Semiwise today announced the exciting advanced stage of development of a Virtual Reality Semiconductor Fabrication Training Facility (VRSFT). Funded by a £500,000 Innovate UK grant, the project is being delivered in partnership with TechWorks National Microelectronics Institute (NMI), with consultative support from Pragmatic Semiconductor Ltd, and seeks to address the high costs and resource demands of training in advanced semiconductor fabrication. By leveraging virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (XR), the project provides an immersive VR model of a modern fabrication facility, allowing trainees to interact with realistic representations of fabrication equipment and to learn about semiconductor manufacturing.

The project addresses the acute training needs of the semiconductor industry fuelled by the US and EU Chips Acts, the UK’s Semiconductor Programme and similar investments all over the world.  By 2030 more than 1M new semiconductor experts will be needed to enable the growth of the semiconductor industry and the Implementation of the US and EU Chips Acts.

Building a traditional silicon semiconductor fabrication facility can cost between $10 billion to $30 billion. A single deep EUV stepper costs around $350 million, similar to the cost of Airbus A380. With VR FAB training scheme, the training costs will be greatly reduced by replacing the real expensive fab with much chipper VR model.

The project utilizes Unity software to create an immersive experience of the clean room. For the actual fabrication process we use Technology Computer-Aided Design (TCAD) tools provided by Synopsys.

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The virtual Training Fab will be a product rather like a computer game. It will include a full set of equipment allowing advanced CMOS manufacturing. Generic as well as equipment manufactures specific equipment will be included. Flexible clean room layout will allow users to configure their own cleanroom, with multiple choices of equipment to build a virtual fab which meets their exact needs.

Quotes:

Asen Asenov, CEO of Semiwise said “VRSFT will revolutionise the training of much needed experts for the rapidly growing semiconductor industry fuelled by the US and Eu Chips act and investments all over the world. Opposite to the typical ‘walk true a clean room’ educational videos it has deep educational content at equipment, product fabrication, working practices and behaviour levels. It is enhanced by the use of Synopsys TCAD tools showing the outcome of each stage of the semiconductor fabrication process”

Charles Sturman, CEO of industry body TechWorks said “Semiconductor technology is a key economic enabler for any country and here in the UK we have numerous small to medium sized  specialist chip companies all looking to expand their operations. VRSFT will enable these companies to train staff efficiently at any time, without operational disruption and at low cost. TechWorks is excited to be supporting this activity through our NMI Network.”

Richard Price, Co-Founder & CTO of Pragmatic Semiconductor said “Building a solid pipeline of skills and talent is essential for the successful future of the Semiconductor industry. I, and the team at Pragmatic, are fully committed to playing our part in broadening awareness of electronics and STEM, in general, alongside providing practical support of semiconductor technology development and learning, such as VRSFT. This also underscores the opportunity we have in the UK to play a globally leading role in advanced materials and manufacturing. We are proud to be pioneering flexible semiconductor technology empowering sustainable innovations.”

About Semiwise:

SemiWise ( https://www.semiconductorwise.com/) develops innovative low-power CMOS transistor-level IP that improves performance and variability, and drastically reduces power consumption. SemiWise also offers simulation services and consulting to the semiconductor industry including fables, IEDM and foundry players. The CEO of Semiwise, Professor Asenov was the founder of Gold Standard Simulations (GSS), a 2010 startup from the University of Glasgow which developed the first TCAD based Design- Technology Co Optimisation (DTCO) tool chain. After the acquisition of GSS by Synopsys in 2016 the TCAD-to-Spice technology originally developed by GSS is now part of the Synopsys TCAD offering in the so called TCAD-to-Spice flow and continues to be developed by the Synopsys R&D division in Glasgow: https://www.synopsys.com/silicon/tcad.html/.

About NMI:

The National Microelectronics Institute (NMI) in the UK is a leading trade association and industry organisation that plays a pivotal role in advancing the microelectronics sector. With a strong focus on innovation, collaboration, and advocacy, NMI brings together a diverse community of businesses, researchers, and professionals in the fields of microelectronics, semiconductor design, and electronics manufacturing. Through its extensive network and initiatives, NMI supports the growth and competitiveness of the UK's electronics industry, fostering technological advancements and driving economic impact across a wide range of sectors, from healthcare to automotive and beyond: https://nmi.org.uk/.

About Pragmatic Semiconductor:

Pragmatic Semiconductor is pioneering flexible semiconductor technology at scale to sustainably bridge our digital and physical worlds. With optimised, purpose-led design and sustainable innovation at our core, we design and manufacture flexible integrated circuits (FlexICs) – ultra-thin, flexible form factor semiconductors. Our branded Pragmatic products, FlexIC platforms and custom design services empower customers to deliver flexible innovation with connect, sense and compute capabilities, enabling sustainable edge and item-level intelligence at scale and speed. Our Pragmatic FlexIC Foundry operates a unique and innovative process offering sustainable production and rapid innovation cycle times, coupled with a pathway to supply chain resilience.

Pragmatic Communications: PR@pragmaticsemi.com

For further information please contact:

Prof Asen Asenov: mobile: 07532 293 782, e-mail: Email Contact
German Cherstvov: mobile: 07488 525 579, e-mail: Email Contact