Once upon a time, SEMICONs were essentially just for semiconductor manufacturing business and technology, and predominantly CMOS ICs. Back when we followed public roadmaps for technology to maintain the cadence of new manufacturing nodes in support of Moore’s Law, it was sufficient to focus on faster transistors connected with tighter wires. Now in an era that is at least partially “More-than-Moore”—as we like to refer to heterogeneous integration of non-CMOS technologies into commercial ICs—SEMICON West 2016 will focus on technologies beyond silicon CMOS such as MEMS and flexible organic semiconductors.

Alissa Fitzgerald, founder and managing member of AM Fitzgerald & Associates, will present on some of these themes Wednesday afternoon during the “What’s Next in MEMS and Sensors: Innovations to Drive the Next Generation of Growth” session (Track 2) of SEMICON’s Advanced Manufacturing Forum. Much of that growth is expected to be in sensors, microprocessors, ultra-low-power supplies, and communications chips to support the Internet of Things (IoT) connected by high-speed 5G data networks.

Flexible/Hybrid Electronics Forum at SEMICON West this year includes two full days of excellent presentations on new technologies that include thinned device processing, device/sensor integrated printing and packaging, and reliability testing and modeling. The following is the full list of forums this year:

• Advanced Manufacturing,
• Advanced Packaging,
• Extended Supply-Chain,
• Flexible/Hybrid Electronics,
• Silicon Innovation,
• Sustainable Manufacturing,
• Test, and
• World of IoT.

Partner programs include focused forums discussing trends in technology, markets, and the business of commercial IC fabrication. The industry’s default center of “More Moore” R&D is now imec in Belgium, and invited attendees of the imec technology forum (ITF) in San Francisco happening on July 11th the day before the start of SEMICON West will learn about the latest results in CMOS device shrinking from finFETs to nanowires. The next evening, French R&D and pilot manufacturing center CEA-Leti will lead a workshop detailing how to partner with the organization to bring sensor-based “More-than-Moore” technologies to market. Thursday morning will feature the Entegris Yield Breakfast Forum discussing the need for new materials handling solutions due to “Yield Enhancement Challenges in Today’s Memory IC Production.”

As the official event website summarizes:  We’ve deepened our reach across the full electronics manufacturing supply chain to connect you with more key players — including major industry leaders like Cisco, Samsung, Intel, Audi, Micron, and more. New players, demand generators, systems integrators, and emerging industry segments — all connecting in one place. Keynote presentations will be provided by Cisco Systems, Kateeva, and Oracle.

—E.K.