The semiconductor sector is at the core of modern technological progress, but as devices require increasingly complex and smaller chip designs, manufacturing these advanced nodes becomes a monumental challenge. Leading the charge to tackle these complexities are Intel and PDF Solutions, who have deepened their partnership to advance semiconductor manufacturing. This collaboration not only optimizes design and yield for chips but also integrates innovative tools such as AI-driven analytics to handle the growing intricacies of manufacturing processes.
Through their joint efforts, Intel and PDF Solutions are establishing new standards in advanced chip manufacturing by addressing key issues such as power delivery, data integration, and yield enhancement at the cutting edge of nanoscale design technologies.
The Need for Innovation in Manufacturing Advanced Nodes
Semiconductor manufacturing has entered a transformative era. Producing chips at sub-7 nanometer nodes demands more intricate structures, efficient power delivery, temperature control, and rigorous testing procedures. Intel’s 18A and 14A processes exemplify this leap in complexity, integrating innovative design elements such as backside power delivery and advanced packaging.
These advancements are reshaping how designers and manufacturers collaborate. As PDF Solutions CEO John Kibarian explained during April’s Direct Connect Intel Foundry event, “To maximize performance, profitability, and yields below seven nanometer, you really have to co-optimize. That co-optimization can’t begin after the fact.” Early collaboration and precise data integration across design and manufacturing are essential to success in this environment.
How Intel and PDF are Working Together for Better Solutions
Intel and PDF Solutions have been collaborating for over four years, crafting solutions that bridge design and manufacturing. Here’s how their partnership focuses on key priorities to overcome some of the most challenging design and production hurdles:
Early Stage Co-Optimization
Rather than treating design and manufacturing as disconnected processes, Intel and PDF ensure that R&D teams closely align with product portfolios from the start. This approach allows for smoother transitions between stages of the semiconductor lifecycle, minimizing delays and unexpected complications during production.
One notable innovation includes enabling design inputs to directly influence manufacturing processes through techniques such as e-beam inspection and enhanced characterization data.
Leveraging AI and Machine Learning for Data-Driven Insights
The sheer scale of analytics required in semiconductor production makes AI-powered solutions indispensable. Every minute within a modern fab generates vast reserves of data—from wafer movements to recipe step events. PDF Solutions brings advanced AI systems to the table, bridging data silos and delivering actionable insights through Process Design Kits (PDKs) that help R&D teams optimize production flows.
AI also plays a vital role in managing intricate test flows. Engineering teams are increasingly employing AI to handle multiple test insertions, a necessity for advanced nodes like 18A and 14A as they incorporate sophisticated packaging and power delivery systems.
Enhancing Power Delivery and Packaging
Intel’s inclusion of backside power delivery is a critical innovation for its 14A and subsequent processes. This unique feature allows for better energy efficiency, enabling chips to meet the growing performance demands of advanced applications. However, these systems require advanced simulation tools and in-depth collaboration to fully exploit their potential.
PDF Solutions supports next-generation capabilities by ensuring that process innovations like backside power are built into the design pipeline rather than being added as stand-alone features, an approach that expedites time-to-market while reducing deployment risks.
Integrated Analytics for Yield Improvement
Yield improvement has always been central to semiconductor profitability, but as Kibarian noted, “Electrical characterization data is the lingua franca in our industry.” Connecting engineering disciplines within a unified analytics platform helps eliminate inefficiencies, enabling early identification and correction of issues that could affect manufacturing quality or scalability.
By focusing on integrated analytics, Intel and PDF are aligning their efforts to improve yield rates while maintaining consistency during the complex manufacturing cycles mandated by advanced nodes.
Addressing Manufacturing Complexity with Secure Communication and Collaboration
Intel and PDF aim to streamline communication across the semiconductor value chain, spanning suppliers, design teams, and manufacturing partners. This process ensures that every stakeholder operates from a unified data pool, reducing errors and improving collaboration speed.
Key to this effort is the establishment of robust, secure communication networks allowing for more seamless data sharing without compromising intellectual property.
As chip designs continue to shrink in size and increase in complexity, both Intel and PDF Solutions CEOs stressed that early engagement and integrated analytics will be critical for success in future semiconductor development.
“Innovation drives benefit, but innovation needs the know-how to use the innovation,” Kibarian concluded, highlighting the need for continued investment in tools, characterization data, and engineering expertise to fully leverage advanced manufacturing technologies.
Intel and PDF Collaboration Signals the Way Forward for the Industry
The semiconductor industry is no stranger to complexity, but as advanced processes like Intel’s 18A and 14A raise the stakes, partnerships that prioritize co-optimization and data-driven insights become a competitive necessity. The collaboration between Intel and PDF Solutions stands out as a blueprint for how these challenges can be addressed effectively.
By leveraging AI, integrating analytics, and fostering early-stage collaboration, Intel and PDF are setting a new benchmark for semiconductor design and production. They are proving that even the “unbelievably daunting” challenges of advanced chip manufacturing can be tackled with innovation, expertise, and teamwork.
You can learn more about the Intel DirectConnect event here.
And you can learn about Intel and PDF Solutions collaboration here.