Chip designs: myths, ideas and opportunities

This article attempts to overview the areas of specialization in which innovative analysis, modeling, and testing strategies for cost-effective and manufacturable integrated circuits can significantly impact electronic systems industries in both commercial and defense sectors. In addition to providing a research foundation for subsequent development, the article identifies several serious technological shortcomings. In the process of such identification, it at tempts to destroy a few myths that hamper the continuing development of chip-design technologies, particularly in the analog integrated circuits and systems arena. The views expressed herein are forged from research experiences and discussions with cognizant university colleagues, and engineering and research consulting problems encountered in local and national industries. They also reflect countless conversations with academic and industrial personnel who either enrolled in short courses or attended invited lectures offered in the United States and in other countries.