MonolithIC 3D Inc. Releases Open-Source Simulator for 2D and 3D-ICs

SAN JOSE, Calif., June 07, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- MonolithIC 3D Inc., the leading innovator in monolithic 3D-IC technology, has developed and released a simulator for 2D and 3D-ICs. The simulator, called IntSim v2.0 (beta), is available at www.monolithic3d.com, the company's website.

Zvi Or-Bach, President and CEO of MonolithIC 3D, said, "We are delighted to release IntSim v2.0 for users to evaluate 2D and 3D implementation alternatives and understand and optimize monolithic 3D chips. We've made the software open-source so it can be continually developed and improved over time by a community of users interested in 3D-IC technology."

IntSim v2.0 was developed by Dr. Deepak Sekar, Chief Scientist at MonolithIC 3D, Inc. It can be used for predicting chip power, die size, number of metal levels and optimal sizes of metal levels based on various technology and design parameters. Users can also study scaling trends, and use IntSim to optimize their chip designs. The first version of IntSim, IntSim v1.0, was a MATLAB-based simulator focused on conventional two-dimensional integrated circuits. It was developed by Dr. Sekar in 2007 during his Ph.D. studies with Prof. James Meindl at Georgia Tech. With IntSim v2.0, support for monolithic 3D technology has been added. IntSim v2.0 is written in JAVA and runs as an app on Windows, Mac OS X and UNIX.

Dr. Sudhakar Yalamanchili, a Joseph M. Pettit Chair Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology noted, "We found IntSim v1.0 to be a simple to use and uniquely powerful modeling tool for understanding and responding to the impact of technology on multi-core architecture design. We have integrated it into our baseline many-core modeling and simulation environment and are excited to see its evolution to support 3D-ICs."

"IntSim v2.0 is as simple to use as a smart phone app, and gives insight into how a 2D-IC or 3D-IC works. We hope our users will have fun with it," Dr. Sekar said. "A number of researchers have used IntSim v1.0 over the past 3 years. We hope they will adopt IntSim v2.0 as well, and that we will further increase our user base."

MonolithIC 3D, Inc., is an IP company dedicated to innovation in semiconductor design and fabrication. The company's patented technologies offer chipmakers an economical, practical way to create monolithically integrated three-dimensional circuits. The company's concepts have the potential to maintain or increase device speed and lower power requirements for a given node, while avoiding the need for continuous (and very costly) dimensional scaling that has been the basis for "Moore's Law." More information about the company, including detailed technical information, can be found at www.monolithic3D.com.

SOURCE MonolithIC 3D Inc.