Monday, June 25, 2001		Article

Integrating career with integrated circuits
Sumesh Raizada

INTEGRATED circuit (IC) design industry is among those on which the efficient and effective working of any Information Technology application rests. The ICs are extremely important in the functioning of an electronic gadget and are therefore responsible for its success or failure to a large extent. The popular brands of television, computer monitor, CPU, printer, mobile telephone, DVD player, digital camera or even washing machine can attribute their success to electronic circuitry, which controls their trouble and maintenance-free operations.

It is extremely important for the designers of an electronic device to develop a particular IC chip or a microprocessor that is suitable for a pre-designated application and works efficiently for it. These ICs form the basis of electronic devices. Earlier, designers used to develop a standard chip and then utilised it for a generalised application. ASIC or Application Specific Integrated Circuits are those, which are designed for performing a specific pre-designated task. These ICs are complex in nature and perform integrated functions. With the popularity of the Internet and related applications, multifunctional ICs, which reduces the size of the end product and simultaneously increase their performance, are now coming up.

Due to fierce competition in the field of electronics, almost every day a new and improved version of a product is introduced in the market making the previous version redundant. This has considerably decreased the life cycle of a product especially in the area of computers, networking and telecommunications. Companies, in order to remain competitive, are nowadays spending heavily on product research and design. Hardware and telecom companies are increasing the product range to suit the varied requirement of their customers. ASICs are, therefore, helpful in reducing manufacturing time and development costs while increasing the product features.

India, with its vast pool of qualified workforce has become a centre for outsourcing the design and development activities of the multinational companies. Manufacturing companies from Europe and USA in the field of electronics, telecommunication and computer hardware are either setting up their subsidiary or entering into joint ventures with India. Others are outsourcing their requirement to Indian firms, which are engaged in design and development of ASIC. Most of these firms are located in and around Bangalore or Delhi.

Those going in for a career in ASIC design need to have background in electrical, computer or electronic engineering. Some companies also prefer postgraduate or doctorates in Physics. However a person needs to be patient and have a strong aptitude for research and continuous learning. Besides, they have to be aware of latest happenings and developments in their field. An ASIC design engineer needs to be innovative for he should be able to foresee the future requirements of the customer and then design the chip or circuits accordingly.

Those who are not interested in research and design can opt for a career in marketing of ASIC products. Engineering or computer hardware background is a must for these professionals. Added qualification of MBA or marketing management is desirable but not always essential. They are required to interact with the client companies in India and abroad, both technically and commercially. These professionals also work out the specific IC requirement depending upon the application of client’s product.

Some of the leading firms that are providing career opportunities for the ASIC design or marketing engineers are Bangalore-based Alliance Semiconductors, Analog Devices, Arcus Technology, CoreEl Logic Systems, IBM Global Services, Lucent Technologies, Philips Semiconductors, Sage Design Systems, Infineon Technologies, Texas Instruments (India), Wipro Ltd., Motorola India, etc. Some of the Delhi or Noida based firms are Artech Information Systems, Bi Square Consultants, DCM Data Systems, Centillium India Pvt. Ltd., HCL Technologies, TranSwitch (India) Pvt. Ltd. In Hyderabad, GE India has set up its advanced research and design centre and is offering lucrative career opportunities for ASIC design and other professionals.

Most of these firms are working in a specialised area and are developing IC chips for application in respective industries say consumer electronics, telecommunication or hardware. Design professionals interested in a career in these companies need to have related experience and skills.

Those opting for a career in Alliance Semiconductors must be aware of Analog CMOS design, VHDL/Verilog, etc.; Artech Information offers openings in the area of communication; Chennai based ATI research is working in graphics, video and multimedia chips; Pune-based Bitmapper Integration Technologies employ professionals having proficiency in CAD, VLSI, etc;. Centillium India absorbs ASIC design engineers for developing chips related to VOIP, DSL, etc. Cisco Systems specialise in networking and telephony and offers career opportunities in ASIC design, verification.

Future Techno Designs, a Bangalore based firm is developing ICs for application in telecom and consumer electronics. Those desirous of working in this firm must be aware of coding and verification, Verilog and VHDL, etc. GE India design centre is working on transport and consumer electronic products. Bangalore-based Lara Network is developing chips for Networking and Switching equipment. Motorola India’s VLSI design centre at Gurgaon offers career openings for professionals in Architecture, Physical design, VHDL/ Verilog, etc. Infineon Technologies is in the field of CAD tools and physical design, while Texas Instrument (India) is working in the area of DSP and Wireless equipment.

ASIC industry provides career openings for application engineers, ASIC designers, and system engineers. Previous exposure to ASIC design, synthesis, PCB design, IC validation, etc. while joining some of the leading multinationals, is a must to get better packages. However, some companies prefer fresh engineers and provide them training according to the company’s requirement.

These engineers are trained on VLSI design, peripherals, Web-enabled devices, modelling, system-level simulation and testing. Design engineers take up customer specific projects and develop as well as test the ASIC solutions for them. These professionals also help the client companies in development of their new products as well as re-designing or re-engineering of existing products.

Engineers working in ASIC design are responsible for developing methodologies, verification, technology translation and library development. Firms like Spike Technologies provide consulting services to its clients on engineering projects related to ASIC. They also help in providing test services like memory test verification, full or partial scan implementation, etc. A person working in ASIC-related projects should possess good communication and leadership skills.

ASIC market has become highly competitive, as large numbers of companies have entered the consumer and industrial electronics market globally. Design time, cost and quality are extremely critical for any project. The task of the ASIC designers is very challenging, as they are required to work in allocated time and cost schedule, most of the time. The job requires core engineering and R&D skills and a person having aptitude and interest in it can definitely succeed.

The earnings are no limits for these professionals. Those with a couple of years of experience can easily command package of Rs 3 to 4 lakhs per annum. However the same gets increased several fold if these professionals work in the USA or other European countries.