Semiconductor products can be counterfeited. That’s an unfortunate fact. But because they control the operation of vital electronics, the failure of a single counterfeit semiconductor component can have catastrophic consequences, presenting important risks to our health – and via security applications, risks to our safety, too.
Source: A Self-Erasing Chip Designed to Defeat Counterfeiting | TTI, Inc.
LandMark Optoelectronics, a specialist for epitaxial wafers and VCSEL components, is expected to see its revenues hit new highs in two years in fourth-quarter 2020, after witnessing its sales rise 13.1% sequentially to NT$603 million (US$21.09 million) in the previous quarter, according to industry sources.The growth momentum will continue into the fourth quarter as the company just completed a capacity ramp project in September 2020 that doubled its capacity for backend processes, said the sources.
AMD said it is buying Xilinx for $35 billion, confirming the news leak several weeks ago. AMD made it clear that this deal is all about high performance computing (HPC): it was the headline of its announcement; it is at the top of AMD’s web site today; and it was the first thing CEO Lisa Su said (after “Good morning”) on the company’s conference call with analysts. After all the speculation about what the deal might mean, one can now be fairly confident that the main focus of AMD buying Xilinx is HPC.
Source: AMD Confirms Rumored Acquisition of Xilinx | EE Times
La Mirada, CA – Solid State Devices, Inc. (SSDI) continues to expand its hermetic GaN Power FETs line with the SGF30E100Z8, a 1000 volt dual GaN FET. When used in a half bridge configuration, this device delivers 15 amps of continuous drain current, but can also be connected in parallel to achieve 30 amps. Similar to SSDI’s other GaN offerings, the very fast switching SGF30E100Z8 has a low gate charge of 10 nC max and a low RDS(on) of 160 mΩ typ.
Source: News 2020-09-21: SGF30E100Z8
Trust DEI products to provide Surge Protection System Components in accordance with DO160. All of DEI’s ARINC 429 components and most all Discrete to Digital converters feature this protection.DEI’s new Surge Blocking Modules provide Bi-Directional DO160. They also meet Airbus A350XWB requirements and come in both a fused (and soon) a non-fused version. They’re ideal for protecting device I/O lines throughout an aircraft and feature SiC technology.
Source: DO-160 Surge Protection System Components | Device Engineering Inc.
Worldwide wafer shipments, as with most global IC market segments, are up and heading for record increases over the next 18 months, according to the latest in a series of rosy forecasts by a semiconductor industry group.
Source: Wafer Shipments Head for Record Increases | EE Times
AMD is said to be negotiating to buy Xilinx, and a deal could come as soon as next week. If the two companies agree, the deal would likely be worth approximately $30 billion, according to The Wall Street Journal.The value of AMD shares has soared of late, which means it should be able to much more easily swing a deal, and pay largely in stock. The WSJ reported that AMD’s stock grew 89% this year, and the company now has a valuation over $100 billion. Xilinx, meanwhile, has had to contend with the vicissitudes of President Donald Trump’s trade war with China; it tried and failed to secure a dispensation to keep supplying Huawei.
Source: AMD Reported to Be Negotiating Purchase of Xilinx | EE Times
Worldwide semiconductor sales registered an on-year increase for the seventh consecutive month in August 2020.The global semiconductor industry posted August sales of US$36.2 billion, up 3.6% sequentially, according to Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA). Sales were 4.9% above the August 2019 total of US$34.5 billion.”Global semiconductor sales increased year-to-year in August for the seventh consecutive month, demonstrating the global market so far has remained largely insulated from ongoing global macroeconomic headwinds, but there is still substantial uncertainty for the months ahead,” said John Neuffer, SIA president and CEO.
Source: Global semiconductor sales continue growth in August
WASHINGTON—Sept. 16, 2020—The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA), in partnership with the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), today released a study analyzing the impact of proposed federal incentives for domestic semiconductor manufacturing. The report, titled Government Incentives and U.S. Competitiveness in Semiconductor Manufacturing, finds robust federal incentives would reverse the decades-long trajectory of declining chip production in America and create as many as 19 major semiconductor manufacturing facilities (fabs) and 70,000 high-paying jobs in the U.S. over the next 10 years. Congress is considering legislation that calls for substantial investments in domestic semiconductor manufacturing and research. SIA represents 95 percent of the U.S. semiconductor industry by revenue and nearly two-thirds of non-U.S. chip firms.
The announcement noted that SoftBank will remain committed to Arm’s long-term success through its ownership stake in Nvidia, expected to be under 10 percent.Nvidia is framing its mega business deal with Arm as “bringing Nvidia’s own AI computing platform to Arm’s vast ecosystem.”
Oversupply in the memory market is likely to extend downward pricing pressure to the first half of 2021. Memory prices are expected to drop 10% in fourth-quarter 2020. Although demnd for memory products from the PC sector may be flat in fourth-quarter 2020, notebook brand vendors are all-out trying to secure shipments from ODMs to meet strong demand for notebooks in the months ahead. Meanwhile, ASML will soon unveil an EUV technology training center in Taiwan to better serve its major client, TSMC.
Source: Highlights of the day: Memory pricing downward pressure to extend to 1H21
The U.S. economy is tanking, America is recording more than 1,000 coronavirus deaths daily, millions file for unemployment benefits each week. Amid the crises, chips are taking center stage in what looks like a new, pandemic-driven industrial policy .Manufacturing advanced and secure circuits domestically is no longer just a talking point. Momentum is building, observers note.
Source: CHIPS Act Targets Post-Globalized Industry | EE Times
