When people think of semiconductor companies, they often picture vast factories filled with billion-dollar equipment. But Weebit Nano operates in a very different way.

If you’ve read our blog before, then you know that we develop Resistive RAM (ReRAM / RRAM), an advanced non-volatile memory (NVM) technology designed for a new era of AI-powered edge devices, automotive electronics, and other demanding applications. But rather than manufacturing the chips ourselves, we license our technology to companies that integrate it into their own semiconductor products.

This approach is known as semiconductor intellectual property (IP) licensing model, a model that is well established among global semiconductor leaders such as Arm and Ceva. If you don’t know about this model, it’s worth understanding why this model is so compelling.

Asset-light, high-margin, and scalable

Traditional chip manufacturing requires enormous capital investment in fabrication plants (“fabs”) and equipment. Advanced fabs today cost tens of billions of dollars to set up. In contrast, an IP licensing company like Weebit focuses on developing and perfecting its technology. It then licenses it to customers who either have their own manufacturing capabilities or use foundries to outsource manufacturing of their designs.

Weebit provides two types of licenses: manufacturing and design. A manufacturing license gives a fab the right to manufacture devices which include our technology, and a design license allows a product company to embed our technology into their chip.

In the case of a manufacturing license, the customer will also pay a Non-Recurring Engineering (NRE) fee to cover the cost of the technology transfer and qualification. In the case of a design license, the customer might ask for some modifications to the memory module, in which case they will pay NRE fees on top of the design license fees. Once their chips go into mass production, Weebit will receive a royalty payment for every chip sold that uses our technology.

Above: The IP business model can look slightly different, depending on the type of
company we are licensing to (e.g., a foundry, IDM, or product company).

Because we don’t need to build factories or maintain inventory, our operating costs are relatively low, and our gross margins can be very high. Looking at comparable IP businesses, such margins can often exceed 90%. This means that once royalty streams begin, revenues can scale quickly without a corresponding rise in expenses.

Long-term, sticky revenues

Another strength of the IP licensing model is its staying power. Once our technology is embedded in a customer’s chip design and manufacturing process, it tends to remain there for the lifetime of that product. For Weebit, that can mean many years of recurring royalty payments from a single design win.

The result is a growing base of long-term, high-margin revenue streams that can compound over time as we add more customers and applications.

Global market opportunity

The global semiconductor market is vast, and with flash memory reaching its scaling limits, there is a growing need for next-generation embedded memory technologies like ReRAM. While some companies develop and use their own ReRAM internally, the majority of the market is open to external licensing. That’s the opportunity Weebit is targeting.

We’ve already signed initial license agreements with major players including DB HiTek (a foundry) and onsemi (an IDM), and we’ve recently signed our license to an end product company in the U.S. We are working towards additional agreements with other such companies across key sectors.

You can read my earlier article, World IP Day: A Time to Reflect on the Value of Semiconductor IP, to learn more about the different types of semiconductor IP and how such solutions are delivered. You can also read more about Weebit’s technology, market position, and licensing strategy in this recent article where Andrew Johnston, Industrial Analyst from MST Access, explores why the IP model is such a powerful driver for our ReRAM ambitions: How Weebit Nano’s IP strategy is fuelling ReRAM ambitions.

The post Why Weebit’s IP Licensing Model Matters appeared first on Weebit.

As more companies seek to integrate our IP into their fabs and products, the momentum behind Weebit ReRAM is building. That’s why we are focused on scaling every part of our business to meet this growing demand.

Building to Support Growth

Scaling effectively means much more than just adding headcount—it requires deliberate planning, the right infrastructure, and a culture of operational excellence. Our goal is to support multiple fab projects and product engagements in parallel, without compromising on speed, quality, or customer experience, and doing so with the minimal number of people.

To that end, we’ve launched a company-wide initiative to enhance our infrastructure, tools, and methodologies. We are automating key workflows, building centralized systems to manage and analyze large volumes of wafer data, and implementing processes to improve traceability and reporting. These efforts are all designed to ensure that every customer project runs smoothly and efficiently, living up to our commitment that each and every customer is successful in incorporating Weebit ReRAM into their fab/product.

Importantly, we’re doing this with cost-effectiveness in mind. Unlike many companies at this stage of growth, Weebit benefits from being an IP provider. We don’t manage physical inventory or complex supply chains—which allows us to stay lean and agile while we scale.

Customer Success: At the Core of Everything We Do

At the heart of our scaling strategy is an unwavering commitment to customer success. Weebit is committed to ensuring every customer project using its ReRAM will be successful, and that no project will fail because it used Weebit ReRAM.

We’ve established a formal Project Management Office (PMO) to define clear—and as automated as possible—operating procedures. We appointed Lilach Zinger to lead our newly established Customer Success team. With over 20 years of experience at Tower Semiconductor—including as VP of Operations of Fab1—Lilach brings deep knowledge fab challenges, and what they need to succeed. Under her leadership, we’re building the systems and structures to manage multiple fab engagements simultaneously while delivering a consistently high level of service.

Designed to Scale: Talent and Technical Depth

Scaling requires not only process and technology but also people. We are growing our team carefully and strategically, bringing in top-tier talent across process, device, analog, and digital design. With hubs in Israel and France, we have access to a rich talent pool—and our long-standing university collaboration pipeline helps us bring in promising new engineers who are trained in ReRAM from day one.

Our culture is rooted in technical excellence and teamwork. We’re building a company where every employee contributes to customer success, continuous innovation, and operational strength.

Governance and Leadership Ready for the Next Level

As we grow, we are evolving our corporate structure to reflect our status as a leading public company. We’ve reorganized our board, welcoming Naomi Simson and Anne Templeman-Jones and establishing board committees that meet the standards of an ASX200/100-level company. We also transitioned Yoav Nissan-Cohen to be a non-executive director to further enhance board independence.

We’ve implemented comprehensive corporate governance procedures, including a clear Business Continuity Plan (BCP). This plan was successfully put to the test in the ongoing situation in the Middle East, helping ensure there will not be any delays in any milestone, not even by one day.

Looking Ahead

Weebit has entered a pivotal stage as we scale our operations to support a growing roster of customers. We are committed to signing several agreements with additional fabs, as well as with product companies, before the end of 2025. We are well-funded, strategically focused, and organizationally aligned to meet the challenge. With ReRAM moving into the mainstream, we are positioned to be the partner of choice for companies looking to integrate advanced NVM into their SoC designs.

Every step we’re taking, across infrastructure, customer success, engineering, and governance, is designed to ensure that every customer who chooses Weebit ReRAM achieves success. We’re building not just for today’s growth, but for the long-term future of our company and the industry we’re helping to shape.

The post Scaling for Success:<br>How Weebit is Preparing for its Next Phase of Growth appeared first on Weebit.

It’s January 7, 2025, and today, Weebit Nano is 10 years old. What an amazing milestone!

When the company began in 2015, we had ideas based on the work of Prof. James Tour from Rice University. The ideas were around resistance as the basis of memory, and while still in the research phase, Weebit’s founders knew the concepts were solid, and also knew that very soon the industry would need a replacement for flash memory.

That year the company hired its first engineer, Amir Regev, who today is Weebit’s VP Quality & Reliability. One of Amir’s first projects was to look for an excellent R&D partner, and after much due diligence, the company engaged with CEA-Leti, the French research organization who continues as our strategic R&D partner today. It was the beginning of an amazing partnership.

In 2016, Weebit hired its first PhD in France, Giuseppe Piccolboni, and in 2017, the company established its French subsidiary.

Weebit was fortunate in the early days to catch the attention of Dadi Perlmutter, who had retired from his most recent position at Intel as EVP, Chief Product Officer and GM of the Intel Architecture Group, overseeing all the company’s products. He agreed to become the Chairman of the Weebit Board of Directors.

Getting funding was a big challenge in the days when VCs were focused on cyber, automotive and the initial phases of AI. We were lucky that at the same time, the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) was looking to expand its roster of listed companies beyond the many focused on mining, energy and finance to include more technology companies. As part of this effort, the ASX sent several delegations to Israel to investigate the possibilities, and numerous Israeli technology companies including Weebit decided to list on the ASX.

Weebit’s former CEO, Yossi Keret, worked with Dadi and Ashley Krongold, one of our very first investors, to list on the ASX through a reverse takeover in August 2016. Yossi focused on setting up the company’s initial infrastructure in Israel, France and Australia, including hiring our CFO, Alla Felder. Shortly thereafter, Yossi had to step down for personal reasons and recommended me to replace him. (Thank you for that, Yossi!)

I joined the company in October 2017, with only two engineers on board and a technology that was still in university-level R&D. Dadi brought on board Atiq Raza, a legend in the semiconductor space (previously President and COO of AMD; Chairman and CEO of RMI – just a bit of his deep experience), as well as Yoav Nissan-Cohen, who did a PhD in Device Physics under Prof. Dov Frohman, the inventor of the first digital non-volatile memory (NVM). Yoav was also a founder of Tower Semiconductor, one of the top 10 foundries. Yoav became an executive director on the Weebit Board, helping guide technology development in the early days.

2018 was a year of transition for Weebit. On the technical side we delivered a 1Mb array and we started hiring a strong team. In 2019 we overcame a tough financial situation and started pushing for partnerships and looking for initial customers. At the time we had more of a focus on the very large semiconductor market in China, but when COVID hit, together with a growing trade war, we decided to shift our focus to the rest of the world.

Despite all odds, 2020 became a major year of growth. We had a good capital raise in June, followed by another in November. In October of that year, we completed the ReRAM (RRAM) technology stabilization process. At the same time, we hired three well-known experts to set up our executive staff: Ishai Naveh as CTO, leading our device and process work; Ilan Sever as VP R&D, leading analog and digital design efforts; and Eran Briman as VP Marketing and Business Development. In 2022 we brought on board Gabriel Molas, with close to 20 years of ReRAM research experience at Leti, to be our Chief Scientist.

Technical progress continued with the qualification of our technology at Leti (on STMicro wafers) at 85⁰C and then 125⁰C. We closed our first licensing agreement with SkyWater, and showed we know how to transfer the recipe and achieve qualification there too. This led to a licensing agreement with DB HiTek, where we are now focused on moving towards full qualification.

In 2023 and 2024 we completed the executive team, adding Gideon Intrater as an Advisor to the CEO, and Issachar Ohana as Chief Revenue Officer.

And now, just before our 10^th anniversary, we closed a licensing agreement with one of the leading integrated device manufacturers (IDMs), onsemi, starting 2025 with a bang!

10 years ago, the world knew it wanted a new NVM, but it was not clear what that would look like. There were MRAM, FeRAM, PCM, Optane, 3D-Xpoint, ReRAM and others. There were other companies developing ReRAM, already trying to commercialize years before Weebit.

However, as time passed, it became clear that many of these technologies were too expensive to manufacture or had other side effects (like sensitivity to magnetic fields), and today it is clear that the leading technology emerging from the pack is ReRAM. Other ReRAM developers tried using non-standard materials and tools to implement ReRAM, and many failed, leaving Weebit Nano as one of the only three qualified ReRAM technologies to-date, and the only independent supplier of qualified ReRAM in the market.

Over the past 10 years as we have pushed Weebit ReRAM from research towards production, we have had many ups and downs, but one of the key traits shared by our team members is their persistence. Because of this, we persist in our goal to deliver excellent, cost-effective technology towards becoming the #1 embedded NVM vendor. Interestingly, this persistence is reflected in our technology itself – ReRAM as a non-volatile memory is a persistent memory that retains its data even when power is turned off.

I am thankful for the opportunity to lead Weebit, and for the amazing Board and team we have. And I am very thankful to our loyal shareholders, many of whom have been with us almost from the start.

What a journey it has been! And it is only the beginning, as we look towards the next 10 years, which will be years of commercialization and expansion, with the vision of becoming the #1 supplier of embedded NVM and also developing a discrete solution.

We know that Weebit has the recipe for success. Our robust and fully qualified technology is continuously improving under the hands of a strong R&D team, including 13 PhDs and experts in all four pillars of ReRAM: Device, Process, Analog design and Digital design, all under the leadership of a very experienced and focused management team. With our solid team, robust technology, several commercial deals completed, and having recently raised A$50 million, we are well positioned to make our vision a reality.

2025 is shaping up to be a very exciting year, and a great start for the next 10 years!

The post Weebit Nano Turns 10:<br>Only the Persistent Survive appeared first on Weebit.

Above: The author (second from left) on the Emerging Memories Session at FMS 2024

FMS is the most important non-volatile memory (NVM) conference, usually attracting ~6,000 participants from across the memory industry. During the show, major memory companies release their newest products and technological achievements. This year, FMS changed its branding from the ‘Flash Memory Summit’ to ’the Future of Memory and Storage,’ recognizing the fact that the NVM market is no longer flash-only. It covers emerging technologies such as ReRAM (RRAM) and MRAM, which are now taking more significant market share, especially as embedded Flash hits a scaling wall.

One application area where ReRAM is gaining traction is automotive, where it brings high-temperature reliability, immunity to electromagnetic interference, high endurance, fast switching speed, longevity and security. Many automotive applications like autonomous vehicles and Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) are also part of the AI revolution which is rapidly changing the world. The focus from an NVM perspective is on increased capacity, energy efficiency, and performance. But that must be married with cost efficiency – an NVM for AI, supporting large densities, must be cheap enough to manufacture and mass produce. ReRAM is an ideal fit.

Weebit ReRAM: The Latest Foundry Developments

One of Weebit’s important recent developments is the tape-out of a demonstration chip integrating Weebit’s embedded ReRAM module in DB HiTek’s 130nm BCD process. We announced this milestone recently with DB HiTek – a tier-one foundry in South Korea. DB HiTek’s 130nm BCD process is ideal for analog, mixed-signal and high-voltage designs. We’re seeing interest from their customers in a variety of applications including smart power management integrated circuits (PMICs), where integrating the PMIC with a controller on one die can lead to significant advantages in terms of performance, security, power and cost.

We’re now showing publicly for the first time performance data of our ReRAM technology implemented on GlobalFoundries 22FDX® wafers including endurance and retention data. These are the first such ReRAM results.

Pre-qualification results show Weebit’s ReRAM stack is stable at 105 degrees Celsius up to 10K cycles endurance. We’re also demonstrating very good data retention, maintaining pre- and post-cycling for a long time at high temperatures (150°C). These are impressive results for our first set of wafers, and we are continuing to collect data as our characterization and qualification activities continue.

Above: cycling and data retention results of Weebit ReRAM on GlobalFoundries 22FDX® wafers

Another recent development is our partnership with Efabless Corporation, focused on providing Efabless chipIgnite customers access to Weebit ReRAM IP into designs manufactured using SkyWater’s 130nm CMOS (S130) process. chipIgnite lets customers, including academics, researchers, startups and groups within large OEMs, quickly and cost-effectively develop and test new designs. If they like the design, they can license our product for commercial production with SkyWater.

The Weebit ReRAM module has already been fully qualified in SkyWater Technology’s 130nm CMOS (S130) process at temperatures of up to 125 degrees Celsius—the temperature specified for Grade-1 automotive applications. We’ve also already showed ReRAM results on SkyWater S130 under extended automotive conditions with extremely high 100K endurance cycles at very high temp of 150 degrees Celsius.

You can see here the slides from my recent FMS presentation.

The post Weebit ReRAM Foundry Developments Presented at FMS appeared first on Weebit.

ReRAM technology is complex and multi-faceted, encompassing expertise from an array of disciplines. Since the early 2000s, when the industry first saw that Flash would ultimately have scaling issues, many companies have tried – and failed – to deliver a commercial replacement for Flash.

Now, as we see the world’s leading foundry placing its NVM bets for the future on Resistive RAM (ReRAM or RRAM), I thought I would share what goes into creating such a technology.

To be able to bring up a successful ReRAM technology that is both optimized for performance and commercially viable, a company requires four key elements. With only one or two or even three of these ‘pillars’ of success, a company cannot provide a strong technology which fully addresses the needs of the market. Each of these pillars represents a domain of expertise that is inherent to developing and optimizing the solution, and each domain requires a very different skillset and know-how.

In this article, I will describe these four pillars, explain how each contributes to enhancing the technology and how, when combined under the same roof, results in an optimized solution.

Above: The ‘pillars’ of ReRAM success

Device physics is the first pillar for a successful solution. At Weebit this team works on researching and developing better and more disruptive memory devices, by optimizing the ReRAM bitcell and its select device. The team focuses on the interaction between currents, voltages and resistance targets for the optimal cell, and the materials required to create it. This is part of the Weebit ‘secret sauce,’ comprising our unique recipe of the memory stack that we can tweak for specific applications. Within this area, there are many knobs to adjust for optimal results, and Weebit has 13 PhDs focused on this, joined by additional researchers from CEA-Leti.

The second key pillar is process. This team focuses on how to manufacture the cell efficiently using a specific fab’s tools, technologies, and materials, etc. This includes perfecting the memory stack, ensuring quality control of the layers, meeting a uniform process window, and achieving high production yield. In this area, we can tune numerous knobs including the wafer processing equipment, tools and conditions, number of masks and more. This team is also responsible for the integration of our unique recipe into an existing process flow of our customers, avoiding any impact on existing devices and minimizing the effort.

While there is always a plan of record (POR) that is ready and qualified, it can be further enhanced per fab and per application, and all the data we accumulate is used for future enhancement.

Analog design is another key pillar. This team assembles thousands and millions of bits into one big memory array, and builds the surrounding logic which controls it in the most efficient way, making sure that the currents and voltages delivered are stable and uniform. Among other circuits, the team designs patent-pending fast-wakeup circuitry, which ensures overall system efficiency, as well as voltage regulators, and circuits which minimize the wear of writing to the cells, increasing the endurance. This team also ensures high power efficiency in our ReRAM periphery circuitry, both from static and active power perspectives, eliminating any unneeded overhead power beyond the power of the bitcells.

Digital design is another key pillar for creating a successful NVM technology like ReRAM. It serves as the interface between the memory array and the rest of the system, which is digital by nature. Digital designers focus on creating algorithms and digital solutions to optimize parameters like programming current and voltage, read and standby power modes, and more. They also try to minimize the number of writes into a cell, for example avoiding unnecessary programming of bits, thus increasing the endurance. Designers work in strong collaboration with the device team so the algorithms address and solve every potential failure mechanism in the memory cell.

My colleague Ilan Sever discussed Weebit’s design expertise in the recent article, “ReRAM Gets a Boost from Smart Algorithms.”

So how does this combination of expertise play out in tangible ways? Let’s look at a couple of applications, specifically how each of our teams at Weebit contributes to meeting such requirements, and how they augment each other to reach optimized solutions.

Optimizing for specific applications

First, let’s consider an ultra-low-power application like an internet of things (IoT), Bluetooth® Low Energy (BLE), medical wearable or other battery-operated device. Such a device needs a low-voltage and low-power design, energy-efficient programming, operation out of standard I/O or lithium battery voltage, and in some cases it will limit the total peak power that can be consumed at any moment. The NVM must have fast wake up and fast switching between modes to take advantage of every cycle before power-down. Depending on the specific application – like implantables – there may be even stricter low power requirements.

On the other end of the spectrum, let’s consider a high-temperature device like an engine control integrated circuit (IC) in automotive. Creating a device optimized to work in high temperatures presents a very different challenge compared to meeting the requirements of our low-power application, even though it needs to be optimized for power consumption too. An NVM for this application must work reliably for up to 20 years at temperatures up to 150 or even 175 degrees Celsius with very low DPM (defects per million) and high endurance. High temperatures are a challenge for all memories, due to the impact on the materials they are built of, resulting in potential data loss, slower speeds and power leakage.

For the ultra-low-power application, our device team focuses on optimizations such as modifying the memory stack to reduce bit cell programming power and lowering the read and program voltages. For the high-temperature application, they might select materials for minimal drift over time, with lower energy and slower migration. All these device optimizations must be done in close collaboration with the process team, making sure that the modified stack can be reliably, repetitively and cost-effectively manufactured, and provide high yield. This is where the science of physics meets the science of chemistry.

But it doesn’t end there. When looking at the low-power application, our analog team designs analog circuitry with lowest power overhead during read/write activity and the lowest sleep and standby power consumption. For the high-temperature application they design circuits to withstand such temperatures.

Finally, our digital team introduces power-aware smart programming algorithms and low-power ECC algorithms for the ultra-low-power application, and crafts temperature-aware algorithms using an on-chip temperature sensor for our high-temperature application. Such algorithms are closely developed with the analog and device teams early in the cycle.

Precise characterization and rigorous testing ensure continuous improvements across all these areas. Our test and characterization team identifies any issues and goes back to the other teams to find workaround solutions, enabling adjustments that lead to higher reliability and higher yield. With any issue that is faced, the teams can quickly go to the lab to test out solutions. Having this expertise in-house like we do at Weebit means there is a very short loop. To learn more about this process, check out the article, “The Importance of Character Development: Semiconductor Characterization Explained. The Importance of Character Development: Semiconductor Characterization Explained

Working together

Each team has special contributions, and the value of working together between the teams and with test/characterization in a fast and efficient manner is incalculable.

Within each of the pillars, there are numerous knobs that the team can adjust to impact their specific domain. But they also must work together to find the balance between these adjustments. Every time one adjustment is made, whether it be in terms of stack modification, temperature, algorithm, voltage or some other parameter, it can, and normally will, affect something else.

For example, if the analog team is optimizing for low power and wants to reduce the voltage level required for a Read operation, there are also changes that must be made to the memory stack itself since the current will be different. This means the device team must be involved. And it might also impact the manufacturing process, so they need to pull in the process team. And so on.

The key is understanding the specific customer, their application and priorities. For each application, we can adjust many knobs to come up with an optimized solution, beyond our existing qualified POR. Because we have all this expertise in-house, we can do this seamlessly. If a company only has analog and digital design expertise (but no process or device teams) they will only be able to adjust the analog and digital knobs; they won’t be able to make modifications to the core technology like Weebit can.

We believe that Weebit is the only independent ReRAM company that has such a combination of in-house expertise, and this will enable Weebit to become the leading independent provider of ReRAM for a new generation.

The post The Pillars of ReRAM Success appeared first on Weebit.

April 26th is World IP Day, celebrated annually to highlight the role that intellectual property (IP) rights play in encouraging innovation and creativity. According to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) website, “IP is central to addressing the global challenges we face. IP is a powerful catalyst for growth and development and, as such, has a key role to play in improving livelihoods, and safeguarding our planet.”

On World IP Day, I thought I would take the opportunity to talk about what ‘IP’ means, focusing in particular on what semiconductor IP is, and why it matters.

What is IP?

According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary, ‘Intellectual Property’ refers to “property (such as a concept, idea, invention, or work) that derives from the effort of the mind or intellect.” It is also “a right or registration (such as a patent, trademark, trade secret, or copyright) relating to or protecting this property.”

‘Semiconductor IP’ fits this definition, but it goes beyond it. Within the world of semiconductors, ‘IP’ refers to a licensed product that enables System-on-Chip (SoC) designers to create complex semiconductors more quickly by integrating various pre-verified functional building blocks. With the incredible size and complexity of a modern SoC (often benchmarked by the number of transistors per die), it just doesn’t make practical sense to create each piece of functionality from scratch. IP is a must.

Above: With the ever-increasing complexity of modern SoCs, it’s impractical to build everything from scratch.

Today’s SoCs can contain hundreds of IP blocks. These include CPUs, GPUs, peripherals, interconnect, memories, controllers, and various other pieces of a system.

Above: An example of different IP blocks in an SoC

Semiconductor IP can be created by a company internally or it can be licensed from a third-party IP vendor. Companies often develop IP internally when that IP represents their ‘secret sauce.’ In that case, the company can then decide whether to use it only for their own product designs, or to broadly license it to other vendors looking to include it in their products, in a licensing model. When companies license third party IP, that IP usually represents either some basic standard functionality, such as Ethernet or USB controllers, or a proprietary design that represents specialized or highly differentiating functionality. In any case, customers don’t need to reinvent the wheel and design something that is already available. If they need a CPU, DSP, GPU or similar, their SoC development would take significantly more time if they redesigned such “standard” components from scratch.

Some IP are ‘soft’ IP blocks, which are highly flexible. They are delivered as hardware code (also known as RTL) and can be synthesized by the customer to target any library or process node. Processors are usually delivered in this form so the designer can target specific performance, power and area points to meet their target application.

At the other end are ‘hard’ IP blocks or hard macros – fixed mask layouts that can be dropped directly into the chip design. These usually include analog design circuits which must be carefully tuned to a given foundry process, to best utilize its advantages. The benefit of this type of IP is that while it isn’t synthesizable by the customer, it’s a lot less work for them, and the design is extremely optimized for the specific foundry process. The result is an ideal balance of parameters for a customer’s design as manufactured in a specific process node.

‘Process” IP is another type of semiconductor IP. It describes the steps, tools and materials to be used in the manufacturing process of a semiconductor device, called die. Such IP takes years to master and guarantee performance, but once it is qualified, it normally remains in use for very long periods of time. The end result of such a process IP development are key differentiation capabilities that are passed on to the end customer. Process IP has an effect on a broad part of the semiconductor IP ecosystem and is therefore very valuable.

Hard IP and process IP are extremely complex. Developing a new process takes many years. All three ReRAM (or RRAM) technologies in the industry have been under development for more than a decade, and at Weebit we also rely on research done at CEA-Leti since the beginning of the century. This is the norm for these types of IP blocks, not an exception. You can’t expect customers to make such investments, so IP developers like Weebit take on the effort, allowing customers to license the IP.

Weebit delivers various types of IPs: Our process IP tells the fabs how to manufacture the memory array, and usually requires close collaboration for a successful process transfer. Weebit has a team of PhDs in chemistry and physics who constantly research and improve our process IP. And separately, our design IP blocks can be dropped into the customer design upon tape-out, eliminating any risk or effort for our customers.

Above: Weebit IP deliverables

To successfully create and deliver these IP blocks, it’s critical to have the in-house expertise that can be used to optimize the design, including analog and digital design, and to have these engineers work closely with the process and device team. This unique combination of expertise is one of Weebit’s strengths. You can learn more about it in the below video.

Patented Technologies

It’s critical that we protect our ReRAM IP, so we regularly file patent applications and secure new patents. Developing disruptive technology that can be patented is not only a result of great material science engineering, but also reflects an understanding and ability to control the physics of the device. This includes sophisticated process flow techniques as well as smart algorithms (see more in the article, ReRAM Gets a Boost from Smart Algorithms) and innovative circuit designs. Because of our cross-discipline expertise, we can create patentable technology innovations.

Some examples of Weebit patents include:

• Smart algorithms that increase the reliability and yield of ReRAM memory cells
• An efficient method to implement robust multi-level storage in ReRAM, significantly improving cost-competitiveness
• Unique chip circuitries that optimize the access time and power associated with programming the memory module, while enhancing bit performance

These are just a few examples that highlight the innovations that Weebit is providing within the ReRAM ecosystem. Such innovations will create even more competitive advantage for our ReRAM, but more importantly: it will benefit our customers using Weebit ReRAM.

The Value of IP

With the ever-increasing complexity of today’s SoCs, there is no question that third party IP blocks will continue to play a critical role in helping companies deliver cutting-edge products within ever-tighter time-to-market constraints. At Weebit, we deliver unique and highly optimized IP solutions to foundries, IDMs and product companies. Our patented technologies and cross-discipline expertise – covering analog design, digital design, device and process – means we can do this to customers’ exacting specifications, providing difficult-to-copy functionality. And we do this to industry standards, qualifying our IP to assure it will work as advertised.

This is an exciting time to be in the semiconductor industry, delivering IP solutions that enable companies to create highly differentiated solutions for a new generation of products.

The post World IP Day:<br>A Time to Reflect on the<br>Value of Semiconductor IP appeared first on Weebit.

It’s time to inspire inclusion! That’s the theme of this year’s International Women’s Day, an annual event that has been celebrated across the globe since the early 1900s. According to the event website, “Women, especially those belonging to underrepresented groups, continue to face barriers when seeking leadership roles. By championing inclusion, organizations and communities can harness the full potential of diverse perspectives, leading to better decision-making and innovation.”

At Weebit, we agree!

At the time of the 2022 Semiconductor Gender Parity Study from the Global Semiconductor Association (GSA), women held 16% of board positions and 13% of executive positions at public semiconductor companies. But companies that aren’t focused on increasing the representation of women in their executive teams and workforce in general are missing out on the benefits women provide. According to the report, “Unlocking the Value of Women in Semiconductor,” from Accenture and the GSA, “if companies can attract more women to the industry, they will discover significant benefits, such as:

• Better financial performance
• Higher rates of return on venture capital investment
• More effective teaming and collaboration
• Workforce continuity

The report offers tangible advice for companies looking to become more inclusive – including strategies around recruiting, hiring and retaining talent. It also quotes Jodi Shelton, Founder and CEO of the GSA, as saying, “If we are going to become a trillion-dollar industry, we cannot ignore half the population.”

To celebrate inclusivity, I’d like to introduce you to some of the amazing women of Weebit. I didn’t speak to all the women of Weebit for this article since they represent over a quarter of our employees. Instead, I chose a cross section of our employees, including a student engineer and a couple of our most experienced leaders. I also tried to talk to women representing a cross section of technical areas, including design, manufacturing, materials and test. I asked them how they see the role of women in the workplace.

Being a woman in engineering

Prior to joining Weebit last year, our Director of the IDM and Foundry Business Development, Lilach Zinger, spent 25 years in various roles in the semiconductor industry, including VP of Operations at Tower Semiconductor and COO at PCB Technologies. She rose through the ranks while raising four children.

She explained, “Early on in my career, one of my managers came to my cube and told me that while he thought I was very smart, I would never become a manager at Tower because I didn’t work the extra hours that the men did, all because I would leave at a normal hour to pick up my kids from kindergarten. What he didn’t understand is that working overtime every day isn’t the key to succeeding. While of course we need to work overtime when there is an urgent project, success is based on delivering results.”

Eventually, Lilach found herself not only succeeding in her role, but passing that manager by multiple levels.

Yifat Cohen, a senior process integration expert on Weebit’s process team, says that over her 20+ years in the semiconductor industry, she has seen things change slowly. “For time in a previous role, I was the only female engineer in the company, probably because there just aren’t many women graduating in these fields. Today at Weebit, we have a large team of women, and the situation is much improved!”

Lama Hawwary, a VLSI design engineer at Weebit and a recent university graduate, says that being a woman in an engineering environment can be challenging because the field is very male dominated. “Very few women study engineering. In many of my university lectures, I was the only woman in the room. It can be very intimidating.” However, she says, “There was no real discrimination. People just aren’t used to seeing women in these roles. As women, we need to remind ourselves that we belong here, and that we are going to succeed.”

Hadar Perez, who studies chemical engineering at Ariel University and works on test and characterization at Weebit, says, “While most people in this area are men and it’s OK to recognize that, it’s all about showing good results. If you are smart and you deliver, it really doesn’t matter whether you are a man or a woman.”

Lilach says she focuses on promoting her team members when they perform well. Many of the women on her teams over the years are now global managers or directors. “I was pleased to be in a leadership role because it was only then that I could have a real impact,” she said. Over time, Lilach says she has seen things slowly changing for women in the industry but says, “there is still an issue at high levels.”

The need for women in technical leadership

According to the report ‘GSA: Women in the semiconductor industry 2023,’ Over half of companies surveyed reported fewer than 10% or women in technical director roles, and over half of the companies reported less than 5% in technical VP roles.

“We definitely need more women in leadership roles,” says Hadar. “Women are sensitive to both the big picture and small details. In the lab when we are doing experiments with ReRAM, it’s critical to pay attention to small details to make sure we are thinking about the correct approach.”

Lama agrees. “Women tend to be great communicators, bring a high level of creativity, and also tend to have a good multi-tasking ability. Having a diverse team can provide great benefits to a company.”

“Women managers have different styles than men, and often bring a particularly collaborative approach to a team,” says Lilach. “As a female manager, when one of my team members tells me there is a problem, it automatically becomes my problem too. The approach is that we can fix it together and learn from it. This teamwork focused approach leads to better overall performance and KPIs.”

Of course it’s not just about gender. Yifat points out, “A company benefits from representation across all types of populations – colors, genders, religions, and so on. We all bring unique backgrounds. This is especially valuable as employees move up to leadership roles and their distinct point of view can be brought to bear for real impact.”

Starting early

Encouraging girls to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and math is key.

Lama says, “If you have a child who is always taking things apart and putting them back together, it’s likely they will be an engineer! My mom went crazy when I disassembled the car stereo. But she always encouraged my sisters and brother to be whatever we wanted to be.” To young girls considering an engineering career, she says, “If you want to do it, do it. Try not to listen to anyone who says you can’t do it. Mute those voices.”

Yifat says it was important that her mother encouraged her from an early age to help fix things around the house. “If something fell or broke, or a lightbulb needed changing, we girls in the family were encouraged to take care of it.”

The women we spoke with agree that parents should buy toy cars, electronics, or construction games for girls if they want them.

“Not every little girl wants a Barbie or a play kitchen,” says Yifat, who has three daughters of her own. “I tell my daughters that everything a man can do, you can do just as well or better.”

Yifat also acts as a role model for other young women engineers. “They often just need to build more self-confidence that they can do the job well,” she says.

Everyone agrees that it’s not just women who need to mentor other women. Lama and Lilach both point to having had great male mentors, and Yifat points out that her husband is very supportive. “Behind every successful woman is a supportive man,” she says.

Inclusion at Weebit

At Weebit, we have a number of women in engineering and leadership roles – both technical and non-technical. I have been CFO since 2016 and we have a powerful Board member in Naomi Simson.

It’s important to note that being a woman at Weebit doesn’t mean we get special treatment.

“Everyone at Weebit is treated equally and our opinions are treated objectively. The company, from the top down, is highly inclusive without even trying,” says Yifat.

“Even as a student, my opinions are valued,” says Hadar.

Tair Duvdevani, Ph.D., Weebit’s Senior Process Technology Project Manager, agrees. “Everyone is encouraged to own and promote new initiatives, regardless of gender, or any other trait. The culture of Weebit is open and transparent, with an atmosphere that encourages us to collaborate.”

“The great thing about working at Weebit is that everyone works as a team and adds value where they can,” says Lama. “If you have an idea, you are encouraged to pursue it. It’s not about gender or ego or even your job role. It’s about innovating.”

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As early as the 1960s, the resistivity of some types of materials has been studied by research organizations around the globe to determine whether these materials could be used as non-volatile memory technology.

The ability to store data as resistance – rather than storing it as an electrical charge like DRAM and flash do – is an appealing proposition. Some of the memory cells that store data as a charge face challenges in scaling to the most advanced process geometries along with the rest of an SoC. They also tend to be less tolerant to radiation, making them more complex to use in a variety of medical, industrial, aerospace and other applications.

Over the years, academic institutions and research centers have continued to make progress in the development of resistivity-based memories. Then, in the early 2000s, when it became clear that there would be a limit to the scalability of existing memories, the industry began to invest in these this research. The quest for next-generation memories had begun.

The Emergence of ReRAM

With the idea of replacing flash non-volatile memory (NVM) technology, we began to see industry developments around Resistive RAM (ReRAM or RRAM) starting in the early 2000s from companies such as IBM, HP, Panasonic and others. We’ve also seen some companies make major announcements about ReRAM which never materialized into functioning products. Many of these efforts eventually stalled, and 3D stacking of standalone flash entered the picture around 2015, making it possible to delay dealing with flash’s scaling problem.

However, the industry knew that they were just buying time, and that ultimately cost, power and other issues would force the adoption of a new NVM. The limitations of flash are increasingly clear. Even with 3D stacking, advanced packaging and chiplet architectures, there are significant cost, power, and security difficulties to overcome. It’s just not economically feasible to embed flash memories into SoCs beyond 28nm for most applications. Flash also suffers from other technical limitations in terms of performance, reliability, power consumption and cost.

Weebit enters the scene

Weebit was founded in 2015 with a focus on creating a new memory that would be scalable for future generations of electronics. The company has worked closely since that time with our R&D partner, CEA-Leti, one of the world’s most advanced microelectronics research institutes, to create a truly innovative NVM technology based on over a decade of research.

Above: The Weebit Nano logo from 2016, with a focus on the ‘future’

A May 2015 article in TechTarget discusses the potential future for memristor devices (like ReRAM), noting, “The technology certainly has the potential to replace flash, but whether it immediately becomes a successor will ultimately depend on the technology’s economic viability.”

This economic viability is at the forefront of Weebit’s development efforts, since even the most advanced technology can’t succeed if it isn’t affordable and easy for customers to integrate and manufacture. Since the beginning, Weebit has focused on creating technically excellent ReRAM technology that is commercially viable. This has meant focusing first on developing IP solutions for the embedded market using standard materials and processes. In this way, we can intercept the market need for flash where it is first emerging (in the embedded space) and do so with fab-friendly and easy-to-integrate technology.

Weebit has made steady progress toward this goal, with its first demonstrations of small ReRAM arrays in 2017 – showing functional RRAM cell samples and verifying the ability of the cells to maintain their memory behavior. This was followed in 2018 by a demonstration of a working 1Mbit ReRAM array and the production of the first packaged units containing memory arrays based on Weebit ReRAM.

Above: Different Weebit taglines have focused on ReRAM emerging at some undetermined point in time

The path to commercialization

In 2020, commercialization activities came to the fore for Weebit. The company’s technology was mature, and the technology stabilization process was completed, making it possible for Weebit ReRAM to transfer to a production fab. Then in 2021, we demonstrated production, testing and characterization of fully functional 1Mb ReRAM arrays in a 28nm FD-SOI process, followed by the introduction of silicon demonstration wafers integrating Weebit’s embedded ReRAM module. All of this led to our first commercial deal with SkyWater Technology.

With each milestone, we’ve been getting closer and closer to production. This year, we demonstrated our IP module for the first time. Most recently, we fully qualified our ReRAM module with CEA-Leti and received silicon wafers of our demo chip from SkyWater Technology – the first Weebit ReRAM wafers from a production fab. At the same time, we are continuing to accelerate our development toward more advanced process geometries such as 22nm FD-SOI.

Importantly, ReRAM isn’t just a one-off technology from Weebit. The industry is getting behind ReRAM technologies as a way forward for many applications. We see companies working on their own forms of ReRAM such as foundry TSMC, which is said to be in production with its own ReRAM technology. This is a strong validation for our own technology – showing that ReRAM is an effective solution for a clear market need. According to market research firm Yole Group, the embedded emerging NVM market is expected to reach $2.9B by 2027, and ReRAM is expected to comprise 33% of that.

Source: Yole Emerging Non-Volatile Memory 2022*

As we look ahead, one thing is clear – ReRAM is here. It is no longer ‘emerging’ or ‘future’. The technology is functional, industry-qualified and ready for production. Importantly, it’s able to deliver the promised advantages in terms of cost, power, endurance and reliability. It is the successor to flash, and it is here today.

We’re in discussions with potential customers and partners who are interested in getting an early mover advantage with Weebit ReRAM. If you have a design project, you too can get started with Weebit ReRAM. On the SkyWater website, you will find the preliminary specifications of Weebit ReRAM in SkyWater’s 130nm CMOS process. Contact SkyWater or Weebit to start discussing your design needs.

Above: the new Weebit Nano logo and tagline, reflecting ReRAM’s market entry

*Note: The embedded emerging NVM market size is evaluated based on assumptions of the average chip area occupied by a given memory technology

The post Weebit ReRAM: <br>The Next NVM is Here! appeared first on Weebit.

First, we’re showing two demos of our ReRAM technology in our booth. The first shows the real-world capability of Weebit ReRAM as a non-volatile memory (NVM) integrated into an actual subsystem, and also highlights the faster write speed of the Weebit ReRAM module compared to typical flash memory. The second demo shows how using neuromorphic techniques based on ReRAM greatly increases parallel connectivity and significantly improves energy efficiency compared to traditional computing approaches.

As you can see from the picture, we’re seeing a great deal of interest in the demos.

In addition, our VP of Tech Development, Amir Regev, just presented some new test results during his session, “ReRAM’s Development Path Towards Commercialization.”

These test results are part of the qualification process, a requirement for products like NVM. As you may know from our previous blog on the topic of qualification, it is a long and intensive process by which we ensure a design is ready for production, confirming it meets commercial specifications and will continue to do so over the expected lifetime of the product. The idea is to test many instances of the product from different manufacturing lots, and do so in an accelerated manner. In this way we can simulate the possible effects of environmental factors over a product’s expected lifetime.

This qualification process is based on our demo chip which includes our embedded ReRAM module, unlike previous results that have been based on R&D tests of our memory array. The demo chip – which we recently demonstrated publicly for the first time (and are now showing at FMS) includes the ReRAM array as well as control logic, decoders, IOs (Input/Output communication elements) and error correcting code (ECC) as well as patent-pending analog and digital smart circuitry – implemented in actual silicon in 130nm.

Qualification is a gradual process, whereby test conditions are continuously intensified, pushing a product’s boundaries to spec and beyond. For example, we begin testing the ReRAM module at room temperature, and steadily increase the temperature over time.

We are putting the module through tests that follow industry standards such as NVM tests developed by industry standards body JEDEC. Gathering in-depth statistics with a standards-based approach is critical to showing the maturity of the technology as we approach productization.

The test results Mr. Regev shared at FMS are based on early qualification test results of the demo chips we recently received from Leti, which are better than normally expected at such an early phase. We are delighted with the impressive data retention, endurance and high-temperature stability we see in these initial tests. Qualification of the module is an ongoing process, and we expect to have final qualification results before the end of 2022.

To see Mr. Regev’s presentation from FMS, click here.

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A new interview on the SkyWater Technology website talks to both Ross Miller, VP Strategic Marketing & Business Unit at SkyWater, and Eran Briman, Weebit Nano’s VP of Marketing and Business Development. The discussion provides more information on the partnership and what’s next.

During the interview, Ross and Eran discuss why Weebit ReRAM is a great fit for various application areas, like aerospace & defense, automotive, industrial, and neuromorphic computing.

SkyWater says it will initially roll out Weebit ReRAM as embedded NVM in their 130nm CMOS process, since this is a sweet spot for mixed-signal designs such as analog, power management and sensors. In addition, Ross says: “Because ReRAM has such low power consumption and integration flexibility, we see a lot of interest in the near-term in IoT and general mixed-signal / ASIC designs.”

Ross also describes some of the exciting potential future applications for Weebit ReRAM such as scaling it to other SkyWater platforms like its 90nm and carbon nanotube CMOS technologies. He also says, “Weebit ReRAM is a rich building block for hybrid architectures that can be flexibly integrated in new and interesting ways, making it a really exciting option for innovators as they look to bring new ideas from concept to reality.”

Finally, Ross and Eran talk about how SkyWater customers can get started with Weebit ReRAM. According to Eran, “The technology transfer process will continue throughout the coming months, and once that is complete, qualification can begin.” Ross adds, “As soon as the initial qualification is complete, SkyWater customers can have the confidence to tape-out their designs with ReRAM.”

Read the entire interview here.

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