IC Insights recently released its October Update to The McClean Report 2019. Part of the update reviewed U.S. and China GDP and PMI trends in light of the current trade friction between the two nations.
MEMS
Compact Depth Sensor Inspired By Spiders
For all our technological advances, nothing beats evolution when it comes to research and development. Take jumping spiders. These small arachnids have impressive depth perception despite their tiny brains, allowing them to accurately pounce on unsuspecting targets from several body lengths away.
Global MEMS and Sensors Fab Capacity to Grow 25 Percent Through 2023, SEMI Reports
Total worldwide installed capacity for MEMS and sensors fabs is forecast to grow 25 percent to 4.7 million wafers* per month from 2018 to 2023, driven by explosive demand across communications, transportation, medical, mobile, industrial and other Internet of Things (IoT) applications, according to the new MEMS & Sensors Fab Report to 2023 published by SEMI.
NSITEXE Achieves First-Pass Silicon Success for High-Performance Data Flow Processor-based SoC Test Chip Using DesignWare IP
Synopsys, Inc. (Nasdaq: SNPS) today announced that NSITEXE, a Denso Group Company, achieved first-pass silicon success for its high-performance Data Flow Processor (DFP)-based SoC test chip using Synopsys’ DesignWare® Interface and Foundation IP portfolios. With Synopsys’ silicon-proven DesignWare IP, NSITEXE met the advanced functionality, processing, performance, and testability requirements of its DFP-based SoC. NSITEXE’s DFP-based SoC combines both a CPU and a GPU to process large and complex datasets for parallel data management with power-efficient parallelism and quality.
Power Integrations Announces Settlement of Patent Litigation
Power Integrations (Nasdaq: POWI) today announced a comprehensive settlement of its patent disputes with ON Semiconductor and its subsidiary, Fairchild Semiconductor. Consistent with the terms of the term sheet disclosed on October 9, the companies have entered into a definitive agreement that ends all litigation between them, including lawsuits in Delaware, California, Taiwan and China. Power Integrations (PI) has received a cash payment of $175M from ON; neither company granted any licenses to the other.
North American Semiconductor Equipment Industry Posts September 2019 Billings
North America-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted $1.95 billion in billings worldwide in September 2019 (three-month average basis), according to the September Equipment Market Data Subscription (EMDS) Billings Report published today by SEMI. The billings figure is 2.4 percent lower than the final August 2019 level of $2.00 billion, and is 6.0 percent lower than the September 2018 billings level of $2.08 billion. “Monthly billings of North American equipment manufacturers declined for the second consecutive month,” said Ajit Manocha, president and CEO of SEMI.
NUS Innovation Paves the Way For Sensor Interfaces That Are 30 Times Smaller
The Green IC research group in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the National University of Singapore’s (NUS) Faculty of Engineering invented a novel class of Digital-to-Analog (DAC) and Analog-to-Digital Converters (ADC) that can be entirely designed with a fully-automated digital design methodology, thanks to its fully-digital architecture. Compared to traditional analog architectures and methodologies, the design turnaround time for these novel sensor interfaces is reduced from months to hours. The drastic reduction in the design effort is highly beneficial in cost-sensitive silicon systems, such as sensors for the Internet of Things (IoT). The novel data converter architecture also has very low complexity, reducing the silicon area and hence the manufacturing cost by at least 30 times, compared to conventional designs.
Kirigami Inspires New Method for Wearable Sensors
As wearable sensors become more prevalent, the need for a material resistant to damage from the stress and strains of the human body’s natural movement becomes ever more crucial. To that end, researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have developed a method of adopting kirigami architectures to help materials become more strain tolerant and more adaptable to movement.
Big Data Technique Reveals Previously Unknown Capabilities of Common Materials
When scientists and engineers discover new ways to optimize existing materials, it paves the way for innovations that make everything from our phones and computers to our medical equipment smaller, faster, and more efficient. According to research published today by Nature Journal NPG Asia Materials, a group of researchers — led by Edwin Fohtung, an associate professor of materials science and engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute — have found a new way to optimize nickel by unlocking properties that could enable numerous applications, from biosensors to quantum computing.
New Transient-Voltage-Suppression Diodes from STMicroelectronics Deliver Higher Protection in Smaller Packages
In addition to the lower profile, ST’s new 1500W SMB Flat package has transient-power capability equivalent to that of conventional devices in SMC packages, in a footprint more than 50% smaller. The 400W and 600W SMA Flat and SMB Flat devices are fully footprint-compatible with alternatives in conventional SMA and SMB packages. Leakage current is five times lower compared with other TVS diodes on the market, minimizing impact on system operation and power consumption.
