Jun 4 2015
TowerJazz, the global specialty foundry leader, and TowerJazz Panasonic Semiconductor Co., Ltd. (TPSCo) – a newly established company by Panasonic Corporation of which Tower Semiconductor Ltd. acquired 51%, and Synopsys, Inc., a global leader in electronic design automation (EDA) and semiconductor IP, today announced that they have qualified a 65 nanometer (nm) CMOS image sensor (CIS) interoperable process design kit (iPDK) to allow customers to design and develop new products using Synopsys’ custom design solution.
The qualified iPDK complements TPSCo’s advanced 65nm CIS process technologies and provides support for Synopsys’ comprehensive custom solution that includes; the Galaxy Custom Designer® schematic editor and simulation environment, Laker® layout editor, HSPICE®, CustomSim™ and FineSim® circuit simulators, IC Validator physical verification, and StarRC™ parasitic extraction solution.
TPSCo’s CIS technology meets the growing demand for optical sensors used in mobile, high-end photography, security, surveillance, medical and industrial applications. Extensive experience in the imaging field combined with in-house CIS technology development enables TPSCo to meet the market’s rigorous requirements for leading-edge performance, advanced features and reduced die size and price as well as supply sensors with best in-class performance, customized to product needs. TPSCo’s 65nm 1.12-micropixel (μm-pixel) CIS process possesses world leading figures of merit, and is already in mass production for mobile digital still camera (DSC) applications.
Synopsys provides a unified solution for cell-based and custom design. The solution delivers unmatched productivity with a common use model for simulation, analysis, parasitic extraction and physical verification. It is built on an open architecture supporting iPDKs from leading foundries.
“TowerJazz and Synopsys have been collaborating for many years to create and promote iPDKs to assist with the design and development of mutual customers’ innovative devices and we are pleased this partnership has been extended to TPSCo to meet the needs of our customers and address the increasing complexity of CMOS image sensor design,” said Tomoyuki Sasaki, CTO of TPSCo.
“The CMOS image sensor market is an ideal fit for Synopsys’ custom design solutions,” said Bijan Kiani, vice president of product marketing at Synopsys. “Through close collaboration with TowerJazz Panasonic Semiconductor Co. on iPDK development, we are able to expand our offering in the CIS market and ensure that our mutual customers have access to a qualified solution that provides increased custom design productivity.”