Mentor Graphics Corporation has introduced the FloTHERM IC productivity tool targeting the semiconductor industry for thermal characterization and design. Addressing increased complexity, chip density, and high-speed requirements for modern silicon designs, the FloTHERM IC solution is deployed as a web-based platform that helps automate the design tasks associated with full-spectrum thermal characterization and validation. According to the company, the FloTHERM IC tool reduces the time spent on thermal characterization and design by providing an automated process that includes pre-verified thermal models to reduce the risk of modeling errors. The tool can also achieve reductions of up to 25 percent in the time usually needed for customer-specific characterizations, according to Mentor Graphics. The FloTHERM IC tool is based on FloTHERM computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software, used to simulate airflow, temperature and heat transfer in electronic systems, and the FloTHERM PACK Smart Parts modeling tool. This new solution addresses the following areas of a semiconductor package thermal characterization and design: - Full-spectrum thermal metric and compact model generation with adherence to published JEDEC standards.
- “Package-aware” parametric design for “what-if” analysis.
- EDA tool interfacing for modeling of BGA substrates for physical layout.
- Data mining of simulation data to enable optimized design time and reuse.
The product’s wizard-based user interface is designed for both the core thermal team and field engineers. Supported a library and database infrastructure, the software enables a range of JEDEC thermal metrics and compact models to be generated. For more information, visit the Mentor Graphics FloTHERM IC page. Sources: Press materials received from the company and additional information gleaned from the company's website.
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