With a portfolio comprising more than 3000 main product
types, STMicroelectronics produces one of the industry’s
broadest ranges of semiconductor products, from discrete
diodes and transistors through complex System-on-Chip (SoC)
devices to complete platform solutions that bundle chips
with reference designs, application software, and manufacturing
tools and specifications. With particular strengths in digital
multimedia convergence and power applications, the Company
is a major supplier to every industry segment, thanks to
its broad range of leading-edge technologies, a rich pool
of Intellectual Property (IP) resources and a world-class
manufacturing machine.
Semiconductor products can be broadly divided into two
classes: application-specific and multi-segment products.
Application-specific products incorporate a significant
amount of proprietary IP - from the semiconductor manufacturer,
the customer, third parties or any combination of these
- that distinguishes them from other products on the market.
Examples include:
- System-on-Chip (SoC) and System-in-Package (SiP) products
- Custom and semi-custom circuits
- Application-specific standard products (ASSPs) such
as wireless application processors, set-top-box chips,
and automotive ICs
- Microcontrollers
- Secure ICs
- Application Specific Discretes (ASD™).
Once a customer has designed an application-specific product
into an application, it is not usually possible to switch
to a competitive product without some degree of hardware
or software redesign.
In contrast, multi-segment products are devices that perform
specific and widely required functions, which are usually
available from several competing suppliers. Generally, a
multi-segment product from one manufacturer can be replaced
with an equivalent product from another source and the difference
between suppliers tends to be measured primarily in terms
of cost and customer service. Once the application design
is frozen, however, a multi-segment device can become unique,
too, in terms of optimization for maximum performance.
Examples of multi-segment products include:
- Discrete devices such as transistors, diodes, and thyristors
- Power transistors such as MOSFETs, bipolars, and IGBTs
- Analog circuit building blocks such as op amps, comparators,
voltage regulators and references
- Standard logic functions and interfaces
- Stand-alone memory products such as EPROM and EEPROM
- RF discretes and ICs.
Since its formation, ST has succeeded in balancing its
market exposure, combining differentiated application-specific
products, which are generally less vulnerable to market
cycles, with conventional multi-segment products, which
require less R&D effort and manufacturing capital intensity.
ST’s diversified product portfolio avoids both an
excessively generic approach and an over-dependence on specific
applications.
Application-Specific Products
System-on-Chip and System-in-Package Devices
At the most complex end of the application-specific product
spectrum are the SoC and SiP devices that integrate a complete
system on a single chip or in a multi-chip package. In many
cases, this means the integration of the entire application
i.e. the resulting device incorporates all of the electronic
circuitry apart from components such as displays that are
not amenable to integration. However, integrating the entire
system on one chip is not always the most economic solution
so the term SoC is also used to refer to chips that integrate
a large part of the system.
SoC technology exploits the semiconductor industry’s
ability to continually increase the number of transistors
that can be integrated in a given silicon area, but it also
involves many other factors, including systems knowledge,
software expertise, architectural innovation, and design,
validation, debug and test methodologies. With the increasing
pervasiveness of semiconductor content in electronic devices
and its critical impact on the equipment’s performance,
price, and development time, equipment manufacturers increasingly
rely on semiconductor suppliers to provide complete platform
solutions. Today’s platform offerings complement silicon
devices with customizable reference designs and full software
packages, from low-level drivers and embedded operating
systems up to middleware and application software.
Many SoC products can be built using pure CMOS technology
but a full SoC capability demands the ability to combine
basic functional technologies such as CMOS, bipolar, non-volatile
memory, power DMOS, and Micro-Electro-Mechanical System
(MEMS) into system-oriented technologies that combine two
or more of these basic technologies. For many years ST has
been a world leader in developing and deploying these system-oriented
technologies.
SoC devices invariably incorporate one or more processor
cores and ST offers its customers one of the world’s
most impressive ranges of cores, including the 32-bit high-performance
ARM- and PowerPC-based products, primarily used in wireless
and automotive applications, as well as its Nomadik family
of multimedia application processors. ST has an open approach
to core technology, with the aim of offering its customers
the most appropriate core, whether this is proprietary,
jointly developed, or licensed from a third party.
Custom and Semi-Custom Chips
Custom and Semi-Custom ICs are designed and manufactured
for one particular customer but they differ in their design
and manufacturing methodologies. In a Semi-Custom chip,
the starting point is a generic chip containing an array
of circuit elements that can be interconnected in various
ways to perform desired functions, whereas a Custom chip
is designed from scratch. Some customers prefer to design
their own chips (especially when the chip incorporates valuable
IP) and contract the manufacturing to a chip manufacturer
based on criteria such as cost, capacity allocation, and
previous business relationships. Others prefer to contract
the design as well as the manufacturing to the chip supplier
and, of course, there is an entire spectrum of intermediate
relationships.
ST offers a full range of Custom and Semi-Custom services
that leverage its world-class manufacturing machine, its
unrivaled array of semiconductor process technologies, the
depth and breadth of its IP portfolio, and its state-of-the-art
design methodologies. Among the many successful case histories
are the complex chips that power large-scale projects such
as digital satellite radio services in the US as well as
state-of-the-art solutions provided for strategic partners
in every segment of the electronics industry.
Application-Specific Standard Products (ASSPs)
An ASSP (application-specific standard product)
is an integrated circuit that is designed for use in a specific
application. Examples include, digital set-top box chips,
CMOS imaging ICs, motor control circuits and wireless application
processors. Unlike a custom IC, which is designed for a
specific application of a single customer, an ASSP is designed
for a specific application common to many customers. Many
ASSPs are developed in close cooperation with particular
customers, even though the resulting device may be offered
on the open market. By working with customers in this way,
ST is able to ensure that the products and technologies
it develops closely match evolving industry needs.
ST’s product portfolio includes many types of ASSPs
optimized for applications in the key growth segments of
Wireless Terminals and Infrastructure, Digital Consumer,
Computer Peripherals, Automotive and Industrial. The Company
enables its customers to develop and differentiate their
products quickly and cost-effectively by supplying its chipsets
together with complete reference platforms, proven software
packages, and development kits. This approach has enabled
ST to become a world leader in key applications such as
wireless communications and Set-Top Boxes.
ST‘s ASSPs address a broad spectrum of Telecommunications
applications, from mobile imaging and multimedia processing
to power management and handset and network connectivity.
The Company provides components for a wide array of Digital
Consumer applications, with a particular focus on set-top
boxes, digital TVs and digital audio, including radio.
In the arena of Computer Peripherals, ST focuses mainly
on data storage, printing, visual display units, power management
for PC motherboards, and power supplies. A wide range of
ST’s ASSPs power/digital sophisticated Automotive
systems such as engine control, vehicle safety equipment,
door modules, and in-car infotainment The Company also supplies
Industrial ICs for factory automation systems, chips for
lighting and battery chargers, or power supply devices,
as well as chips for advanced Secure Access applications.
Secure ICs
ST offers a complete range of secure microcontrollers and
memory for smartcards and trusted product application segments,
together with a broad portfolio of efficient, interoperable
System-on-Chip (SoC) solutions. Our products are used in
every kind of smart card applications, from the simplest
phone cards to the most demanding SIM and Pay-TV cards.
Security has always been a special area of expertise for
ST, evidenced with a long list of formal security certifications,
standardization body memberships, and successful deployments
of ST’s Secure IC products in many segments, including
Banking, IT Security, e-Government, Public Transport, and
Mobile Communications.
Application Specific Discretes (ASD™)
ASD products are based on vertical and horizontal bipolar
structures implemented on the top and bottom sides of the
silicon wafer substrate. The ASD™ technology has allowed
ST to bring to the market numerous products which can handle
high bidirectional currents, sustain high voltages, or integrate
various discrete elements in a single chip. ASD technology
is ideal for general-purpose protection components, ESD
protection devices, EMI filters, and AC switches with built-in
over-voltage protection. With its recent process upgrade,
ASD technology allows the integration, in a single chip,
of multiple discrete components and passive elements, such
as resistors, capacitors, or inductors, which gave birth
to the IPAD (Integrated Passive and Active Devices) family.
The main application fields for ASD are wireless and fixed
line communications, appliances, PCs, and peripherals.
In-Check “Lab-on-Chip”
ST’s In-Check “lab-on-chip” platform provides
integrated genetic analysis at a fraction of the time, cost,
and complexity of conventional diagnostic systems. The micro-electro-mechanical
solution in a disposable cartridge amplifies tiny DNA samples
by precisely controlled heating and cooling cycles and runs
biological protocols that evaluate the analyzed substance.
ST’s In-Check lab-on-chip opens up new possibilities
for real-time and affordable analysis of complex biological
substances at the point of need. The first application,
developed with Veredus Laboratories for the detection of
all major influenza types including the deadly avian influenza
H5N1 is currently undergoing clinical trials.
Multi-Segment Products
Memories
ST’s non-volatile memory portfolio comprises EPROM
(Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), EEPROM (Electrically
Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), non-volatile RAM
(Random Access Memory) and a wide array of RFID ICs. As
with all standard devices, cost and customer service are
the differentiating factors and ST is fully geared to optimizing
these attributes.
Microcontrollers
ST’s microcontroller offering suits every kind of
application, from those where minimum cost is the primary
requirement to those that need powerful real-time performance
and high-level language support. The comprehensive portfolio
comprises robust 8-bit general-purpose Flash microcontrollers
with standard communication interfaces like USB, CAN, LIN,
UART, I²C, and SPI; application-specific 8-bit microcontrollers
for applications including brushless motor control, low-noise
block converters (LNB), Smart Card readers, USB Flash drives
and Programmable System Memories (PSM), which integrate
memory functions with a microcontroller and logic on a single
chip; 16-bit industry-standard devices and high-performance
32-bit ARM-based Flash microcontrollers with excellent low-power
characteristics and advanced connectivity including Ethernet,
USB, and CAN.
ST’s dedicated microcontroller solutions help accelerate
the development of emerging low-data-rate wireless networks,
such as Real-Time Location Systems (RTLS) and Zigbee platforms
for remote monitoring and control applications.
Smart Power Devices
ST’s smart power devices meet an ever-increasing demand
for solutions integrating signal processing parts (analog
and/or digital) and power actuators. This design capability
offers not only economic advantages but also improvements
in terms of reliability, electromagnetic performance, and
space and weight reduction. Smart power is a generic term
that covers a variety of technologies, lateral as well as
vertical, which play important roles to play especially
in the automotive market.
VIPower is a family of proprietary ST technologies in which
discrete power structure are integrated with analog and
digital control and diagnostic circuitry, resulting in a
device that combines the robustness of discrete technology
with integrated control and diagnostic circuitry. ST’s
BCD (Bipolar-CMOS-DMOS) manufacturing technology combines
bipolar, CMOS and DMOS processes, allowing to integrate
more and more system-basis functions, such as voltage regulators,
communication interfaces, as well as multiple-load drivers
in a single device.
Standard Linear and Logic
ST Standard Linear and Logic ICs consist of a broad range
of well-known standard devices, as well as many innovative
application-specific devices, targeting highly integrated,
space-limited applications. The product range includes logic
functions, interfaces, operational amplifiers, comparators,
low-power audio amplifiers, communication circuits (high-speed
analog, infrared, and RF), power-management devices, voltage
regulators and references, microprocessor resets and supervisors,
analog and digital switches, power switches, VFD drivers,
and High Bright LED drivers.
Discretes
ST is one of the world's leading suppliers of discrete power
devices, with a product range that encompasses MOSFETs (including
the innovative MDmeshTM second-generation devices), bipolar
transistors, IGBTs, Schottky and ultrafast bipolar diodes,
triacs, and protection devices. In addition, ST offers a
wide range of power modules where multiple power devices
such as Schottky diodes, power MOSFETs or IGBTs are assembled
in a single package for optimized thermal and reliability
performance.
Protection Devices
ST is a long-time world leader in Transient Voltage Suppressors
and offers a wide range of solutions, from discrete clamping
(TRANSIL™) and crowbar diodes (TRISIL™), to
ESD data line protection arrays and protection ICs for telecom
circuits.
Sensors
ST is a world leader in MEMS (Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems)
sensors that are able to detect and measure vibration, acceleration,
displacement, rotation and inclination and also offers a
range of precision analog and digital temperature sensors
that feature lower power consumption and some unique packaging
options. ST also offers highly efficient and flexible touch
sensor devices based on capacitive and resistive touch technology
to target the growing demand for innovative user interfaces
while reducing system cost and increasing reliability.
RF
ST’s RF portfolio includes power RF transistors used
in applications such as ISM (Industrial Scientific &
Medical), cellular base stations, and two-way portable and
mobile radios.
Real-time Clocks
ST offers a complete family of low-power real-time clocks
(RTC), ranging from entry-level products to high-end RTCs
with microprocessor supervisory functions, SRAM, non-volatile
features, and high-level data protection through tamper
detect pins. Embedded software calibration permits an accuracy
of two seconds per month.
December 2007
|
