Over the last year, analysts have wondered if a MEMS foundry will reach $1B in revenue any time soon, a 10% market share. And for the third year in a row, TSMC has announced it’s ready for MEMS.
I meet many MEMS design engineers and technical managers in the course of my work, in industries ranging from aerospace & defense to wireless communications. Naturally, we talk about their specific urgent technical design issues. But I've found there is an underlying inquiry common to most of our customers. They ask, what are other companies doing to be successful in MEMS?
Design, verification or manufacturing; which one are you good at
The purpose of MEMS design automation is to increase productivity, just as in the IC world. Yet if you consider the three major tasks involved -- design, verification and manufacturing -- you find that although the industry has all three functions down pat, the integration of the three is still in its infancy.
You've done scores of IC designs using typical EDA software. But now for the first time you face the challenge of designing a MEMS part into your system, say a microphone for a cell phone. You turn to MEMS design software -- what are you likely to encounter?
Most companies producing MEMS devices are large ones, such as Analog Devices, Robert Bosch, ST Microelectronics and Texas Instruments. These giants all have their own fabs with optimized processes and evolving design flows.
MEMS fabs are moving to 8-inch wafers, and IC companies are shopping around to acquire MEMS technology. Innovative consumer products with MEMS inside are on the market, and MEMS now has its own spot, here, on the EETimes Web site!
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