The Tessenderlo, Belgium-based X-FAB Silicon Foundries SE, an analog/mixed-signal and specialty foundry, has announced significant updates to its XP018 high-voltage CMOS semiconductor fabrication platform.
Among the recent enhancements are the additions of new 40V and 60V high-voltage primitive devices, offering an extended Safe Operating Area (SOA) for improved operational robustness. These next-generation devices exhibit up to a 50% reduction in RDSon figures compared to their antecedent models, making them well-suited for applications where reduced footprints and minimized per-unit costs are essential.
The X-FAB XP018 platform is a modular 180nm high-voltage EPI technology solution based on a low mask count 5V single-gate core module. It supports an extended operating temperature range of -40 to 175°C. It offers a wide range of optional devices and modules, including high-gain bipolar devices, standard and high-capacitance MIM capacitors, multi-threshold (Vt) options, Schottky diodes, and depletion devices. The platform is further backed by high-reliability automotive NVM solutions, such as embedded Flash, EEPROM, and OTP. This makes it an ideal technology solution for cost-sensitive and robust automotive, industrial, and medical-grade applications.
In addition to the new 40V and 60V devices, the XP018 platform now includes 5.3V Zener diodes. These low-leakage Zener diodes are designed to protect the gate oxide in critical applications, such as Wide Bandgap gate driver applications. The XP018 platform has been enhanced with isolated drain high-voltage devices up to 24V and a new 1.8V medium Vt option.
Noted X-FAB Product Manager for High-Voltage, Tilman Metzger, “With this update of our XP018 platform, we are demonstrating X-FAB’s commitment to enhancing established technologies. XP018 has been in production for more than a decade and continues to see widespread adoption for new designs in our focus market segments: automotive, industrial, and medical. The new competitive high-voltage devices and updates will enable our customers to implement more innovative and cost-effective products. Designers utilizing the new XP018 primitive devices have access to comprehensive PDK support across major EDA platforms like Cadence, Siemens EDA, and Synopsys, ensuring seamless integration and optimization for a range of applications.”
A new medium Vt standard cell library is anticipated to be available in third quarter 2024. For more details on the X-FAB XP018 platform, please click here.
About X-FAB
X-FAB is a leading analog/mixed-signal and MEMS foundry group manufacturing silicon wafers for automotive, industrial, consumer, medical, and other applications. Its customers worldwide benefit from the highest quality standards, manufacturing excellence and innovative solutions by using X-FAB’s modular CMOS and SOI processes in geometries ranging from 1.0 µm to 110 nm, and its special silicon carbide and MEMS long-lifetime processes. X-FAB’s analog-digital integrated circuits (mixed-signal ICs), sensors and micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) are manufactured at six production facilities in Germany, France, Malaysia and the U.S. X-FAB employs approx. 4,500 employees worldwide.
