Adele Hars, ASN Editor-in-ChiefShanghai, March 2015
SOI-Based Applications
A brief overview, and some examples.
SOI – Making a Difference
● Lower power. Yes.● Higher performance. Yes.● Smaller, faster, cooler. Yes.● Able to go into hot and noisy places. Yes.
But what does that mean for the end products?
Partially-depleted still lives, and fully-depleted is older than you might think
IBM Z13, announced January 2015. Handles 2.5 billion transactions a day. Power processor on 22nm partially depleted SOI.
Casio G-Shock, gets power from the sun and time from an atomic clock. Chip by Oki on fully depleted SOI. Introduced in 2005.
FD-SOI – Is it really happening?● ST says they have 18 design wins as of January
2015.● Synapse Design has worked on 7 projects and
sees more coming in.● Verisilicon has some in the pipeline.● GlobalFoundries has indicated they have
customers lined up.● Samsung is offering it on a foundry basis.
Now finally, people are starting to talk.
FD-SOI: Who's talking?The Sony 28nm GPS
January 2015, Sony revealed that the company’s next-generation Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) chip will be on 28nm FD-SOI.
Power consumption is reduced by 10x over the previous generation, making it appropriate for IoT and wearables.
You can get Sony's technical presentation at
www.soiconsortium.org.
FD-SOI: Who's talking?Freescale, Cisco, Ciena
Freescale's next-generation i.MX 7 heterogeneous multicore SoloX application processors will be on 28nm FD-SOI. Featuring device-level security, they are being pitched to “secure” IoT applications, including automotive (telematics, V2V, entry-level infotainment) and smart devices (healthcare, home appliances and factory automation).
Cisco and Ciena also announce 28nm FD-SOI chips in the pipeline.
(EETimes)
Ciena at SOI Forum San Francisco, Feb 2015
FD-SOI: Who's talking?Fabless startups.
SFARDS, a Beijing-based start-up announced in February 2015 that their new cryptocurrency solution would incorporate a 28nm FD-SOI ASIC for low power & high performance.The test results of their first silicon in April 2015 were even better than expected, with working voltage at 0.45V.
http://www.sfards.com/blog
Foundries mean business.● We know of three foundries for FD-SOI for now:
– ST – not high volume, but driving the technology
– Samsung – partnered with ST, has the high-volume capacity
– GlobalFoundries – has not officially announced, but is presenting their plans at conferences
● If they're offering it, it's because they have customers.
Samsung at SOI Forum in San Francisco, Feb 2015
11
GlobalFoundries at SOI Consortium Conference – Shanghai Sep 2014
FD-SOI on the Road With ST
● Note that ST also some SOI-based BCD for automotive & power apps
SOI substrates for IoT & more
Courtesy: Soitec
RF-SOI – everybody's doing it
RF-SOI full adoptionIn 100% of the SmartPhone - Worldwide foundry offering
switch
Source: Navian, Dec 2014 Source: Navian, Dec 2014
More than 15 foundries, Soitec estimates
…
4/15/15Confidential 17
Fabless and foundries are constantly improving design and process performance to meet LTE-A requirements
• Found ry p rocess
Source: A. Joshi, Skyworks, S3S conference 2014
• RF-SOI in m ost advanced LTE-A Sm artPhone– iPhone 6 RF -SO I con ten t (So itec estim a tes)
– In 8 ICs: SKW S – RFMD – Avago – Murata - Triqu int
4/15/15Confidential 18
RF-SOI – automotive & telematics?
Broadcomm slide from Semicon China 2015
Automotive apps – a motor for SOI
Automotive – NXP Drives SOI Everywhere
NXP SOI-based chips are in cars from virtually every brand in the world
For in-vehicle networking, audio, headlights, sensors, entertainment
With Freescale acquisition, NXP is #1 in autoHigh growth market. Today: 800 chips/car. In 2020: 1000 chips/car.
Denso: >20 years of SOI for Automotive in Japan
Denso began using SOI in 1994. Denso and Toyota developed this SOI-based power supply management ECU. It calculates the battery charge rate and internal resistance using battery voltage and current. When the battery charge rate is low, the ECU increases the alternator’s adjustment voltage for generating electricity or raises the engine revolutions during idling to stimulate battery charging. (Courtesy: Denso, Toyota)
Automotive SOI in Japan – Toyota's Long History
In 2004, Toyota developed SOI-based technology for electronic control units (ECUs).The starting substrate is a 200mm bonded-SOI wafer, with a very thick (12 μm) top silicon layer, specially tailored to Toyota's design, which reduced chip cost. Range of ICs included throttle control, suspension control, body control, hybrid control and brake control. Courtesy: Toyota
Automotive: Size Matters Compared to bulk BCDMOS, Atmel found its SOI-based SMART-I.S. Technology benefits include:
● significant chip size reduction, which reduces packaging costs & overall system costs
● improved EMC: drastic reduction in the influence of parasitic effects
● reduced standby current no latch-up effects
● high energy efficiency: leakage current is up to two orders of magnitude lower
● very high temperature operation (up to TJunction =200°C)
● 30% reduction in on-resistance (Ron) of the driver stages
● improved device characteristics, since the PN-junction isolation is replaced by oxide isolation.
Automotive SOI at Atmel: Comfort & Best-of-Class
Unlike standalone transceivers, Atmel’s LIN* system basis chips (SBC) include a voltage regulator plus a watchdog, enabling a very small footprint and a 25% reduction in system cost.
These chips target “comfort” applications such as door modules, seat control or intelligent sensors, as well as powertrain applications such as engine control systems.
*LIN = industry standard for in-vehicle networking, especially for decentralized implementations.
Atmel credits its SOI technology with its benchmark-setting EMI performance and best-in-class ESD protection.
MEMS – for the Road, for Time
Courtesy: Leti, Freescale Courtesy: SiTime
MEMS – For Better Living
Debiotech & ST – insulin for diabetesTronics accelerometer for a pacemaker
Sensors – SOI Makes Sense
Courtesy: Gefran
Courtesy: NXP
SOI Power Gets Smart
ConclusionMarket BCDMOS SOI
Courtesy: Soitec
Power for Control
Infineon's IBGT's for motor control in white
goodsThe Infineon EiceDRIVER™ Compact family supports a broad range of applications with MOSFETs as well as IGBTs up to 6A output current.
(Courtesy: Infineon)
SOI For the Real World
Courtesy: Texas Instruments
Power to Stay Healthy
Courtesy: STMicroelectronics Courtesy: Hitachi
SOI Power to the Plug
Courtesy: NXP
SOI – When It Gets Really HotCissoid – fabless, IP &
discretes for up to 250C
Now looking for opportunities in automotive...
Fraunhofer
Courtesy: Fraunhofer
Courtesy: Cissoid
SOI – Higher and Higher
SOI Shines a Light
Courtesy: NXP
Photonics – SOI Today
Cisco's line of Lightwire advanced optical interconnect technology for high-speed networking applications.
Courtesy: Cisco
Photonics – Coming Soon
SOI for RFID
SOI for BSI Imaging
Courtesy: STMicroelectronics
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Thank you!
Special thanks to Soitec, ST, and all the SOI users and members of the SOI Consortium for
permission to use their pictures.
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