Boards, Chips and Packaging: 
Designing to Maximize Results

Abstracts

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Click on a speaker's name to view their abstract:
Michael Gay, Isola
Daniel DeAraujo, Mentor
Margaret Schmitt, Ansys
Robert Sankman, Intel
 

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The Importance of Materials Selection to Solve Hardware Design Challenges
Michael Gay, Isola
Abstract: One of the most overlooked aspects of hardware design is the key role that materials selection plays in the overall product development process. For example, laminates are the foundation upon which all other components, both hardware and software, depend in order to ensure that the products into which they are incorporated are functionally operational. The selection of the most effective materials is now a complicated process, as there are a broad scale of materials available from multiple sources,with varying characteristics and properties that may or may not enable the proper operation and longevity of a product.  Throw in the cost factor and the decision is even more challenging.
 
Most electronic hardware design ultimately relies on the laminate for functionality. Eventual product failure can sometimes be traced back to inappropriate selection of laminate materials, and in today's designs this can be a big issue. The entire electronic assembly is comprised of different materials which must be compatible,such as:

• copper,
• solder balls,
• components,
• other active and passive devices,
• connectors, and
• cables.

As one example, if the materials' Coefficients of Thermal Expansion (CTEs) don't  all fall within the same small window, products can very often fail merely due to exposure to a thermal excursion. In real applications, there can be substantial CTE mismatch between copper, laminate, silicon, and lead-free solder. This can lead to extremely high stresses, the brunt of which is borne by the laminate.

Other examples include:

• difference in elastic and/or plastic moduli
• fiber weave effect
• thermal management

Solutions to these problems may include laminates with built-in skew mitigation, optical waveguides for faster data rates, and careful selection of materials and cooling solutions.  

Tarun Amla, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of Isola Group, will deliver a keynote address at the Semico Impact Conference on Oct 13th, 2015, which will identify the issues and demonstrate how the use of appropriate tools can ensure the best decisions up and down the ecosystem to meet product needs and fulfill your economic goals.  It's imperative that material characteristics are correctly understood and evaluated based on their inherent materials science and operational characteristics.This keynote will discuss the importance of careful selection of materials to avoid failure in hardware applications.
 

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Pushing the Envelope on Bandwidth
Daniel DeAraujo, Mentor
Abstract: The thirst for higher bandwidth driven by mobile, Big Data, and higher performance computing applications presents new challenges for the designers of very high speed PCBs and IC packages.  Faster PCIe, SATA, and SAT interfaces and new 100G/400G systems featuring multi-lane 25-32Gbps SerDes (moving to 56Gbps), and  higher density, lower power, smaller footprint HPC/HBM/3D NAND memory interfaces are sparking a move to signaling technologies (PAM4/8), improved board/package materials, and a better signal/power integrity design discipline.  Today's designers require interdisciplinary electrical, mechanical, thermal, and material engineering skill sets to adequately deal with the increased design complexity and compressed time to profitability.  This discussion will focus on some of the technical, personnel and engineering challenges faced by every very high speed system design team.
 

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Getting the full picture:  Optimizing products from component to system
Margaret Schmitt, Ansys
Abstract:  With the rise of the IoT, autonomous vehicles, and “smart” devices, engineers are faced with new design challenges at a time when connectivity, performance, power efficiency and achieving first-time success is more critical than ever.  To enable the “Internet of Smart, Connected Things”, engineers need to innovate rapidly to incorporate antennas, sensors, and new features into complex systems while avoiding design pitfalls impacting performance and compliance.  At the same time, extremely short development cycles are driving engineers to innovate on their products with very little prototyping and collaboration across teams.  Simulation plays a key role in helping engineers drive innovation, enabling complete virtual prototypes of complex systems to be validated across all physics and engineering disciplines. ANSYS will discuss design challenges at the chip, package, and system level, and how simulation-driven product development can help engineers rapidly innovate new products.
 

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Packaging Directions for High-Performance Silicon Chips
Robert Sankman, Intel
Abstract:  Chip packaging for advanced node silicon has been heavily influenced by the rapid growth in mobile electronics.  While flipchip interconnects are the choice for high performance silicon in both mobile and traditional computing devices, the packaging form factors and demands vary significantly by the market segment being targeted. Key package types, targeted usages, and enabling considerations will be discussed along with prospects for the future.

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Check back with us, as we will continue posting abstracts as they come in.