Since I started my channel in December 2020, I’ve posted 181 videos that have been watched 660k times for a total of 35k hours! To celebrate reaching 20k subscribers I wanted to share some of the ones I’m especially proud of, and why they matter to me. I’d say my all time favourite was when I used a particle accelerator to look inside my own microchips! I met Tomas Aidukas at the Free Silicon Conference. In his talk, he showed an amazing 3D view inside a microchip - captured using a tec...| Zero to ASIC Course
For the past two years, I’ve used GitHub Actions to automatically test the install instructions for the Zero to ASIC course. Now, as I work on a major update, I’m taking it further: I’m adding CI tests for every one of the 10 practical projects. The goal? Make sure students never run into out-of-date instructions or broken software. To do this, I’ve been exploring Harald’s IIC-OSIC-TOOLs Docker image and built a new composite GitHub Action.| Zero to ASIC Course
Parts Open the bag carefully and pour out the parts. You should have 11 pieces and a sticker. The parts are made to push fit together. They will wear out if you take it apart and rebuild it more than a couple of times. Diffusion This model is of a CMOS inverter. The C stands for complementary, and it means we use both N and P type MOSFETS in a complementary pair.| Zero to ASIC Course
Wow what a year! In this post I’m going to look back over 2024 and share some of my highlights and the goals I met and failed. Then I’ll share my ambitions and predictions for 2025. With all the open source tapeouts, events, workshops and news, there’s a ton to cover - so let’s jump in! 2024 Goals More people I aimed for 2000 new people to get started with open source silicon via my courses and tiny tapeout.| Zero to ASIC Course
It’s become a cliche, but hardware is hard! One reason why hardware is harder than software is that the time between revisions is often longer. We need to wait for new PCBs, or for components to be delivered. Or for more new PCBs after we realise we got it wrong! Another reason is that it can be expensive, and not just for the physical components. We generally need more of a lab than software developers. Not just soldering irons and good lighting. Test gear is essential for learning how you...| Articles on Zero to ASIC Course
Our first COB (chip on board) chips are working! This has been a dream of mine for a few years, and it’s finally a reality! We’re used to seeing chips as little black boxes on a circuit board, but what’s inside? The first part of the journey started with Tamas creating this cool circuit board. Then Stuart visited an old friend’s wire bonding factory in the outskirts of Shenzhen. It’s nothing like you might imagine. While IC manufacturing itself requires a very strict level of cleanl...| Articles on Zero to ASIC Course
Tiny Tapeout 9 closed with 95% utilisation! Look at this beauty! You can download the full resolution image here. TT09 was our best ever run, with 369 designs submitted from 21 countries. Among the digital projects we had an Atari 2600 (with games), a wide range of CPUs and even some SDR projects. On the analog side we had PLLs, opamps, ADCs, DACs and time to digital converters. For all the projects, check the chip’s page. I printed the datasheet, and it’s hefty! Download it here.| Articles on Zero to ASIC Course
In my recent video Getting started with open source ASICs, I provided an overview of the open-source silicon movement, highlighting key resources and tools while showcasing some inspiring projects. The video starts by looking back at the game-changing moment in 2020 when Google, Tim Ansell, and Efabless announced their free shuttle program, making it possible for anyone to get their open-source chip designs manufactured. This sparked a wave of innovation, with many taking their first steps in...| Articles on Zero to ASIC Course
This article will give you some insight into my journey into the world of analog microelectronics, as told in my recent talk at ORConf 2024. Back in 2020, inspired by Tim Ansell’s announcement of free tapeouts, I jumped headfirst into the world of open-source ASIC design. My first chip was a digitally focused project, reflecting my background in FPGA programming. It was amazing to see the power of digital abstraction—designing with ones and zeros, instantiating tons of transistors with a ...| Articles on Zero to ASIC Course
In this interview, I met up with Michael from Zeptobars in Zurich, Switzerland, where we use acid to decapsulate one of my Tiny Tapeout chips. This technique involves using acid to remove the protective epoxy layer of a chip, revealing the silicon die underneath. Decapping is commonly used to analyse the construction of integrated circuits. Michael usually decapsulates chips designed by others, sometimes decades ago, but this time one of the designs is his own.| Articles on Zero to ASIC Course
