Gain complete understanding of electronic systems and their constituent parts. From the origins of the semiconductor industry right up until today, this book serves as a technical primer to semiconductor technology. Spanning design and manufacturing to the basic physics of electricity, it provides a comprehensive base of understanding from transistor to iPhone.
Melding an accessible, conversational style with over 100 diagrams and illustrations, Understanding Semiconductors provides clear explanations of technical concepts going deep enough to fully explain key vernacular, mechanisms, and basic processes, without getting lost in the supporting theories or the theories that support the supporting theories. Concepts are tethered to the real world with crisp analysis of industry dynamics and future trends.
As a break from the straight-ahead scientific concepts that keep the world of semiconductors spinning, Understanding Semiconductors is liberally sprinkled with apt analogies that elucidate difficult concepts. For example, when describing the relationship between voltage, current, power, and the flow of electricity through an electronic system, the book draws a parallel to a hot shower and the water utility system. Most of these are paired with clear visuals, giving you the best chance possible to absorb the concept at hand before moving on to the next topic.
Whether you’re narrowly technical or don’t know silicon from silly putty, working directly in hardware technologies and want to know more, or simply a curious person seeking hard information about the technology that powers the modern world, Understanding Semiconductors will be an informative, dependable resource.
What You'll Learn:
Charge, Electricity, and Basic Physics What are Semiconductors The Semiconductor Value Chain and Design Trade-Offs Transistors and Other Common Circuit Building Blocks Semiconductor Design from Concept to Tapeout Wafer Fabrication and Semiconductor Manufacturing Process Integrated Circuit (IC) Packaging and Signal & Power Integrity (SIPI) Common Circuits and System Components RF and Wireless Technologies System Architecture and Integration The Semiconductor Industry - Challenges, History, and Trends The Future of Semiconductors and Electronic Systems
Who This Book Is For:
People working directly in the semiconductor, electronics, and hardware technologies fields or in supporting industries, hobbyists and new electrical engineering enthusiasts with minimal technical experience or pre-existing qualifications, and curious individuals interested in learning more about a fascinating area of technology. Though designed for a non- or semi-technical reader, engineers focused in one particular domain can also use this book to broaden their understanding in areas that aren’t directly related to their core area of expertise.
By:
Corey Richard
Imprint: APress
Country of Publication: United States
Edition: 1st ed.
Dimensions:
Height: 235mm,
Width: 155mm,
Weight: 492g
ISBN: 9781484288467
ISBN 10: 1484288467
Series: Maker Innovations Series
Pages: 301
Publication Date: 30 December 2022
Audience:
Professional and scholarly
,
Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Chapter One: Semiconductors BasicsElectricity Electric Charge Electric Current Electromagnetic Force (EMF) and Voltage Power Joule’s Law Conductivity Conductors Insulators Semiconductors Silicon – The Crucial Semiconductor Semiconductor History – Part One Semiconductor Value Chain Customer Need & Market Demand Chip Design Fabrication & Manufacturing Packaging & Assembly System Integration Product Delivery Performance, Power, Area, and Cost (PPAC) Who Uses Semiconductors? Chapter Two: Circuit Building Blocks Discrete Components – The Building Blocks of Circuits Transistors Transistor Structure How Transistors Work – A Water Analogy FinFET vs. MOSFET Transistors CMOS Geometric vs. Functional Scaling – Part 1 Logic Gates Chapter Three: Building a System Different Levels of Electronics – How the System Fits Together Integrated Circuit Design Flow System Level Architecture Front End Design Design Verification Physical Design High Level Synthesis Design Netlist Floorplanning Place-and-Route Clock-tree Synthesis Back End Validation Manufacturing (GDS) EDA Tools Chapter Four: Semiconductor Manufacturing Front-End Manufacturing Deposition Patterning & Lithography Removal Processes Physical Property Alteration Cycling – Pre & Post Metal Wafer Probing, Yield, and Failure Analysis Back-End Manufacturing Assembly & Test Wafer Dicing Die Bonding External Interconnect Formation Encapsulation and Sealing Final Testing Chapter Five: Tying the System Together Input / Output (I/O) IC Packaging Wire Bonding Flip Chip Packaging Wafer Level Packaging Multi-Chip Modules & System-In Packages 2.5/3D Packaging Signal Integrity Bus Interfaces Power Flow within Electronic Systems Chapter Six: Common Circuits and System Components Digital vs. Analog Wavelength vs. Frequency Building a System - Putting Components Together Common System Components – The SIA Framework Micro Components Logic Memory OSD Analog Components Micro Components Microprocessors & Microcontrollers Digital Signal Processors Micro Component Market Summary Logic Special Purpose Logic Central Processing Unit Graphics Processing Unit ASIC vs. FPGA System on Chip Logic Market Summary Memory Memory Stack Volatile Memory Random Access Memory DRAM SRAM Non-Volatile Memory Primary Memory ROM PROM EPROM EEPROM NAND Secondary Memory HDD SSD Stacked Die Memory High Bandwidth Memory Hybrid Memory Cube Memory Market Summary Optoelectronics, Sensors & Actuators, and Discrete Components Optoelectronics Sensors & Actuators MEMS Discrete Components PMIC PMU OSD Market Summary Analog Components General Purpose Analog IC vs. ASSP Analog Component Market Summary Chapter Seven: RF & Wireless Technologies RF Signals and The Electromagnetic Spectrum RFIC – Transmitters and Receivers Power Source Oscillators Modulators & Demodulators Amplifiers Antenna Filters OSI Reference Model Application Layer Physical Layer (PHY) Macro System Stack RF and Wireless – The Big Picture Base Stations Tracking a Phone Call Broadcasting and Frequency Regulation Digital Signal Processing TDMA & CDMA 1G to 5G – An Evolution Wireless Communication and Cloud Computing Chapter Eight: System Architecture and Integration Macro vs. Micro-Architecture Common Chip Architectures Von Neumann Architecture Harvard Architecture CISC vs. RISC Choosing an ISA Heterogenous vs. Monolithic Integration Chapter Nine: The Semiconductor Industry – Past, Present, and Future Semiconductor Industry – Major Challenges Design Costs Manufacturing Costs Evolution of the Semiconductor Industry 1960-1980’s: Fully Integrated Semiconductor Companies 1980’s-2000: IDM + Fabless Design + Pure-Play Foundry 2000-Today: IDM + Fabless Design + Foundries + System Companies Fabs vs. Fabless Design – The Case Against IDM’s Industry Outlook Cyclical Revenues and High Volatility High R&D and Capital Investment Positive Productivity Growth Long-Term Profitability High Consolidation 2010-2021: Major Acquisitions by Year U.S. vs. International Semiconductor Market COVID-19 & The Semiconductor Supply Chain Chinese Competition Chapter Ten: The Future of Semiconductors and Electronic Systems Prolonging Moore’s Law – Sustaining Technologies 2.5 & 3D Die Stacking Gate-All-Around (GAA) Transistors & New Channel Materials Custom Silicon & Specialized Accelerators Graphene Carbon Nanotubes & 2D Transistors Overcoming Moore’s Law – New Technologies Quantum Computing & Quantum Transistors Neuromorphic Computing
Corey Richard leads the Executive Search and Developer Recruiting practice at SignalFire, an SF-based $2B Venture Capital Fund with notable investments in Grammarly, Uber, Ro, and Color Genomics. He supports over 150 seed and growth stage startups, helping founders attract and hire key talent across Engineering, Product, and GTM. Before coming to SignalFire, Corey supported Apple’s Silicon Engineering Group for four years, where he built next generation engineering organizations across all facets of silicon design – supporting both the Analog-Mixed-Signal (AMS) Design and IC Packaging Orgs. Prior to Apple, he consulted for a wide array of hardware technology giants including Harman International, Cirrus Logic, and Xilinx FPGA. Corey completed his MBA in Organizational Development & Entrepreneurship at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business and was valedictorian of his undergraduate class at SDSU, where he studied Finance, Sustainability, and Organizational Psychology.
