Improved Modeling Enables Encounter(R) Digital Implementation System to Accelerate Advanced Node Design

SAN JOSE, CA -- (Marketwire) -- 07/29/09 -- Cadence Design Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CDNS), the leader in global electronic design innovation, today announced first-silicon results on 32-nanometer (nm) Common Platform high-k metal-gate (HKMG) technology, manufactured at IBM. Cadence® and the Common Platform alliance, comprised of IBM, Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing and Samsung Electronics, collaborated to tackle systematic and random variability in advanced node designs. The silicon results represent a significant milestone for designers with stringent design-for-manufacturing (DFM) requirements, and can enable Encounter® Digital Implementation (EDI) System to provide significant power savings, yield enhancement and time-to-market advantages.

The 32nm silicon results provide a rich and expansive data set modeling the HKMG process in relation to layout rules, design rule checking and device interconnect models. In addition, they capture critical information related to device and interconnect variability, including systematic, random, within-die and die-to-die variation, as well as manufacturing effects including lithography, thermal, stress, proximity effects, and copper deposition. Using this manufacturing intelligence during the physical design process, the Cadence Encounter Digital Implementation System can enable early and silicon-accurate DFM and variability modeling, characterization and optimization to provide a complete end-to-end flow.

"We've worked closely with Cadence to build early hardware for the purpose of accurately modeling device and interconnect variability," said Mark Ireland, vice president, IBM Semiconductor Platforms on behalf of the Common Platform alliance. "The early learning will enable Cadence to incorporate silicon-accurate models and DFM support into the Encounter tool suite. This helps accelerate the adoption of 32/28nm high-k metal-gate technology for designers to deliver next-generation devices with significantly improved performance and battery life."

The EDI System contains a full suite of DFM and statistical technologies that can be applied across the physical implementation flow. Manufacturing and yield can be addressed concurrently with timing, signal integrity, power, and area optimizations to ensure all aspects are addressed holistically before final tapeout. By modeling and optimizing for variability early in the design stage, designers reduce overall turnaround time and improve confidence that the chip will work as intended.