The Biggest Challenges in IC Chip Design and How to Overcome Them

Once you have an idea of building a product, the next phase is to design it. The same works with integrated circuits. Each IC manufacturing process starts with the design phase. The design shows how different electronic components on the semiconductor chip will work together to perform different functions. Given the importance of integrated circuits in the world of electronics, the design process must be flawless. Everything should be done with the highest levels of accuracy since the final chip will be based on the design that you built.

However, in as much as designers intend to achieve the best semiconductor chip designs, they are likely to encounter an array of challenges. Some issues can be easily overlooked while others are quite technical and may even hinder the whole design process. In this article, we are going to highlight some of the biggest challenges in the IC design process. We will also look at different techniques for overcoming these challenges.

Challenge 1: Rapid pace of technological advancement

Let’s face it, technology is growing at a very fast pace. Every day we are faced with new products. Most of these products have a direct impact on the world of semiconductor chip manufacturing. This is because IC chips are the main drivers of technological advancement.

However, the fast pace of technological advancement hurts the semiconductor chip design process. Designers may not be well-equipped enough to handle the rapid pace of technological growth. This may be in terms of both skills and tools that they use for designing the chips. The result is the inability of designers to produce designs that meet the demands of the new technology.

Solution

There are several solutions that IC designers are implementing to keep up with the fast pace of technological; growth.

First is the implementation of the 5G NR technology.  This is the latest global standard for wireless communication. It supports fast data exchange between wireless devices in different networks. How does this help in solving the challenges that IC designers are facing? The 5G NR technology helps the chip makers design the right chipsets that will meet the requirements of the 5G network. Designers can get accurate data about the chipsets in time.

Automotive Radar Design is another solution that helps IC designers keep up with the fast-growing pace of technology. It helps designs avoid common errors during the design process. It gives all the necessary warnings in good time whenever designers are working on their projects.

Continuous learning is a good old practice that helps designers keep u with emerging technological needs. There are numerous workshops, seminars, and conferences that are organized globally and are geared towards equipping chip designers with new information. Enhanced collaboration among all the key players in the industry is another effective technique that designers can use to keep up with the growing technology.

Challenge 2: Difficulty in using multiple software tools

The delicate and sophisticated nature of the IC design process usually forces designers to use multiple software tools. At one point during the design process, all these tools are required to send data to each other. This is where the challenge comes in. It can be quite difficult to connect multiple design software. Usually, IC designers are forced to create manual solutions that will ensure the software can communicate with each other. This is usually a time-consuming process and is also prone to errors.

Solutions

Thanks to technological advancement, there are several ways of ensuring that different software applications for IC designs work together. One of the solutions entails using integrated design systems. These are all-in-one solutions that are used for the implementation of intricate IC designs. With these systems, you will not have to be constantly moving from one software to another or even worry about how to connect different applications.  With integrated systems, a designer can perform schematics design, circuit layout, PCB layout, simulation, and even packaging among other activities.

Challenge 3: Slow data sharing among the designers

In the digital age, the IC design process is decentralized. Designers are spread across different locations from which they can carry out all the operations that are related to the chip design process. One of the biggest challenges that comes with this mode of work is communication. Sending data seamlessly between different locations has proven to be a serious challenge. Additionally, this mode of work is prone to constant communication breakdown.

Solution

First, there has been a general improvement in the world of communication. In addition to the advancement of networking platforms, new applications for remote communications have flooded the market. They include Slack, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams among many others. You can easily choose one that meets the needs of your business.

Designers can also collaborate using various cloud-based platforms that are embedded with a ton of resources for collaboration. They come with version control tools that allow designs to monitor and make changes on different versions of the chip designs. This makes it easy to track the progress of the semiconductor chip design process.

Challenge 4:Design complexity

 Some challenges arise from the design themselves. In most cases, there is usually a mismatch in the design and the expected performance of the integrated circuits in real-world applications.  While the design may be touted to deliver excellent results, this may end up not happening due to several factors. The wrong choice of electronic components is just one of the many factors that can lead to a mismatch between the design and the expected performance of the IC chip.

IC designers are usually forced to run long simulations so that they can have a preview of the expected performance from the chips that they have designed. The need for performance is another factor that is leading to the design complexity issue. Consumers are always demanding the best performance from IC chips. This forces the designers to develop complex designs that can deliver such performance. Of course, complexity tends to attract a barrage of other issues, such as chip reliability.

Solution

The most common solution to design complexity is modularity. IC chip designers have embraced complexity, which entails creating simple designs that can still deliver the desired sophisticated functions. The focus is on each module on the chip and they are finally combined into a single chip.  Long sessions of simulation is another technique that IC chip designers have embraced to solve the complexity issue in the design process.

Challenge 5:Thermal issues

Heat management is one of the most common problems that integrated circuit designers face in the course of their job. Given that modern chips are required to deliver excellent performance and at the same time execute sophisticated functionalities, you are likely to encounter thermal management problems. Some of the overheating issues that are witnessed on electronic devices are caused by flaws in the design phase of the chip production process.

Solution

There are various solutions to thermal management in the integrated circuit design process. One of the solutions entails using components that are highly resistant to the adverse effects of temperature changes. Designers are also focusing on including different forms of heat management techniques in their designs. For example, the design may focus on embedding heat sinks and fans in the integrated circuits. Proper placement and spacing of the component is another effective technique that designers use to solve thermal management.

Challenge 6: Power management problem

One of the important requirements of IC chip designers is to deliver energy-efficient designs. This is more important, especially in the age where manufacturers are striving to outdo each other to produce energy-efficient devices. This is quite a herculean task for IC designers who need to balance power management and performance. Additionally, the designs should minimize any form of power loss from the integrated circuits.

Solution

To deal with power management, IC designers have deployed an array of solutions. One of them is using a dedicated library of power management on the integrated circuits. This is a special collection of power electronic components that perform various tasks related to power management in integrated circuits. Simulation is another effective solution to the power management problem in IC design. Data from the simulations will give you the expected performance of IC chips in power management. 

Conclusion

IC design is quite a vigorous process. The process is faced with different types of challenges. The good news is there are various ways of overcoming these challenges. Designers are always on the lookout for these and many other solutions whenever they encounter challenges in their job. Furthermore, since technology is an ever-evolving field, we are always anticipating new challenges. This means that all the key players in the industry should be working towards finding new solutions to their designs.

 Are you in the market looking for well-designed semiconductor chips? We have the right solutions for you. Rantle East Electronic is a leading global distributor of semiconductor chips.  Whichever semiconductor chip design you would like to buy, trust us to deliver. We work directly with IC chip manufacturers. We can even help you to get custom designs for the semiconductor chips.