An online platform for semiconductor simulations, software, collaboration and workforce development is now accessible. Chipshub is the result of a collaboration between the state of Indiana, Purdue University, the U.S. Department of Defense and Imec.
This array of design and engineering tools is an offshoot of Purdue University’s nanoHUB, one of the first web portals to provide cloud access to scientific simulation aids serving more than 20,000 simulation users annually. The nanoHUB system enables online simulation and data for the nanotechnology and nanoscience community through an end-to-end cloud computing environment that hosts resources for research, collaboration, teaching, learning and publishing. More than one million visitors across 172 countries access this resource annually.
Chipshub offers an expanding list of chip design tools; immersive learning apps for coursework in subjects like semiconductor device fundamentals, technology computer-aided design (TCAD) simulation and quantum mechanics for engineers. Hands-on learning and a virtual reality fab, open courseware and free textbooks are also available. The hub hosts commercial tools from Silvaco (TCAD and electronic design automation software), Thermo-Calc (computational thermodynamics for materials), Schrodinger’s AutoQSAR (machine learning) and the MATLAB programming language and numeric computing environment.
The U.S. university community can now tap into commercial electronic design automation tools from Cadence, Synopsys and Siemens. Student designers will be able to optimize and test chips as the Chipshub infrastructure will foster actual chip manufacture through partnerships with private-sector fabs.
