Decades of Experience

i >350 fully custom ICs

b Over 30 years of experience

jOver 15 different silicon foundries

cProcess experience ranging 60nm-1.2um

pInfrared camera development

fTest system development

BFE's design cycle from initial request to finished application solution
 

kApplications

  • IR detectors / preamplifiers / multiplexers
  • LIDAR detectors & readout
  • Laser drivers
  • Photonic counting circuits
  • Micro-power A/D and D/A converters
    • Column parallel to 16-bit resolution (voltage- or time-to-digital)
    • In-pixel ADC to 18-bit resolution
    • Sigma-delta to 20-bit resolution for linear array
  • X-ray and high energy particle detectors and interface chips
  • Radiation hard versions of above
  • Image sensors (CMOS and CCD)
  • Image processors
  • Integrated liquid crystal drivers

bChip Size Extremes

  • 300um diameter die size imagers for medical applications
  • 17×19 mm2 display driver for projection displays
  • 51×25 mm2 visible/scintillator x-ray sensor (using stitching)

gDesign Types &
Special Features

  • 2Ghz analog bandwidth CMOS for LiDAR range sensing
  • TDC (LiDAR)
  • Single photon detection
  • APD Heterodyne/Geiger/Linear
  • 22V CMOS devices
  • TDI (Analog / Digital)
  • Display / Spatial Light Modulator / LCOS
  • Far infrared & high energy particle readout processors
    • NIR, SWIR, MWIR, LWIR
    • Gamma, X-Ray
    • Visible, Low Light

hNon-Standard processes &
Detector Types

Unique & cutting edge applications often require specific technologies

  • IR Detectors – InGaAs, QWIP, HgCdTe, SLS, PbSe, a-Si
  • Bolometer
  • Thermopile – Micrel
  •  PiN detector – Micron Semiconductor Ltd.
  •  Rad-hard CMOS – Honeywell 0.8 SOI
  •  CCD – Supertex 1.2um

jFoundry Experience

  • TSMC 0.13um, 0.18um, 0.25um, 0.35um (includes their BCD [Bipolar, CMOS, DMOS] Power management technology)
  • Tower/Jazz/TPSCo  65nm, 0.13um, 0.18um, 0.25um, 0.35um,  and BiCMOS (Stitching, ITAR Compliant)
    • Design Cycle Partner with TowerSemi
  • IBM (corp. site) 0.13um (ITAR Compliant)
  • Austria MicroSystems 0.35um
  • Others include: AMIS (0.5um, 1.2um), CSMC (0.6um), Fujitsu (0.25um), HP (0.35um, 0.5um), Amkor (0.35um, 0.5um), Texas Instruments (0.8um, 1um), UMC (0.4um (5V))

jMask Types

  • Full Mask Sets
  • Stitching: Enables fabrication of large dice.  A repeated exposure masking process that has its own complexities yield considerations.
  • MPW: In addition to foundry specific multi-project wafer  runs we have worked with MOSIS • Global Unichip • EUROPRACTICE.

hProcess Types & Materials

  • CMOS
  • CMOS/CCD
  • Bi-CMOS
  • BCD (Bipolar, CMOS, DMOS)
  • CMOS-SOS

dDevice Protocols/Interfaces

  • SERDES
  • USB
  • SPI
  • LVDS

fCustom Test Systems

Performance built for your specific requirements.

  • Wafer probing
  • Testing at cryogenic temperatures
  • PCB designs and interfaces using FPGA, CPLD and a variety of other components
  • Solutions for system interface problems:
    • High density interconnect
    • Non-standard packaging
    • Optics