eighthatsllc
Semiconductors: From Design to Advanced Packaging
Semiconductors power computing, connectivity, and AI. This guide covers chip design flows, wafer fabrication, advanced packaging, standards, and supply-chain considerations.
Overview: What Is a Semiconductor?
A semiconductor is a material whose electrical conductivity can be precisely controlled—forming the basis of integrated circuits (ICs), sensors, power devices, and memory. Modern systems-on-chip (SoCs) integrate CPUs, GPUs, NPUs, memory interfaces, and high-speed I/O on a single die or within a multi-die package.
Chip Design & EDA Flow
Architecture & RTL
Spec definition, microarchitecture, IP selection; HDL coding (Verilog/VHDL/SystemVerilog), verification environments (UVM), coverage closure.
Physical Implementation
Synthesis, floorplanning, place & route, clock-tree, timing closure (STA), SI/IR drop analysis, DRC/LVS sign-off.
DFT & Validation
Scan/MBIST/ATPG for high coverage; emulation/FPGA prototyping; silicon bring-up and characterization; yield learning.
IP & Interfaces
High-speed SerDes, DDR/LPDDR, HBM, PCIe, CXL, MIPI; coherent interconnects for chiplets and multi-die systems.
Explore: Chip Design Guide • High-Speed Interfaces
Wafer Fabrication & Process Nodes
Foundries fabricate wafers via deposition, lithography, etch, implantation, CMP, and metallization. “Nodes” (e.g., 7nm/5nm/3nm) reflect advances in transistor density, performance, and power efficiency.
- Device architectures: FinFET, GAAFET/nano-sheet, RF SOI/SiGe, compound semis (GaN, SiC)
- Yield, variability, and DFM across patterning and materials
- In-line metrology and end-of-line electrical test
Standards & research: IRDS (IEEE) • SEMI International
Advanced Packaging
As scaling slows, advanced packaging delivers system-level gains: 2.5D interposers, fan-out wafer-level packaging (FOWLP), chiplets over high-bandwidth fabrics, and 3D stacking with TSVs and hybrid bonding.
- HBM memory stacks for AI accelerators
- Thermal and power delivery co-design
- Test strategies for multi-die—known-good-die, boundary scan, interconnect BIST
Standards & Ecosystem
Supply Chain & Policy
Semiconductor supply spans EDA/IP, equipment, materials, design houses, foundries, OSATs, and OEMs—interwoven across regions. Policy initiatives incentivize domestic capacity, R&D, and workforce development.
- Upstream: specialty gases, photoresists, wafers, masks
- Midstream: lithography, etch, deposition, metrology, inspection
- Downstream: assembly, test, packaging (OSAT), modules, systems
- Policy: CHIPS initiatives (U.S. Commerce)
FAQs
- What’s the difference between a fabless company and a foundry?
- Fabless companies design chips but outsource manufacturing to foundries; foundries manufacture wafers for multiple customers.
- Why are chiplets important?
- Chiplets partition complex SoCs into smaller dies for yield, cost, and heterogeneous integration—then re-aggregate via high-bandwidth interconnects.
- What limits further scaling?
- Patterning complexity, variability, power density, and interconnect delay—hence the rise of GAAFETs, new materials, and 3D/advanced packaging.
External references: SEMI • JEDEC • IRDS • IEEE • SIA • U.S. Commerce (CHIPS)
