Category Archives: 3D Integration

MagnaChip Semiconductor Corporation (NYSE: MX), a designer and manufacturer of analog and mixed-signal semiconductor platform solutions, announced today it now offers the 2nd generation of 0.13 micron BCD process technology integrated with high-density embedded Flash memory. This second-generation BCD process offers advanced features compared to previous BCD processes, which are high-density Flash memory up to 64 kilo bytes, low specific Ron of power LDMOS up to 40V, low number of photo steps and automotive grade reliability. These characteristics make the new generation of BCD process technology highly suitable for programmable PMICs, wireless power chargers, USB-C power-delivery IC products and automotive power ICs.

Traditionally, the non-volatile memories in the BCD process are low in density, below 256 bytes, for trimming purposes. However, today’s electronic devices require more complex functions and lower power consumption. As a result, there is a greater market need for high-density embedded non-volatile memory in the BCD process. This memory includes Flash memory used for power ICs, including programmable PMICs, wireless power chargers and USB-C power-delivery ICs. In some applications, high-density Flash memory up to 64 kilo bytes is used to store programming codes as well as trimming data. Until now, the drawback of implementing high-density embedded memory in other BCD processes has been that it increases the overall number of manufacturing steps.

MagnaChip was able to eliminate 8 photo steps in the second-generation BCD process from the 1st generation by process optimization. Aside from embedded non-volatile memory, the 2nd generation also achieved the improvement of power LDMOS specific Ron performance, which is well suited for high-power requirements up to 40V operation. For IoT and automotive applications, this BCD process provides 1.5V and 5V CMOS devices with very low leakage current level that enables low power consumption. Furthermore, this new BCD process has various option devices for Hall sensors, varactors, inductors, and RF CMOS devices that are useful for highly integrated IC solutions, which give smaller system size and less system cost.

YJ Kim, Chief Executive Officer of MagnaChip, commented, “The integration of analog-based BCD and high density non-volatile memory enables highly suitable ICs and system designs for power management solutions, wireless chargers and power ICs used in smartphones, IoT devices and automotive applications.” Mr. Kim added, “Our goal is to continue to develop specialized and innovative process technologies that meet the changing market requirements of our foundry customers.”

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. today announced that it has begun mass production of a 256-gigabyte (GB) embedded Universal Flash Storage (eUFS) solution with advanced features based on automotive specifications from the JEDEC UFS 3.0 standard, for the first time in the industry.

Following the memory breakthrough of the automotive industry’s first 128GB eUFS in September, 2017, Samsung’s automotive 256GB eUFS is now being shipped to automotive manufacturers preparing the market for Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS), next-generation infotainment systems and new-age dashboards in luxury vehicles.

As thermal management is crucial for automotive memory applications, Samsung’s 256GB eUFS extends the temperature range to between -40°C and 105°C for both operational and power-saving modes. Warranties for conventional embedded multimedia card (eMMC) 5.1 solutions generally cover -25°C to 85°C for vehicles in operation and -40°C to 85°C when in idle or power-saving mode.

“With the new temperature threshold for automobile warranties, major automotive manufacturers can now design-in memory that’s even well suited for extreme environments and know they will be getting highly reliable performance,” said Kyoung Hwan Han, vice president of NAND marketing at Samsung Electronics. “Starting with high-end vehicles, we expect to expand our business portfolio across the entire automotive market, while accelerating growth in the premium memory segment.”

Samsung’s 256GB eUFS not only can easily endure the new temperature specification, despite the heat-sensitive nature of memory storage, but also through its temperature notification feature, a sensor will notify the host application processor (AP) when the device temperature exceeds 105°C or any pre-set level. The AP would then regulate its clock speed to lower the temperature to an acceptable level.

Sequential reads for the 256GB eUFS can reach 850 megabytes per second (MB/s), which is at the high end of the current JEDEC UFS 2.1 standard, and random read operations come in at 45,000 IOPS. In addition, a data refresh feature speeds up processing and enables greater system reliability by relocating older data to other less-used cells.

The temperature notification, developed by Samsung, and data refresh features are included in UFS specification, version 3.0, which was announced last month by JEDEC, a global semiconductor standards organization.

Samsung plans to bolster its technology partnerships with global automakers and component providers, and continue expanding its eUFS line-up with an aim to lead the premium memory market.

SK Hynix Inc. (or ‘the Company’, www.skhynix.com) today announced that the company recently completed developing an enterprise SATA Solid State Drive (or ‘eSSD’). With its 72-Layer 512Gb (Gigabits) 3D NAND Flash chips, the company is paving the way for its full-fledged entrance to the high value-added eSSD market.

SK Hynix combined the 72-Layer 512Gb 3D NAND Flash with its in-house firmware and controller to provide the maximum density of 4TB (Terabytes). SK Hynix makes the most of its 72-Layer 512Gb 3D NAND chips to double the biggest density of the SSD of the same size with 256Gb NAND chips.

A single 4TB SSD could contain 200 UHD (Ultra-HD) movies, each of which is generally as large as approximately 20GB (Gigabytes). The new eSSD supports sequential read and write speed of up to 560MB/s (Megabytes per second) and 515MB/s, respectively, and it can perform 98,000 random read IOPS (Input/Output operations per second) and 32,000 random write IOPS. SK Hynix also improved the read latency, which is of the utmost importance in eSSD performance. The Company is sampling the product to server and data center clients in the United States.

The company also finished developing enterprise PCIe (PCI Express) SSD and is shipping samples to server and data center clients. The PCIe SSD will also use the 72-Layer 3D NAND and have a capacity of more than 1TB. The 1TB PCIe SSD operates at 2,700MB/s and 1,100MB/s of sequential read/write speed and runs random read/write performance of 230,000 IOPS and 35,000 IOPS.

“SK Hynix started mass-producing client SSD with its 3D NAND chips and in-house firmware and controller last year. Now we have expanded our SSD business portfolio with the development of eSSD,” said Jin Kang, the Head of NAND Planning and Enabling. “The company plans to actively meet growing eSSD market demands to contribute to enhancing its profitability in NAND Flash business” he added.

According to IHS Markit, the SSD market revenue is expected to total USD 25.1 billion in 2017 and post a continuous annual growth of 5.6% to total USD 31.2 billion in 2021. Revenue of the enterprise SSD will lead the market growth by rising from USD 13.4 billion to USD 17.6 billion at a CAGR of 7% during the same period.

The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA), representing U.S. leadership in semiconductor manufacturing, design, and research, today announced the global semiconductor industry posted sales totaling $412.2 billion in 2017, the industry’s highest-ever annual sales and an increase of 21.6 percent compared to the 2016 total. Global sales for the month of December 2017 reached $38.0 billion, an increase of 22.5 percent over the December 2016 total and 0.8 percent more than the previous month’s total. Fourth-quarter sales of $114.0 billion were 22.5 percent higher than the total from the fourth quarter of 2016 and 5.7 percent more than the third quarter of 2017. Global sales during the fourth quarter of 2017 and during December 2017 were the industry’s highest-ever quarterly and monthly sales, respectively. All monthly sales numbers are compiled by the World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) organization and represent a three-month moving average.

Worldwide semiconductor revenues, year-to-year percent change

Worldwide semiconductor revenues, year-to-year percent change

“As semiconductors have become more heavily embedded in an ever-increasing number of products – from cars to coffee makers – and nascent technologies like artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and the Internet of Things have emerged, global demand for semiconductors has increased, leading to landmark sales in 2017 and a bright outlook for the long term,” said John Neuffer, SIA president and CEO. “The global market experienced across-the-board growth in 2017, with double-digit sales increases in every regional market and nearly all major product categories. We expect the market to grow more modestly in 2018.”

Several semiconductor product segments stood out in 2017. Memory was the largest semiconductor category by sales with $124.0 billion in 2017, and the fastest growing, with sales increasing 61.5 percent. Within the memory category, sales of DRAM products increased 76.8 percent and sales of NAND flash products increased 47.5 percent. Logic ($102.2 billion) and micro-ICs ($63.9 billion) – a category that includes microprocessors – rounded out the top three product categories in terms of total sales. Other fast-growing product categories in 2017 included rectifiers (18.3 percent), diodes (16.4 percent), and sensors and actuators (16.2 percent). Even without sales of memory products, sales of all other products combined increased by nearly 10 percent in 2017.

Annual sales increased substantially across all regions: the Americas (35.0 percent), China (22.2 percent), Europe (17.1 percent), Asia Pacific/All Other (16.4 percent), and Japan (13.3 percent). The Americas market also led the way in growth for the month of December 2017, with sales up 41.4 percent year-to-year and 2.1 percent month-to-month. Next were Europe (20.2 percent/-1.6 percent), China (18.1 percent/1.0 percent), Asia Pacific/All Other (17.4 percent/0.2 percent), and Japan (14.0 percent/0.9 percent).

“A strong semiconductor industry is foundational to America’s economic strength, national security, and global technology leadership,” said Neuffer. “We urge Congress and the Trump Administration to enact polices in 2018 that promote U.S. innovation and allow American businesses to compete on a more level playing field with our counterparts overseas. We look forward to working with policymakers in the year ahead to further strengthen the semiconductor industry, the broader tech sector, and our economy.”

Nordson MARCH, a Nordson company (NASDAQ:NDSN), a developer of plasma processing technology, introduces the MesoSPHERE Plasma System for very-high throughput processing of 3D and wafer-level packaging processes such as fan-in, fan-out, wafer-level, and panel-level – handling wafers up to 450mm and panels up to 480mm. The MesoSPHERE’s new, patented W3 three-axis symmetrical plasma chamber ensures that all areas of the wafer are treated equally and uniformly. Tight control over all process parameters gives highly repeatable results.

For wafer cleaning, the MesoSPHERE plasma system removes contamination prior to wafer bumping, organic contamination, fluorine and other halogen contamination, and metal and metal oxides. Plasma improves spun-on film adhesion and cleans metallic bond pads.

For wafer etching, the MesoSPHERE plasma system descums wafers of residual photoresist and BCB, pattern dielectric layers for redistribution, strip/etch photoresist, enhances adhesion of wafer applied materials, removes excess wafer applied mold /epoxy, enhances adhesion of gold solder bumps, destresses wafer to reduce breakage, improves spun-on film adhesion, and cleans aluminum bond pads.

The MesoSPHERE’s chamber design and control architecture enable short plasma cycle times with very low overhead, maximizing throughput and minimizing cost of ownership. Plasma confinement technology uses a ring to isolate and focus plasma so it’s distributed directly above the wafer, minimizing undesired secondary reactions. Process temperatures can be kept low because the ring increases etch rate capability without increasing the electrode temperature or adding bias to the chuck.

An innovative handling system transfers round or square substrates and frame or bonded carriers. The modular design allows capacity increase on a per plasma chamber basis. Equipment front end module (EFEM) integration supports from 1 to 4 plasma chambers. A pocket chuck design provides accurate substrate placement and centering, for additional process repeatability.

“A unique feature of the MesoSPHERE is the way we developed the isolation,” explained Jonathan Doan, director of marketing for Nordson MARCH. “It allows our customers a method to perform advanced packaging without having to use an expensive carrier and it can be used with 300mm wafers on frames.”

Air Products (NYSE: APD) today announced it has been awarded the industrial gases supply for Samsung Electronics’ second semiconductor fab in Xi’an, Shaanxi Province, western China.

The Xi’an fabrication line, within the Xi’an High-tech Zone (XHTZ), represents one of Samsung’s largest overseas investments and one of the most advanced fabs in China. It produces three-dimensional (3D) vertical NAND (V-NAND) flash memory chips for a wide range of applications, including embedded NAND storage, solid state drives, mobile devices, and other consumer electronics products.

Air Products has been supporting this project since 2014 from a large site housing two large air separation units (ASUs), a hydrogen plant and a bulk specialty gas delivery system. Under the new award, Air Products will expand its site by building several large ASUs, hydrogen and compressed dry air plants, and a bulk specialty gas supply yard to supply ultra-high purity nitrogen, oxygen, argon, hydrogen and compressed dry air to the new fab, which is scheduled to be operational in 2019.

“Samsung is a strategic and longstanding customer for Air Products. It is our honor to have their continued confidence and again be selected to support their business growth and this important project in western China,” said Kyo-Yung Kim, president of Air Products Korea, who also oversees the company’s electronics investment in the XHTZ. “We have been supplying the project with proven safety, reliability and operational excellence. This latest investment further reinforces our global leading position and commitment to serving our valued customer, as well as the broader semiconductor and electronics industries.”

Continuing to build its strong relationship with Samsung Electronics, Air Products also recently announced the next phases of expansion to build two more nitrogen plants serving the customer’s giga fab in Pyeongtaek City, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea.

A leading integrated gases supplier, Air Products has been serving the global electronics industry for more than 40 years, supplying industrial gases safely and reliably to most of the world’s largest technology companies. Air Products is working with these industry leaders to develop the next generation of semiconductors and displays for tablets, computers and mobile devices.

Microprocessors, which first appeared in the early 1970s as 4-bit computing devices for calculators, are among the most complex integrated circuits on the market today.  During the past four decades, powerful microprocessors have evolved into highly parallel multi-core 64-bit designs that contain all the functions of a computer’s central processing unit (CPU) as well as a growing number of system-level functions and accelerator blocks for graphics, video, and emerging artificial intelligence (AI) applications.  MPUs are the “brains” of personal computers, servers, and large mainframes, but they can also be used for embedded processing in a wide range of systems, such as networking gear, computer peripherals, medical and industrial equipment, cars, televisions, set-top boxes, video-game consoles, wearable products and Internet of Things applications.  The recently released 2018 edition of IC Insights’ McClean Report shows that the fastest growing types of microprocessors in the last five years have been mobile system-on-chip (SoC) designs for tablets and data-handling cellphones and MPUs used in embedded-processing applications (Figure 1).

Figure 1

Figure 1

The McClean Report also forecasts that 52% of 2018 MPU sales will come from sales of all types of microprocessors used as CPUs in standard PCs, servers, and large computers.  As shown in Figure 2, only about 16% of MPU sales are expected from embedded applications in 2018, with the rest coming from mobile application processors used in tablets (4%) and cellphones (28%).  Cellphone and tablet MPUs exclude baseband processors, which handle modem transmissions in cellular networks and are counted in the wireless communications segment of the special-purpose logic IC product category. A little over half of 2018 microprocessor sales are expected to come from x86 MPUs for computer CPUs sold by Intel and rival Advanced Micro Devices.

Figure 2

Figure 2

Cellphone and tablet SoC processors were the main growth drivers in microprocessors during the first half of this decade, but slowdowns have hit both of these MPU categories since 2015.  Market saturation and the maturing of the smartphone segment have stalled unit growth in cellular handsets.  Cellphone application processor shipments were flat in 2016 and 2017 and are forecast to rise just 0.3% in 2018 to reach a record high of nearly 1.8 billion units in the year.

The microprocessor business continues to be dominated by the world’s largest IC maker, Intel (Samsung was the world’s largest semiconductor supplier in 2017). Intel’s share of total MPU sales had been more than 75% during most of the last decade, but that percentage is now slightly less than 60% because of stronger growth in cellphones and tablets that contain ARM-based SoC processors.  For nearly 20 years, Intel’s huge MPU business for personal computers has primarily competed with just one other major x86 processor supplier—AMD—but increases in the use of smartphones and tablets to access the Internet for a variety of applications has caused a paradigm shift in personal computing, which is often characterized as the “Post-PC era.”

This year, AMD looks to continue its aggressive comeback effort in x86-based server processors that it started in 2017 with the rollout of highly parallel MPUs built with the company’s new Zen microarchitecture. Intel has responded by increasing the number of 64-bit x86 CPUs in its Xeon processors. Intel, AMD, Nvidia, Qualcomm, and others are also increasing emphasis of processors and co-processor accelerators for machine-learning AI in servers, personal computing platforms, smartphones and embedded processing.

The 2018 McClean Report shows that the total MPU market is forecast to rise 4% to $74.5 billion in 2018, following market growth of 5% in 2017 and 9% in 2016.  Through 2022, total MPU sales are expected to increase at a compound annual growth rate of 3.4%.  Total microprocessor units are expected to rise 2% in 2018, the same growth rate as 2017, to 2.6 billion units.  Through the forecast period, total MPU units are forecast to rise by a CAGR of 2.1%.

Alpha and Omega Semiconductor Limited (AOS) (Nasdaq:AOSL), a designer, developer and global supplier of a broad range of power semiconductors and power ICs, today introduced AONE36132, a 25V N-Channel MOSFET in a dual DFN 3.3×3.3 package which is ideal for synchronous buck converters. The AONE36132 is an extension to the XSPairFET™ lineup.  Designed with the latest bottom source packaging technology, the AONE36132 has lower switch node ringing due to lower parasitic inductance. This new XSPairFET™ offers a higher power density compared to existing solutions and is ideally suited for computing, server and telecommunication markets.

AONE36132 has an integrated high-side and low-side MOSFETs (7mOhms and 2mOhms maximum on-resistance, respectively) within a DFN 3.3×3.3 XSPairFET™ package.  The low-side MOSFET source is connected directly to the exposed pad on PCB to enhance thermal dissipation.  Using an existing notebook design under typical conditions, 19V input Voltage, with 1.05V output Voltage, and a 21A output load condition, the AONE36132 had more than a two percent efficiency improvement when compared to a single DFN 5×6 high side and single DFN 5×6 low side configuration.

“The AONE36132 is the latest addition to the XSPairFET™ family which incorporates innovative technology to increase power density and improve efficiency for today’s demanding applications,” said Peter H. Wilson, Marketing Director of MOSFET product line at AOS.

Technical Highlights

The new product family offers various RDS(ON) levels in combination with multiple package options.

Part
Number		 Package VIN
(V)		 VGS
(±V)		 RDS(ON) (mΩ max)
at VGS =		 VGS (±V)
(max V)		 Ciss
(pF)		 Coss
(pF)		 Crss
(pF)		 Qg
(nC)		 Qgd
(nC)
10V 4.5V
AONE36132 DFN 3.3×3.3 High Side (Q1) 25 12 4.6 6 1.8 880 250 55 6.5 2.5
Low Side (Q2) 25 12 1.8 1.7 1.9 3125 860 200 25 6

Pricing and Availability

The AONE36132 is immediately available in production quantities with a lead-time of 12-14 weeks. The unit price for 1,000 pieces is $0.91.

 

GLOBALFOUNDRIES today announced that its 45nm RF SOI (45RFSOI) technology platform has been qualified and is ready for volume production. Several customers are currently engaged for this advanced RF SOI process, which is targeted for 5G millimeter-wave (mmWave) front-end module (FEM) applications, including smartphones and next-generation mmWave beamforming systems in future base stations.

As next-generation systems move to frequencies above 24GHz, higher performance RF silicon solutions are required to exploit the large available bandwidth in the mmWave spectrum. GF’s 45RFSOI platform is optimized for beam forming FEMs, with features that improve RF performance through combining high-frequency transistors, high-resistivity silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrates and ultra-thick copper wiring. Moreover, the SOI technology enables easy integration of power amplifiers, switches, LNAs, phase shifters, up/down converters and VCO/PLLs that lowers cost, size and power compared to competing technologies targeting tomorrow’s multi-gigabit-per-second communication systems, including internet broadband satellite, smartphones and 5G infrastructure.

“GF’s leadership in RF SOI solutions makes the company a perfect strategic partner for Peregrine’s next generation of RF SOI technologies,” said Jim Cable, Chairman and CTO of Peregrine Semiconductor. “It enables us to create RF solutions that provide our customers with new levels of product performance, reliability and scalability, and it allows us to push the envelope of integrated RF front-end innovation for evolving mmWave applications and emerging 5G markets.”

“To bring 5G into the future, mmWave innovations are needed for allocating more bandwidth to deliver faster, higher-quality video, and multimedia content and services,” Bob Donahue, CEO of Anokiwave. “GF’s RF SOI technology leadership and 45RFSOI platform enables Anokiwave to develop differentiated solutions designed to operate between the mmWave and sub-6GHz frequency band for high-speed wireless communications and networks.”

“GF continues to expand its RF capabilities and portfolio to provide competitive RF SOI advantages and manufacturing excellence that will enable our customers to play a critical role in bringing 5G devices and networks to real-world environments,” said Bami Bastani, senior vice president of the RF Business Unit at GF.  “Our 45RFSOI is an ideal technology for customers that are looking to deliver the highest- performing mmWave solutions that will handle demanding performance requirements in next-generation mobile and 5G communications.”

GF’s RF SOI solutions are part of the company’s vision to develop and deliver the next wave of 5G technology aimed at enabling connected intelligence for next-generation devices, networks and wired/wireless systems. GF has a successful track record in manufacturing RF SOI solutions at its 300mm production line in East Fishkill, N.Y.  Customers can now start optimizing their chip designs to develop differentiated solutions for high performance in the RF front end for 5G and mmWave applications.

Samsung Electronics and Apple remained the top two semiconductor chip buyers in 2017, representing 19.5 percent of the total worldwide market, according to Gartner, Inc. Samsung and Apple together consumed $81.8 billion of semiconductors in 2017, an increase of more than $20 billion from 2016.

“Samsung Electronics and Apple not only retained their respective No. 1 and No. 2 positions, they also radically increased their share of semiconductor spending through 2017,” said Masatsune Yamaji, principal research analyst at Gartner “These two companies have held on to the top positions since 2011 and they continue to exert significant influence on technology and price trends for the whole semiconductor industry.”

Eight of the top 10 companies in 2016 remained in the top 10 in 2017, with the top five chip buyers remaining in the same positions (see Table 1). LG Electronics returned to the top 10 and was joined by newcomer Western Digital, which grew its semiconductor spending by $1.7 billion in 2017. BBK Electronics rose one place to sixth position, increasing its semiconductor spending by $5.7 billion.

Table 1. Preliminary Ranking of Top 10 Companies by Semiconductor Design TAM, Worldwide, (Millions of Dollars)

2016 Ranking

2017

Ranking

Company

2016

2017

2017 Market

Share (%)

Growth (%) 2016-2017

1

1

Samsung Electronics

31,426

43,108

10.3

37.2

2

2

Apple*

30,390

38,754

9.2

27.5

3

3

Dell

13,544

15,702

3.7

15.9

4

4

Lenovo

13,384

14,671

3.5

9.6

5

5

Huawei

10,792

14,259

3.4

32.1

7

6

BBK Electronics

6,411

12,103

2.9

88.8

6

7

HP Inc.

8,906

9,971

2.4

12.0

8

8

Hewlett Packard Enterprises

6,124

7,199

1.7

17.5

11

9

LG Electronics

5,162

6,537

1.6

26.6

13

10

Western Digital

4,470

6,210

1.5

38.9

Others

212,906

251,206

59.9

18.0

Total

343,514

419,720

100.0

22.2

TAM = total available market

Source: Gartner (January 2018)

A significant price increase of DRAM and NAND flash memory had a big impact on semiconductor buyers’ ranking through 2017. Most original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), even the big ones, could not avoid the risk of a memory chip shortage and rise of memory prices through 2017. Supply shortages occurred not just in the memory IC market, but also in other semiconductor chip markets, such as microcontrollers and discrete, as well as in the passive component market, which benefited the suppliers but troubled the OEMs. On the other hand, successful OEMs are often differentiating their products with their own captive silicon solutions. The increase in OEMs’ captive chip spending is a great risk for commercial chip vendors’ future growth.

Semiconductor spending by the top 10 OEMs increased significantly, and their share reached 40 percent of the total semiconductor market in 2017, up from 31 percent 10 years ago. This trend is expected to continue, and Gartner predicts that, by 2021, the top 10 OEMs will account for more than 45 percent of total global semiconductor spending.

“With the top 10 semiconductor chip buyers commanding an increasing share of the market, technology product marketing leaders at chip vendors must focus on their leading customers,” said Mr. Yamaji. “They will need to prioritize direct sales and technical support resources to these top customers by exploiting online technical support capabilities and outsourcing the support for long-tail customers to third-party partners and distributors.”