple with analog subtraction
https://www.edn.com/design/analog/4459116/Cancel-PWM-DAC-ripple-with-analog-subtraction
Tomi Engdahl says:
4DS Enlists IMEC to Advance ReRAM
https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1332672&
A resistive RAM (ReRAM) company that recently claimed its storage-class memory technology was as fast as DRAM is collaborating with IMEC to develop a production-compatible process.
4DS Memory Limited announced in June it had successfully tuned its Interface Switching ReRAM cell architecture to storage class memory with read speeds comparable to DRAM without needing speed-limiting error correction. Last year, the company announced it had scaled these cells to 40nm, but until now these cells have been fabricated with R&D process tools that differ from those used for high-density, high-volume memories in production fabs.
Tomi Engdahl says:
The Week In Review: Manufacturing
https://semiengineering.com/the-week-in-review-manufacturing-183/
The 2017 top-ten rankings of foundries remain the same as last year, according to TrendForce. TSMC, GlobalFoundries and United Microelectronics Corp. (UMC) rank first, second, and third, respectively, in terms of projected sales in 2017, according to TrendForce. TSMC has a dominant market share of 55.9%. In the rankings, Samsung is in fourth place, followed in order by SMIC, TowerJazz, Powerchip, Vanguard, Hua Hong and Dongbu, according to the firm.
Tomi Engdahl says:
With 450mm on Ice, 300mm Shoulders Heavier Load
https://www.eetimes.com/author.asp?section_id=40&doc_id=1332457&
With the semiconductor industry’s plans to transition to 450mm wafers on deep freeze, chipmakers are doubling down on 300mm fabs.
According to market research firm IC Insights, 300mm wafers represented about 64 percent of worldwide fab capacity at the end of last year. The firm expects that percentage to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8 percent between 2016 to 2021, rising to more than 71 percent.