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GLOBALFOUNDRIES today unveiled a new 12nm FD-SOI semiconductor technology, extending its leadership position by offering the industry’s first multi-node FD-SOI roadmap. Building on the success of its 22FDX offering, the company’s next-generation 12FDX platform is designed to enable the intelligent systems of tomorrow across a range of applications, from mobile computing and 5G connectivity to artificial intelligence and autonomous vehicles.

As the world becomes more and more integrated through billions of connected devices, many emerging applications demand a new approach to semiconductor innovation. The chips that make these applications possible are evolving into mini-systems, with increased integration of intelligent components including wireless connectivity, non-volatile memory, and power management—all while driving ultra-low power consumption. GLOBALFOUNDRIES’ new 12FDX technology is specifically architected to deliver these unprecedented levels of system integration, design flexibility, and power scaling.

12FDX sets a new standard for system integration, providing an optimized platform for combining radio frequency (RF), analog, embedded memory, and advanced logic onto a single chip. The technology also provides the industry’s widest range of dynamic voltage scaling and unmatched design flexibility via software-controlled transistors—capable of delivering peak performance when and where it is needed, while balancing static and dynamic power for the ultimate energy efficiency.

“Some applications require the unsurpassed performance of FinFET transistors, but the vast majority of connected devices need high levels of integration and more flexibility for performance and power consumption, at costs FinFET cannot achieve,” said GLOBALFOUNDRIES CEO Sanjay Jha. “Our 22FDX and 12FDX technologies fill a gap in the industry’s roadmap by providing an alternative path for the next generation of connected intelligent systems. And with our FDX platforms, the cost of design is significantly lower, reopening the door for advanced node migration and spurring increased innovation across the ecosystem.”

GLOBALFOUNDRIES’ new 12FDX technology is built on a 12nm fully-depleted silicon-on-insulator (FD-SOI) platform, enabling the performance of 10nm FinFET with better power consumption and lower cost than 16nm FinFET. The platform offers a full node of scaling benefit, delivering a 15 percent performance boost over today’s FinFET technologies and as much as 50 percent lower power consumption.

“Chip manufacturing is no longer one-shrink-fits-all. While FinFET is the technology of choice for the highest-performance products, the industry roadmap is less clear for many cost-sensitive mobile and IoT products, which require the lowest possible power while still delivering adequate clock speeds,” said Linley Gwennap, founder and principal analyst of the Linley Group. “GLOBALFOUNDRIES’ 22FDX and 12FDX technologies are well positioned to fill this gap by offering an alternative migration path for advanced node designs, particularly those seeking to reduce power without increasing die cost. Today, GLOBALFOUNDRIES is the only purveyor of FD-SOI at 22nm and below, giving it a clear differentiation.”

“When 22FDX first came out from GLOBALFOUNDRIES, I saw some game-changing features. The real-time tradeoffs in power and performance could not be ignored by those needing to differentiate their designs,” said G. Dan Hutcheson, chairman and CEO of VLSI Research. “Now with its new 12FDX offering, GLOBALFOUNDRIES is showing a clear commitment to delivering a roadmap for this technology — especially for IoT and Automotive, which are the most disruptive forces in the market today. GLOBALFOUNDRIES’ FD-SOI technologies will be a critical enabler of this disruption.”

“FD-SOI technology can provide real-time trade-offs in power, performance and cost for those needing to differentiate their designs,” said Handel Jones, founder and CEO, IBS, Inc. “GLOBALFOUNDRIES’ new 12FDX offering delivers the industry’s first FD-SOI roadmap that brings the lowest cost migration path for advanced node design, enabling tomorrow’s connected systems for Intelligent Clients, 5G, AR/VR, Automotive markets.”

GLOBALFOUNDRIES Fab 1 in Dresden, Germany is currently putting the conditions in place to enable the site’s 12FDX development activities and subsequent manufacturing. Customer product tape-outs are expected to begin in the first half of 2019.

“We are excited about the GLOBALFOUNDRIES 12FDX offering and the value it can provide to customers in China,” said Dr. Xi Wang, Director General, Academician of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Microsystem and Information Technology. “Extending the FD-SOI roadmap will enable customers in markets such as mobile, IoT, and automotive to leverage the power efficiency and performance benefits of the FDX technologies to create competitive products.”

“NXP’s next generation of i.MX multimedia applications processors are leveraging the benefits of FD-SOI to achieve both leadership in power efficiency and scaling performance-on-demand for automotive, industrial and consumer applications,” said Ron Martino, vice president, i.MX applications processor product line at NXP Semiconductors. “GLOBALFOUNDRIES’ 12FDX technology is a great addition to the industry because it provides a next generation node for FD-SOI that will further extend planar device capability to deliver lower risk, wider dynamic range, and compelling cost-performance for smart, connected and secure systems of tomorrow.”

“As one of the first movers of design for FD-SOI, VeriSilicon leverages its Silicon Platform as a Service (SiPaaS) together with experience in delivering best-in-class IPs and design services for SoCs,” said Wayne Dai, president and CEO of VeriSilicon. “The unique benefits of FD-SOI technologies enable us to differentiate in the automotive, IoT, mobility, and consumer market segments. We look forward to extending our collaboration with GLOBALFOUNDRIES on their 12FDX offering and providing high-quality, low-power and cost-effective solutions to our customers for the China market.”

“12FDX development will deliver another breakthrough in power, performance, and intelligent scaling as 12nm is best for double patterning and delivers best system performance and power at the lowest process complexity,” said Marie Semeria, CEO of Leti, an institute of CEA Tech. “We are pleased to see the results of the collaboration between the Leti teams and GLOBALFOUNDRIES in the U.S. and Germany extending the roadmap for FD-SOI technology, which will become the best platform for full system on chip integration of connected devices.”

“We are very pleased to see a strong momentum and a very solid adoption from fabless customers in 22FDX offering. Now this new 12FDX offering will further expand FD-SOI market adoption,” said Paul Boudre, Soitec CEO. “At Soitec, we are fully prepared to support GLOBALFOUNDRIES with high volumes, high quality FD-SOI substrates from 22nm to 12nm. This is an amazing opportunity for our industry just in time to support a big wave of new mobile and connected applications.”

GLOBALFOUNDRIES today announced a new partner program, called FDXcelerator, an ecosystem designed to facilitate 22FDX system-on-chip (SoC) design and reduce time-to-market for its customers.

With the recent announcement of the company’s next-generation 12FDX™ technology, the FDXcelerator Partner Program builds upon GLOBALFOUNDRIES industry-first FD-SOI roadmap, a lower cost migration path for customers desiring advanced node design.

Together with GLOBALFOUNDRIES and FDXcelerator Partner solutions, customers will be able to build innovative 22FDX SoC solutions as well as ease migration to FD-SOI from bulk nodes such as 40nm and 28nm. Initial FDXcelerator Partners have committed a set of key offerings to the program, including:

  •  tools (EDA) that complement industry leading design flows by adding specific modules to easily leverage FDSOI body-bias differentiated features,
  •  a comprehensive library of design elements (IP), including foundation IP, interfaces and complex IP to enable foundry customers to start their designs from validated IP elements,
  • platforms (ASIC), which allow a customer to build a complete ASIC offering on 22FDX,
  • reference solutions (reference designs, system IP), whereby the Partner brings system level expertise in Emerging application areas, enabling customers to speed-up time to market,
  • resources (design consultation, services), whereby Partners have trained dedicated resources to support 22FDX technology, and;
  • product packaging and test (OSAT) solutions.

“22FDX is increasingly gaining momentum as the platform of choice to build differentiated, highly-integrated system solutions,” said Alain Mutricy, senior vice president of Product Management at GLOBALFOUNDRIES.  “Now is the time to step up industry collaboration to enable our customers to accelerate adoption of 22FDX. FDXcelerator will extend the reach of the FD-SOI ecosystem by creating a market place for truly innovative FDX-tailored solutions and services.”

The FDXcelerator Partner Program creates an open framework to allow selected Partners to integrate their products or services into a validated, plug and play catalog of design solutions. This level of integration allows customers to create high performance designs while minimizing development costs through access to a broad set of quality offerings, specific to 22FDX technology. The Partner ecosystem positions members and customers to take advantage of the broad adoption and accelerating growth of the FDX market.

FD-SOI technology has been gaining ground as designers leverage the process as an alternative to Fin-FET-based technologies for chips that require performance on demand and energy efficiency at the lowest solution cost. According to a recent Linley Group Microprocessor Report, FD-SOI Offers Alternative to FinFET, GLOBALFOUNDRIES’ FDX technologies provide an alternative path for applications that cannot accept the cost and complexity of FinFETs.

Initial partners of the FDXcelerator Partner Program are: Synopsys (EDA), Cadence (EDA), INVECAS (IP and Design Solutions), VeriSilicon (ASIC), CEA Leti (services), Dreamchip (reference solutions) and Encore Semiconductor (services). These companies have already initiated work to deliver advanced 22FDX SoC solutions and services. Additional FDXcelerator members will be announced in the following months.

SPTS Technologies, an Orbotech company and a supplier of advanced wafer-processing solutions for the global semiconductor and related industries, today announced its collaboration with Novati Technologies, a global nanotechnology development center, to establish Novati’s new plasma dicing line at their fab in Austin, Texas. Novati has selected SPTS’s Rapier-300S plasma dicing solution over competing options to provide next-generation plasma dicing capabilities and services for customers.

“Plasma dicing has many advantages over conventional singulation methods and offers designers and manufacturers greater flexibility with regards to die shape, size and position,” stated Kevin Crofton, President of SPTS Technologies and Corporate Vice President at Orbotech. “The Rapier-300S is the latest addition to our Mosaic™ plasma dicing platform which includes wafer handling solutions for 150mm, 200mm and 300mm wafers, both full thickness and taped to dicing frames. Novati selected the Rapier-300S to provide their customers with the latest dicing technology to complement their advanced semiconductor fabrication solutions and services.”

“Novati provides customers with technology building blocks, engineering expertise, professional program management and a broad complement of flexible processing equipment that enable the accelerated development of 200mm and 300mm production-worthy solutions,” stated John Behnke, President of Novati Technologies. “In order to remain at the forefront of novel process development, we must provide our foundry customers with the latest process solutions capable of manufacturing next generation devices.”

SPTS’s Mosaic plasma dicing system with the Rapier-300S overcomes many of the design limitations of conventional dicing methods, particularly for smaller, thinner, more fragile die, as well as offering the potential for significant increases in yield and throughput. By leveraging SPTS’s extensive expertise and experience in deep silicon etch which serves as the basis of Rapier-300S plasma dicing technology, customers are able to support the development of innovative More-than-Moore solutions.

To learn more about SPTS’s Rapier-300S and Mosaic plasma dicing platform and the benefits of Plasma Dicing for Next Generation Ultra Small and Ultra Thin Die, register now for a free webinar on Wed 14th Sept, 2016, with presentations from Amandine Pizzagalli, Analyst at Yole Developpment, and Richard Barnett from SPTS Technologies.

SEMI today presented its industry leadership award for sustainable manufacturing to Po Wen Yen, CEO of United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC). Yen received theSEMI Sustainable Manufacturing Leadership Award – Inspired by Akira Inoue, at the Leadership Gala Dinner at SEMICON Taiwan 2016, the largest annual electronics manufacturing industry event in Taiwan.

“Yen exemplifies outstanding leadership and commitment to sustainable manufacturing issues. He approaches environmental protection in a holistic way, thinking broadly and then setting up the infrastructure to institutionalize the change while staying involved each step of the way,” said Denny McGuirk, president and CEO of SEMI. “This SEMI award for significant sustainable manufacturing achievement recognizes his status among a distinguished group of electronics industry executives.”

As CEO of UMC, Yen drove UMC to become a global leader in sustainable semiconductor manufacturing, emphasizing to his staff, customers, and suppliers, that “sustainable development is not only UMC’s vision but is also our core philosophy.” Yen also created a corporate structure where all sustainability-related goals and activities are overseen by a committee that he chairs, and then he reports these developments directly to the UMC Board of Directors.  Yen’s commitment has led to significant positive impacts on sustainable manufacturing at UMC. Yen’s specific accomplishments noted by the SEMI Award committee include:

Environmental Protection

  • Global Warming –To reduce energy use at UMC, Yen created and chairs an Energy Saving Committee, which reduced electrical power usage by 29,469 Mwh in 2014, which is the equivalent of removing 15,353 tons of CO2 from the atmosphere, and reduced natural gas usage by 11,979 Mwh, the equivalent to reducing 2,159 tons of CO2 emissions from being released into the atmosphere.
  • Water Resources – UMC maximizes water efficiency and promotes the importance of water resources and conservation. Total water recovery and reuse reached more than 180 percent of water intake for the calendar year 2015.
  • Green Manufacturing – UMC innovated corporate programs to manage hazardous substances and reduce pollution and waste during semiconductor manufacturing. UMC has a robust Hazardous Substance Process Management (HSPM) system in place that is certified by the International Electro-Technical Commission Quality Assessment System.
  • Green Buildings – UMC’s Fab 12A in the Tainan Science Park obtained both Taiwan’s Gold Certification for Green Buildings and LEED Gold Certification.
  • Green Products –To better evaluate the environmental impacts of products, UMC collaborated with the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) to implement a Life Cycle Assessment for each fab, improving its management processes and reducing resource consumption.


Community Service

  • Social Welfare – UMC encourages a culture of community volunteering with many programs. One example, “Spreading the Seeds of Hope,” has assisted over 6,000 children from disadvantaged families.
  • UMC Fire Brigade – Still the only corporation in Taiwan’s electronics industry to have its own fire department, UMC established its high-tech fire brigade more than 20 years ago. The fire brigade consists of 106 members, including 13 full-time employees and 93 voluntary firefighters.

The Sustainable Manufacturing Leadership Awardis sponsored by SEMI. The award is named after the late Akira Inoue, past president of Tokyo Electron Limited and a strong advocate of sustainable manufacturing in the semiconductor industry. Inoue also served on the SEMI Board of Directors. The award recognizes individuals in industry who have made significant leadership contributions to reduce the environmental and social impacts of semiconductor manufacturing. Past Award recipients include: Mark Durcan (CEO, Micron), TY Chiu (CEO, SMIC), Ajit Manocha (CEO, GLOBALFOUNDRIES), and Morris Chang (CEO, TSMC).

Technavio analysts forecast the global radio frequency (RF) IC market to grow at a CAGR of nearly 12% during the forecast period, according to their latest report.

The research study covers the present scenario and growth prospects of the global RF IC market for 2016-2020. To calculate the market size, the report considers revenue generated from the shipment of RF ICs globally.

Asia-Pacific (APAC) is expected to be the major demand generating region and is expected to be the major contributor to the market during the forecast period. This is because of the growing demand for RF IC’s in the consumer electronics segment and increasing need for logic and multipoint control units (MCUs) in the automotive segment in the region. The presence of major buyers such as Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics, and Toyota Motor led to the increasing consumption of RF ICs in this region.

Increased demand for electronics from countries such as China and India drives the market in APAC. China’s massive demand for electronics exceeds the production levels in the country. Despite the phenomenal growth, only a small share of semiconductors’ demand in China is actually produced domestically.

Technavio hardware and semiconductor analysts highlight the following four factors that are contributing to the growth of the global RF IC market:

  • Deployment of next-generation LTE wireless networks
  • Advent of carrier aggregation
  • Use of new materials for manufacture of RF devices
  • Growing traction of RF technology for remotes

Deployment of next-generation LTE wireless networks

The increase in data consumption has resulted in the adoption of next-generation LTE networks such as 3G and 4G. The growing consumption has resulted in the growth of commercial networks, making LTE the fastest developing mobile technology. Though specific bands have been designated for LTE, they vary from carrier to carrier.

Sunil Kumar Singh, one of the lead embedded systems research analysts at Technavio, says, “LTE-based computing devices allow consumers to upload and download music and photographs, play games online with minimum signal interference, and watch online TV shows uninterrupted. This has created an opportunity for manufacturers of transceiver chips to offer solutions that address the consumer needs for faster and smoother access to mobile data.”

Advent of carrier aggregation

Carrier aggregation results in an increase in RF content in smartphones and tablets. Carrier aggregation combines a wide range of the available spectrum at the same time to increase download and upload speeds. Though carrier aggregation is not a widespread concept currently, it has already been implemented in South Korea.

“The RF signals are transmitted and received using transceiver chips, which are integrated into RF modules as a component. The advent of carrier aggregation will compel transceiver chip manufacturers to improve and upgrade their offerings according to the requirements of the OEMs,” adds Sunil.

Use of new materials for manufacture of RF devices

The manufacture of RF devices such as power amplifiers incurs huge costs for vendors because of the high cost of raw materials. This has resulted in vendors searching for new materials that can reduce the expenditure incurred in the manufacturing process of RF devices. The development of new materials such as GaAs and indium phosphide (InP) will ramp up the production of RF power amplifiers. GaAs-RF power amplifiers use high saturated electron velocity and electron mobility to function, especially at high frequencies.

The new materials display a superior level of integration with other electronic components such as switches being fabricated in silicon on sapphire or other silicon on insulator processes. While, SAW filters and duplexers are being fabricated with piezo-effective materials such as lithium tantalate and lithium niobate. Therefore, companies such as Murata and TriQuint are trying to use cost-effective and superior-performing materials to manufacture RF power amplifiers.

Growing traction of RF technology for remotes

RF remotes accounted for 13% of the global remote market in 2015 and are expected to witness increased adoption during the forecast period, accounting for a little more than 20% by 2020. One of the major factors contributing to it is the decrease in the development cost of RF technology-based products. Moreover, RF remotes are expected to gain traction in the market because of advantages compared with IR remotes. RF remotes have lower power consumption, longer range, and do not need line-of-sight to control the device.

The RF remotes segment will witness high demand considering the demand for advanced TVs such as 3D smart TVs and 4k UHD smart TVs. Consumers demand visually aesthetic TVs that deliver a unique experience in terms of picture quality, viewing angle, and internet connectivity. With such advanced features, remote manufacturers are also manufacturing advanced and sophisticated RF remotes. RF has benefits such as out-of-line and sight communication and control, two-way communication, incorporation of gesture recognition and voice controls, and enhanced bandwidth compared to IR.

The key vendors are:

  • Infineon Technologies
  • Qualcomm
  • Avago Technologies
  • Qorvo
  • Skywork Solutions
  • NXP Semiconductors
  • STMicroelectronics
  • Renesas Electronics

The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA), representing U.S. leadership in semiconductor manufacturing, design, and research, today announced more than a dozen semiconductor industry icons, leaders, and founders will come together at the annual SIA Award Dinner on Thursday, Nov. 10 in San Jose to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Robert N. Noyce Award, the industry’s highest honor. Former Noyce Award recipients who will attend the event include Dr. Craig Barrett, Dr. Morris Chang, John Daane, Federico Faggin, Ted Hoff, Dr. John E. Kelly III, Stanley Mazor, Jim Morgan, Jerry Sanders, George Scalise, Mike Splinter, Ray Stata, Rich Templeton, and Pat Weber. The evening’s program will include a conversation with former Noyce recipients about the industry’s storied past and its tremendous promise for the future.

SIA previously announced Martin van den Brink, president and chief technology officer at ASML Holding and renowned pioneer in semiconductor manufacturing technology, will receive the 2016 Noyce Award. SIA presents the Noyce Award annually in recognition of a leader who has made outstanding contributions to the semiconductor industry in technology or public policy.

“Recipients of the Noyce Award represent the finest our industry has to offer, individuals who have shaped the trajectory of semiconductor technology and spurred groundbreaking innovations,” said John Neuffer, president and CEO, Semiconductor Industry Association. “This year we are privileged to present the 2016 Noyce Award to Martin van den Brink, a man whose career accomplishments have fundamentally transformed semiconductor manufacturing, and to do so with many former Noyce winners on hand. We look forward to this unique opportunity to celebrate the semiconductor industry alongside these legends in our industry and true trailblazers of modern technology.”

For information about the SIA Award Dinner, including tickets and sponsorship opportunities, please visit www.semiconductors.org.

SEMI announced today that the deadline for presenters to submit an abstract for the annual SEMI Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing Conference (ASMC) is October 17.  ASMC, which takes place May 15-18, 2017 in Saratoga Springs, New York, will feature technical presentations of more than 90+ peer-reviewed manuscripts covering critical process technologies and fab productivity. This year’s event features keynotes, a panel discussion, networking events, technical sessions on advanced semiconductor manufacturing, as well as educational tutorials.

ASMC, in its 28th year, continues to fill a critical need in our industry and provides a venue for industry professionals to network, learn and share knowledge on new and best-method semiconductor manufacturing practices and concepts.  Selected speakers have the opportunity to present in front of IC manufacturers, equipment manufacturers, materials suppliers, chief technology officers, operations managers, process engineers, product managers and academia. In addition to publication in the ASMC proceedings, select papers will be invited to participate in a special section of ASMC 2017 to be featured in IEEE Transactions on Semiconductor Manufacturing. Technical abstracts are due October 17, 2016. 

This year SEMI (www.semi.org) is including two new technology areas (3D/TSV/Interposer; Fabless Experience). SEMI is soliciting technical abstracts in these key technology areas:

  • Packaging and Through Silicon Via (3D/TSV)
  • Fabless Experience (FE)
  • Advanced Equipment Processes and Materials (AEPM)
  • Advanced Metrology
  • Advanced Patterning / Design for Manufacturability (AP/DFM)
  • Advanced Process Control (APC)
  • Contamination Free Manufacturing (CFM)
  • Defect Inspection and Reduction (DI)
  • Data Management and Data Mining Tools (DM)
  • Discrete Power Devices (DP)
  • Equipment Reliability and Productivity Enhancements (ER)
  • Enabling Technologies and Innovative Devices (ET/ID)
  • Factory Automation (FA)
  • Green Factory (GF)
  • Industrial Engineering (IE)
  • Lean Manufacturing (LM)
  • MOL and Junction Interfaces (MJ)
  • Smart Manufacturing (SM)
  • Yield Methodologies (YM)

Complete descriptions of each topic and author kit can be accessed at http://www.semi.org/en/node/38316.  If you would like to learn more about the conference and the selection process, please contact Margaret Kindling at [email protected] or call 1.202.393.5552.

Papers co-authored between device manufacturers, equipment or materials suppliers, and/or academic institutions that demonstrate innovative, practical solutions for advancing semiconductor manufacturing are highly encouraged.  To submit an abstract, click here.

Technical abstracts are due October 17, 2016.  To learn more about the SEMI Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing Conference, visit http://www.semi.org/en/asmc2017.

Semiconductor Research Corporation (SRC), the university-research consortium for semiconductors and related technologies, today announced that NXP Semiconductors has signed an agreement to participate in multiple SRC research initiatives.

NXP is the fifth of the top 10 global semiconductor companies to become a member of SRC, and represents the third non-U.S.-headquartered SRC member company.

NXP has joined three specific SRC research thrusts including Trustworthy and Secure Semiconductors and Systems (T3S); Analog/Mixed-Signal Circuits, Systems and Devices (AMS-CSD); and Computer-Aided Design and Test (CADT).

“For SRC, the NXP membership continues and expands the durable relationship that we have enjoyed first with Motorola’s Semiconductor Products Sector that spun out to become Freescale Semiconductor, which late last year merged with NXP,” said Ken Hansen, President & CEO, SRC. “We’re excited to continue the relationship in these three areas that are critical to advancing semiconductor technology for the electronic devices of today and the future.”

“SRC is a vital element of our global university program, providing access to leading edge research at universities in the U.S. and around the world,” said Hans Dollee, Senior Director and Head of Technology Partnerships at NXP. “As the world leader in secure connectivity solutions for embedded applications, NXP is pleased to join with SRC, other member companies and partner universities to drive future technological breakthroughs and educate the next generation of innovators.”

The three SRC initiatives where NXP is participating are part of 11 research thrusts under SRC’s Global Research Collaboration (GRC) program, which funds university research focused on the constantly evolving challenges for the global semiconductor industry. For a description of each research thrust, visit https://www.src.org/program/grc.

Texas Instruments (TI) recently entered into an agreement with Silicon Catalyst, a Silicon Valley-based incubator, that will expand TI’s access to new technology innovations and potentially lead to engagements with semiconductor startups focused on creating chips and system solutions in analog and embedded processing.

“This agreement expands TI’s access to innovations in the semiconductor industry startup segment and facilitates our ability to engage with companies that are creating new technologies complementary to areas where TI is also innovating,” said Ralf Muenster, Director, CTO office at TI.

“TI is eager to collaborate with startups, early stage companies and entrepreneurs working on silicon solutions.  Silicon Catalyst’s exclusive focus on semiconductor startups provides another great way for TI to gain unique and early access to the silicon innovation happening in the startup and entrepreneurial world,” Muenster added.

“The strategic relationship with TI is both a tribute to their forward-thinking vision and a validation of our unique value proposition to both the semiconductor and startup communities,” said Silicon Catalyst CEO Rick Lazansky.  “This strategic relationship with Texas Instruments will afford our startup companies access to a truly world class organization.  Startup companies in our industry reap tremendous benefits from deep, long-term engagement with industry leaders, like Texas Instruments, including guidance and relationships with experts.”

In 2015, Silicon Catalyst received the 2015 ACE Award for Startup Company of the Year. In the past 15 months, Silicon Catalyst has screened nearly 100 startups from the U.S., Europe and Asia. The 10 startups admitted to the incubator are developing innovations in LED, energy, silicon photonics, memory technology, wireless communications and biomedical devices.

“These 10 startups are proof that the semiconductor startup ecosystem is thriving, and there is no lack of great ideas and inspiration,” added Lazansky.

SEMI today announced the appointment of Lung Chu as president of SEMI China effective September 1, 2016. With the recent broadening ambitions for China’s indigenous semiconductor supply chain, Lung Chu joins SEMI at a critical inflection in the China market. Chu will be instrumental in evolving and repositioning SEMI’s programs, committees, products and services in China to deliver the highest member value in the rapidly changing China semiconductor ecosystem.

With the announcement of “National Guideline for IC Industry Development” and “Made in China 2025” initiatives, the China government and industry are set to significantly improve self-sufficiency for integrated circuits (ICs) manufacturing in China by 2025. This stimulated recent China M&A activity across the semiconductor manufacturing supply chain (Spreadtrum, OmniVision, ISS, Mattson Technology, STATS ChipPAC), new investments by Chinese companies (SMIC, XMC, etc.), and investment in China factories by multinationals (Intel, Samsung, SK Hynix, TSMC, GlobalFoundries).

“With China’s rapidly changing industry, Lung Chu was chosen for his wide range of semiconductor supply chain and leadership experience to ensure SEMI China delivers the best platform and services to its members and overall industry with growth and prosperity. Lung’s personal relationships and track record with industry executives and China government officials related to the semiconductor manufacturing industry will benefit SEMI members in China and worldwide. I look forward to working with Lung to transform SEMI China into a local partner for China’s “Made in China 2025″ initiative,” said Denny McGuirk, president and CEO of SEMI.

With over 30 years of experience in semiconductor equipment, IC design, EDA/IP, semiconductor manufacturing, and system integration, Chu is uniquely suited to lead SEMI China’s growth harmonized with the SEMI 2020 Vision to connect and increase collaboration across the entire semiconductor manufacturing supply chain. Most recently, Chu spent seven years as corporate VP and president of China Operations for Global Unichip. Chu served as president of Asia Pacific at Cadence Design Systems, Magma Design Automation; and held executive management positions at KLA-Tencor, Apple Computer, and Philips Semiconductor (in Silicon Valley, California).

Chu served as president/chairman of the Chinese American Semiconductor Professional Organization (CASPA) and currently heads Shanghai and Hsinchu chapters. Chu holds a Bachelor’s degree in engineering from National Taiwan University and a Master’s degree in engineering from Case Western Reserve University. He also has MSEE and MBA degrees from California State University.