Semiconductor and EDA

- Overview

Semiconductors are substances with electrical properties that can serve as the foundation for electronic devices and computers. They are usually solid chemical compounds or elements that conduct electricity under certain conditions.

Electronic design automation (EDA) is a market segment that includes software, services, and hardware. EDA helps designers create and test electronic circuits. It can be used for a variety of tasks, including: schematic capture, simulation, prototyping, PCB layout, definition, planning, design, implementation, verification, manufacturing. 

EDA tools have three key functions: simulation, design, and verification. EDA simulation tools take a description of a proposed circuit and predict its behavior before it's implemented. EDA design tools take a description of a proposed circuit function and assemble the circuit elements that implement that function. 

EDA simulation tools are used at the front end, while all other tools are used at the back end.

EDA software allows developers to design, model, simulate, test, and analyze circuit designs to identify potential issues before they enter production. EDA software also includes design reusability features that help simplify the design process.   

- The Main Functions of EDA Software Tools

Electronic Design Automation (EDA), also known as Electronic Computer Aided Design (ECAD), is a category of software tools used to design electronic systems such as integrated circuits and printed circuit boards. 

EDA software allows teams to:

• Predict circuit behavior
• Assemble circuit elements
• Anticipate chip performance 

EDA tools have three main functions: 

• Simulation: EDA tools can predict the results of a proposed circuit design before live testing.
• Design: EDA tools can be used to create designs for integrated circuits (ICs), printed circuit boards (PCBs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), and more.
• Verification: EDA tools can ensure that a circuit will do what it's supposed to.

These tools work together in the design flow that chip designers use to design and analyze entire semiconductor chips. Because modern semiconductor chips can contain billions of components, EDA tools are critical to their design. 

EDA tools can also automate routine design tasks, such as: 

• Resizing images
• Creating color palettes
• Compressing files
• Generating code

These tasks can streamline a designer's workflow, allowing them to focus on creative work. 

- EDA Simulation Tools

Electronic design automation (EDA) tools are used to design electronic systems, such as printed circuit boards (PCBs), integrated circuits (ICs), and semiconductors. EDA tools have three key functions: simulation, design, and verification.

EDA simulation tools allow designers to model large portions of a system or the entire system. EDA tools can also integrate 3D EM (electromagnetic) modeling with traditional circuit simulation to simplify the design flow. 

Here are some EDA simulation tools: 

• KiCAD: An EDA tool for circuit simulation and PCB design
• Autodesk EAGLE: A low-cost PCB design software for beginners
• Pulsonix: An advanced PCB design tool from WestDev, a UK-based company
• CircuitStudio: A low-cost alternative to Altium CircuitMaker
• Siemens EDA: A broad line supplier of EDA tools that provides a complete semiconductor design flow
• EDEM: High-performance software for bulk material simulation that quickly and accurately simulates and analyzes the behavior of bulk materials such as coal, mined ores, soil, tablet, and powders

- IC Design

Integrated circuit (IC) design is a sub-field of electronics engineering that involves the design of complex electronic circuits on a small silicon chip. IC design is considered one of the most complex and advanced engineering tasks in modern times. 

The IC design process consists of two distinct steps: 

• Assemble circuit elements to perform the objective function
• Assemble and interconnect the various geometric shapes that implement those circuit elements on the silicon substrate

The IC design process also includes: design, fabrication, testing, packaging.

Physical verification is a part of the IC design process that helps to model the physical effects that may be added during manufacturing. Physical verification involves creating design rules by checking the physical effects caused due to the manufacturing process.

An IC, also known as a microchip, is a small electronic device made up of multiple interconnected electronic components such as transistors, resistors, and capacitors. These components are etched onto a small piece of semiconductor material, usually silicon.

An IC design engineer designs and develops integrated circuits used in electronic devices and communications systems. They design circuitry and build circuitry frameworks for products and systems. 

- EDA and IC Design

EDA tools are used by engineers to create designs for ICs, PCBs, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), system-on-a-chip (SoC), and embedded systems. EDA tools are essential for designing and analyzing semiconductor chips, which can have billions of components. 

In the early days, ICs were designed by hand, but automation was required as the size of the designs grew. The digital IC design process involves converting specifications and features into digital blocks and then further into logic circuits.

EDA is a market segment consisting of software, hardware and services with the common goal of assisting in the definition, planning, design, implementation, verification and subsequent manufacture of semiconductor devices or chips. 

Regarding the manufacture of these devices, the main provider of this service is the semiconductor foundry or fab. These highly complex and costly facilities are either owned and operated by large vertically integrated semiconductor companies or operate as independent "pure-play" manufacturing service providers. The latter category has become the dominant business model.

 - EDA Tools in Machine Learning

Machine learning (ML) techniques, especially deep learning (DL), are used to develop electronic design automation (EDA) tools. ML can help with the following in semiconductor design and development:

• Identifying defects: ML can identify potential defects and inefficiencies in real-time
• Predicting trends: ML can help predict future trends
• Optimizing processes: ML can help optimize processes for greater efficiency

ML can cover almost all stages in the chip design flow, including:

• Design space reduction and exploration, Logic synthesis, Placement, Routing, Testing, Verification.

• DL for EDA can demonstrate comparable quality, faster turnaround time, and better generalization than traditional methods.

[More to come ...]