Welcome to Wireless Chip Designer - the only newsletter that covers the challenges of integrating analog design, analog mixed signal and RF–Wireless functionality into silicon.
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This Month's Table of Contents:
- Trends in Wireless Consumer Electronics Drive AMS
- 3G Licenses Increase Demand for Wireless Test Equipment in China
- Donation Prompts IP Encryption Standardization Effort
- IP Program Gains New Members
- Development Platform Eyes W-CDMA/WiMAX Standards
- Partnership Optimizes SoC Power and Architecture
- Xilinx Accelerates Growth of Electronic Design Innovation in China
- RF Design Software Donated to Peking University
- In-Depth Coverage Links
- Structured ASICs Are Alive and Well
- Emulation Gets the Nod vs. FPGA Prototyping
- New Books
- Happenings –– Conferences
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>> Gold Sponsor: Chip Estimate
>> Silver Sponsor: EVE
>> Bronze Sponsor: Real Intent
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1. Viewpoint – Exclusive
Trends in Wireless Consumer Electronics Drive AMS
by Mike Demler, HSIMplus Product Marketing Manager, Synopsys (www.synopsys.com)
Demand for consumer electronics is now the major growth driver for the semiconductor industry. While the popular press generally equates the proliferation of consumer electronics with a “digital revolution,” the truth is that all those bits of information would be completely useless were it not for the designers who create the increasingly sophisticated mixed-signal devices required to transmit, store, view and listen to the massive amount of material being digitized. Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) forecasts show cell phones as the fastest-growing market segment for ICs, but other emerging wireless technologies are forming the foundation for a new “place-shifting” culture in which consumers access their favorite content anytime and anywhere. WiMAX and digital video broadcasting-handheld (DVB-H) are examples of technologies driving the growth of connectivity that is well underway with 3G cell phones and wireless LANs. The challenge for wireless chip designers is to integrate complex analog and RF functions into mixed-signal ICs, within the constraints of low cost and low power that are more difficult to achieve in today's shrinking semiconductor process technologies. Through close collaboration with designers and IC manufacturers, new electronic design automation (EDA) tools are being developed to assist designers in meeting these challenges.
» Full Story
Comments about this article? Share your thoughts by writing our editorial director: jblyler@extensionmedia.com
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2. News
3G Licenses Increase Demand for Wireless Test Equipment in China
According to Frost and Sullivan, considering the imminent 2008 Olympics in Beijing, issuing of 3G licenses to ensure high-speed mobile networks is probable this year. This is likely to drive demand in the wireless test and measurement equipment. In fact, a recent report on Chinese Wireless Test and Measurement Equipment Markets revealed that the Chinese market earned revenues of $197.7 million in 2005 and is likely to reach $606.2 million in 2012. The Chinese government is set to further the growth of 3G technology in China by fostering a robust domestic telecommunications industry which may lead to tremendous investment in the telecom market and benefit both 3G terminal equipment makers and IT vendors.
With support for 3G technologies showing up in current wireless communication networks, equipment manufacturers are beginning to invest in the promising wireless test and measurement equipment market. That's because rapidly evolving technologies and standards create a unique challenge for manufacturers. As data, voice and video services converge in the networks, their testing and measurement is becoming more complex. Vendors will need to enhance test equipment's capability to integrate physical and protocol layer level testing for multiple standards, interfaces and protocols in a single instrument.
Frost and Sullivan >> http://www.frost.com.
Gold Sponsor: Chip Estimate Corporation
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3. News
Donation Prompts IP Encryption Standardization Effort
Synplicity has joined the VSI Alliance (VSIA), the leading IP standards body for the electronics industry, and is donating its Open IP Encryption Methodology to the organization. The agreement provides VSIA with a license to use and modify Synplicity's copyrighted Open IP Encryption specification for the purposes of creating an industry IP encryption standard which will ease development and integration costs for FPGA and SoC design throughout the design chain. Furthering adding weight to this announcement, VSIA has created the IP Encryption working group, a sub-group of the VSIA IP Protection Pillar. Companies who participate in the group will be able to help shape an end product that addresses the needs of their company, while contributing to the definition of an industry standard.
Synplicity >> http://www.synplicity.com
VSIA >> http://www.vsia.org
SILVER Sponsor: EVE–USA
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4. News
IP Program Gains New Members
Six new companies have joined the growing list of Cadence OpenChoice IP Program members; a program which enables interoperability and facilitates collaboration with IP providers to build, validate, and deliver accurate models optimized for Cadence design and verification solutions. These companies include: ChipIdea, Fabbrix; GDA Technologies, Ingot Systems, Intelliprop, and IPextreme. Since the OpenChoice IP Program's inception in 2004, more than 35 quality IP providers have signed up to offer customers the latest technologies in both verification and design IP, optimized for Cadence flows. The addition of these new members expands the current portfolio with memory controllers, libraries and interface protocols including PCIExpress, USB, Flexray, and SATA. The result is a further optimized electronics design chain and acceleration of customer time to market.
Cadence >> http://www.cadence.com
5. News
Development Platform Eyes W-CDMA/WiMAX Standards
AXIS Network Technology and Xilinx have introduced CDRSX, a common digital radio system (CDRS) development platform that increases power amplifier (PA) efficiency and reduces capital and operating costs for W-CDMA and WiMAX base stations. The CDRSX development platform consists of the Xilinx W-CDMA and WiMAX digital front-end (DFE) reference designs and the flexible AXIS Virtex-based development board to provide a power efficient, quick time-to-market route from concept-to-production for wireless digital radio cards. The AXIS CDRSX Development Platform offers OEMs the flexibility to quickly adapt to changes in specification or air interfaces. It includes a specially designed board containing RF preamps, ADCs, DACs, a Xilinx Virtex-II Pro FPGA to provide interface support for CPRI, OBSAI and digital I/Q connectivity and Virtex-4 SX55 FPGA for implementing digital radio signal processing functions, and an operating system for control of the board via Ethernet connection.
Axis Network Technology >> http://www.axisnt.com
Xilinx >> http://www.xilinx.com
BRONZE Sponsor: Real Intent
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6. News
Partnership Optimizes SoC Power And Architecture
Sequence Design and Synfora have jointly created an integrated flow that incorporates Sequence's PowerTheater RTL power-analysis tool with Synfora's PICO Express Application Engine Synthesis (AES). This combination provides the user with unequaled insight into performance, area, and power for advanced SoCs early in the design, when analysis and design tradeoffs can have maximum impact. PICO Express bridges the SoC design productivity gap by enabling the automatic generation of optimal architectures and synthesizable RTL from untimed C algorithms. Integrating this solution with Sequence's PowerTheater, allows users to generate multiple trial implementations and then run PowerTheater to estimate power at RTL and, later, at the gate level. Strengthening this joint collaboration, Synfora has recently joined the InSequence Technology Partner Program, promoting EDA interoperability and advanced design methodologies.
Sequence Design >> http://www.sequencedesign.com
Synfora >> http://www.synfora.com
7. International News
Xilinx Accelerates Growth of Electronic Design Innovation in China
Xilinx Chairman, President and CEO Wim Roelandts recently underscored the company's commitment to accelerate growth of electronic design innovation in China. Among the key areas of the company's expansion are a multi-million dollar technology fund, dedicated support facilities including an applications development lab, an expanded third-party ecosystem and significant investment in local universities. According to iSuppli, Xilinx is already the number one programmable logic device (PLD) supplier in China with 59 percent market segment share and selling more PLDs to Chinese-based manufacturers and electronics designers than all other PLD suppliers combined. With widespread adoption throughout the region, Xilinx plays a key role in supporting China's drive for local technological innovation. Asia Pacific revenues for the company now represent 25 percent of overall revenues, as reflected in its most recent Q2 FY07 financial results.
Xilinx >> http://www.xilinx.com
8. International News
RF Design Software Donated to Peking University
Applied Wave Research and Shanghai Research Institute of Microelectronics (SHRIME), Peking University, China, have announced that AWR is donating its entire suite of radio-frequency (RF) design software in a collaborative effort to advance Peking University's high-frequency design curriculum. The donation is the first step in a long-term program that will establish a joint RF design and research laboratory at the university's research institute. The laboratory will spearhead high-frequency research projects in Shanghai and develop unified process design kits (PDKs) and value-added RF intellectual property (IP) for key foundry processes in China.
Applied Wave Research >> http://www.appwave.com
9. In–Depth Coverage Links
Recently, several sources reported the premature decline of the structured ASIC market, with the added prognosis that the technology will never recover. Structured ASICs are dead? Not in our view! To learn more, read: “Structured ASICs Are Alive and Well.”
Chip Design Editorial Feature >>
http://www.chipdesignmag.com/display.php?articleId=698&issueId=0
System-level verification solutions require power of emulation to address the opposing forces of increasing complexity and shrinking design schedules. To learn more, read: “Emulation Gets the Nod vs. FPGA Prototyping.”
iDesign Editorial Feature >>
http://www.chipdesignmag.com/display.php?articleId=635
10. New Books
ESD: RF Technology and Circuits
By Steven Howard Voldman
ISBN: 0-470-84755-7
Publisher: Wiley-IEEE Press
Electrostatic Discharge (ESD) within RF devices can result in the malfunctioning of nearby electronic equipment. This volume is designed as the third in a series of three books addressing Electrostatic Discharge (ESD) physics, devices, circuits and design. It is the first book to address the increasingly important area of ESD within RF devices and circuits.
Wiley-IEEE Press >> http://www.wiley.com/
11. Happenings – Conferences
WAMICON 2006: IEEE Wireless and Microwave Technology ConferenceDecember 4-5, 2006
Clearwater, FL
http://wamicon.eng.usf.edu/
SEMICON Japan
December 6-8, 2006
Chiba, Japan
www.semi.org
2006 IEEE International Electron Devices Meeting
December 11-13, 2006
San Francisco, CA
www.his.com/~iedm
VLSI Design Conference 2007
January 6-10, 2007
Bangalore, India
http://www.vlsiconference.com
2007 IEEE Radio & Wireless Symposium
January 7-12, 2007
Long Beach, CA
http://rawcon.org/index.html
2007 International CES
January 8-11, 2007
Las Vegas, NV
www.cesweb.org
Real-Time & Embedded Computing Conference
January 25, 2007
Santa Clara, CA
http://www.rtecc.com
Electronic Design and Solution Fair 2007 with FPGA/PLD Conference
January 25-26, 2007
Pacifico Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan
www.edsfair.com
DesignCon 2007
January 29 – February 1
Santa Clara, California
www.designcon.com
International Symposium on Quality Electronic Design
ISQED '07
March 26-28, 2007
San Jose, CA
http://www.isqed.org
2007 Embedded Systems Conference Silicon Valley
April 1-5, 2007
San Jose, CA
http://www.embedded.com
Design Automation and Test in Europe (DATE)
April 16-20, 2007
Acropolis, Nice, France
www.date-conference.com
WIRELESS CHIP DESIGNER e–NEWSLETTER CONTACTS
Editor: Cheryl Ajluni, cajluni@extensionmedia.com
Editorial Director: John Blyler, jblyler@extensionmedia.com
Advertising/Sponsorship Opportunities: Karen Popp, kpopp@extensionmedia.com
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