Cadence, ASE Group, and Chung Yuan Christian University Collaborate on Education and Training Program to Cultivate Talent for 3D-IC Design

The semiconductor industry is an important pillar of the overarching electronics ecosystem. The strength of Taiwan's semiconductor industry is world-renowned, with wafer manufacturing at the core, upstream IC design as a self-contained system, and downstream packaging and testing, providing the world's only complete, integrated upstream and downstream semiconductor industry ecosystem.

As the pace of technological advancement in the semiconductor front-end production process slows down and chip size reduction has limitations, the industry's attention has started to shift to packaging to sustain the semiconductor industry’s growth. Semiconductor companies are turning to system integration/packaging innovations such as heterogeneous integration and chiplet technology, system-in-package (SiP) designs instead of SoCs, 2.5D and 3D-IC packaging, fan-out packaging, and MEMS and sensor packaging, etc., as an important foundation for future semiconductor technology development.

Cadence has been developing design tools for advanced multi-chip package design since the early 1990s and continues to work with industry collaborators to develop new advanced packaging technologies. Cadence plays a key role in "Intelligent System Design" with a cross-domain, full-flow platform.

In addition to collaborating with other technology industry ecosystem leaders, Cadence collaborates with universities on system packaging education and talent development through the Cadence Academic Network program, which provides students with access to Cadence advanced IC packaging design and analysis software—the tools needed for semiconductor packaging design curriculums. Cadence has also collaborated in building a teaching environment that combines the Chung Yuan Christian University (CYCU) curriculum with ASE Group’s shared practical experience, which lets students from the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering (ISE) and other departments learn about Cadence packaging technologies that are prominently used in the workforce. Through the combination of academic theory and practical experience, students can gain a more comprehensive understanding of system packaging and testing challenges as well as its real-world application examples and solutions.

ASE Group is a leading provider of semiconductor packaging and test services in Taiwan, offering packaging, materials, and finished product testing services to semiconductor customers. Cadence is the only computational software company that offers solutions for IP, chips, packaging, and systems. Now in its third year of collaboration, the industry-academia cooperative education program between ASE Group, ISE CYCU, and Cadence has become one of Taiwan's most complete training programs for IC packaging and testing professionals. The training program is tied to interviewing skills and recruiting. More than 70 people have completed the training, and more than 20 outstanding students have been hired to join ASE Services.

Sam Hsu, deputy department manager of ASE Group ChungLi Branch, said," In order to cultivate more high-level R&D talent and develop advanced packaging process technologies, ASE Group actively cooperates with CYCU to attract more outstanding talent to join the industry through its curriculum. With Cadence providing advanced IC package design and analysis software, students can learn the key aspects of the design and implementation process for complex packages. This program provides a complete and scalable way to enhance Taiwan's advanced packaging research and development innovation and to gain a competitive edge in the industry."

Dr. Yung-Tsan Jou, chairman of the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, Chung Yuan Christian University, said, " The Department of ISE at CYCU is one of the first industrial engineering departments in Taiwan. Combining theory and practice, developing the operational skills required by the industry, and helping students achieve a seamless transition from the university to the workplace requires two-way communication and joint support from the industry and academia. Thanks to the continuous investments made by ASE Group and Cadence over the years, our program utilizes the best faculty, curriculum, and software tools to enable our students to stand on the shoulders of industry giants to see beyond the classroom and into the real world."

Brian Sung, country manager of Cadence Taiwan, said, "Cadence has been expanding its R&D team in Taiwan in recent years and actively exchanging and collaborating with academia through its Cadence Academic Network program. This three-way cooperation between Cadence, ASE Group, and Chung Yuan Christian University on advanced packaging is one of many efforts to strengthen system design, facilitate cross-disciplinary talent development and recruitment, and improve Taiwan's competitive edge in advanced technology development.”