Integrated circuit design engineers are engaged in integrated circuit development. Integrated circuit development and design profession. With the IC design industry in China getting better and better, more and more engineers are joining this emerging industry. The threshold for becoming an integrated circuit design engineer is high, and it is often necessary to have good experience in digital circuit system and embedded system design. Knowing that ARM(Advanced RISC Machines) is a microprocessor architecture, good digital signal processing, audio and video processing, image processing and certain VLSIVLSI are the abbreviation foundation of VLSI.

I. Career prospects of IC design engineers:

Ic design engineers are not getting worse as they get older, but becoming more and more popular with the development of high technology. Integrated circuit is one of the core technologies of information industry and the key to realize the strategic goal of making China's information industry bigger and stronger. The recently released Outline of the National Medium-and Long-Term Scientific and Technological Development Plan and the Outline of the Eleventh Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development attach great importance to the development of integrated circuit technology and industry, so integrated circuit design engineers have a bright future.

The global demand for semiconductor chips is growing rapidly, and China is also joining the supply ranks. For China, chip production is not only a way to create profits, but also a shortcut to enter the high-tech economy. Today, 80% of semiconductors in Chinese mainland are imported, but the company is trying to develop and produce chips that can compete in the world. As a latecomer in this industry, China has to go through a long period of catching up. But in China's IT industry, no one will doubt the future growth rate of the chip industry. Encouraged by "China will not be a country without a core", people are full of longing for the future. China is expected to become the chip production center in Asia within 10 due to its proximity to the noisy OEM market and its highly skilled and cheap labor.

Second, if ic designers want to have high-level design, it is a necessary process to accumulate experience, which will improve the efficiency of experience accumulation. Please note the following points:

1, learn from some classic designs, many of which must be paid attention to when your design becomes a product. Some may adapt to the change of process parameters, some may speed up the switching process, and some may ensure the stability of the system. It is both beneficial and interesting to observe these details carefully by visiting the truth. Frequent communication between project teams, especially among project team members, can avoid making the same mistakes.

2. When you initially complete a design, you should do several checks: understand the changes of process and device model parameters of chip manufacturers, and determine the scope of parameter scanning simulation accordingly. Understand the actual use environment of the designed product, and correctly set the input conditions and load model of the system simulation. Strict implementation of design rules and processes also helps to reduce design errors.

3. In addition, you need knowledge exchange, attach importance to communication with front-end or system, and deeply understand design constraints. As a beginner, I often don't know much about the system. In addition to understanding my design task specifications through design documents and meeting exchanges, communication with the system and front-end is also essential for IC design. The so-called design skills are all based on understanding constraints. System or front-end design engineers can often give novices a lot of guidance.

This is a good way to consult the literature. Excellent electronic websites, such as China Electronic Market Network, China Power Grid and Electronic Engineer Community. This will be of great help to your improvement. In addition, it is faster to accumulate project experience in cooperation with the "old master". If you have the opportunity to participate in the training of some people with good design background, it is best to be interactive and have better results.

5. Pay attention to the communication with the back end and processing line: IC design is too complicated. In addition to establishing concepts with the help of EDA tool manufacturers, IC designers should also actively communicate and learn from the upstream and downstream of the design process, such as engineers and process engineers who provide back-end design services or processing services. For beginners, the back-end processor can often bring them some classic basic concepts, some mistakes that can't be made and other basic precepts. Some good back-end service companies can not only provide very strict design packages (design packages), but also give very useful mixed-signal design guidance to help beginners get off to a good start. Process knowledge is very important for the productization of integrated circuit design.

6. Pay attention to verification and testing, and be a "paranoid": the risk of IC design is greater than that of board-level electronic design, so the opportunity for testing is very precious. The spirit of "paranoia" is critical to the success of IC design. Besides relying on the company's mature design environment, design suite (design package) and system specifications to ensure success, the importance of verification and a deep understanding of verification are the key parts for an IC designer to withstand pressure and enjoy success. Because there are relatively few opportunities to slip, it is the only way for an IC designer to find more opportunities to participate in and understand the test and carefully summarize and analyze the success or failure of the product.