Fundamentals of Modern VLSI Devices [Paperback]

Yuan Taur (Author), Tak H. Ning (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521559596 | ISBN-13: 978-0521559591 | Publication Date: October 13, 1998

This book examines in detail the basic properties and design, including chip integration, of CMOS and bipolar VLSI devices and discusses the various factors that affect their performance. The authors begin with a thorough review of the relevant aspects of semiconductor physics, and proceed to a description of the design of CMOS and bipolar devices. The optimization of these devices for VLSI applications is also covered. The authors highlight the intricate interdependencies and subtle tradeoffs between those device parameters, such as power consumption and packing density, that affect circuit performance and manufacturability. They also discuss in detail the scaling, and physical limits to the scaling, of CMOS and bipolar devices. The book contains many exercises, and can be used as a textbook for senior undergraduate or first-year graduate courses on microelectronics or VLSI devices. It will also be a valuable reference volume for practicing engineers involved in research and development in the electronics industry.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...well-written classroom text....this book will also prove valuable to practicing designers and researchers because of the many advanced topics included...covers a wide range of material for its size...The book is logically organized. Both the ideas and the presentation are first-rate. The typesetting and diagrams are superb." Computing Reviews

Book Description

This textbook examines in detail the basic properties and design, including chip integration, of CMOS and bipolar VLSI devices and discusses the various factors that affect their performance. The authors give a thorough review of the relevant aspects of semiconductor physics, and proceed to a description of the design of CMOS and bipolar devices. They highlight the interdependencies and tradeoffs between those device parameters that affect circuit performance and manufacturability. They also discuss in detail the scaling, and limits to the scaling, of CMOS and bipolar devices.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 496 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (October 13, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521559596
• ISBN-13: 978-0521559591
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 7 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #595,579 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Frustrating, but recommended, April 10, 2003

By 

"kenaz-raido" (US) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fundamentals of Modern VLSI Devices (Paperback)

The physicist in me wants to give this book 2 stars and the mathemetician in me wants to give it 5 stars, while the engineer and organizer in me wants to give it 4 stars. End result is 4 stars, but frustrated with the linear grading system. Here's a bit more on why.

Yes, as previous reviewers have said, this book gives you what many similarly named books don't: an advanced-level, industrial-view, practioner look at semiconductor device operation and design. It is well organized from that standpoint, which originally drew me in wholeheartedly.

My criticism is that when you really get into it -- and I have, by reading every page from start to finish -- the authors sometimes only use the math equations to explain why things happen. I guess this is okay in some science topics say, for abstract problems in QM matrix formalism when the "thing" is difficult to visualize physically, but this is a working, quasi-classical, real-world "machine"; physical explanations should almost always be possible. Writing about the concepts in addition to the math equations is important because most of us don't remember dozens of math equations day-to-day, but only the relationships often buttressed up by physical pictures. For example, on page 187 an equation (and equations are models of reality themselves containing their own limitations) is used to show (prove?) "the gate work function has a major effect on channel profile design, since, through the V_fb term, it has a strong influence on the MOSFET threshold voltage". In addition to the math symbolic relationship, this could also be said with physical underpinnings or something more physical sounding than "through the V_fb term".

People tend to solve problems either with: (1) pictures, (2) math, or (3) words, or combinations of these, so perhaps this is just a matter of which style is more 'natural' to a person. However, this pattern of occasionally only using math symbols to explain advanced concepts is done throughout the text. I think for an advanced text, deep physical understanding is sought, not just developing equations from standard theories; the theories breakdown under some conditions and only a good understanding of the advanced concepts will inform you when that might happen. Such understanding allows you to be on the lookout for the exceptions, which is important for the practicing engineer or researcher in this field.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Expertly written CMOS and bipolar transistor book, May 5, 1999

By 

Carl-Mikael Zetterling ([e-mail]) (Stockholm, Sweden) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fundamentals of Modern VLSI Devices (Paperback)

Every year a large number of textbooks are published, many times, unfortunately without contributing anything new to the market. In this case, however, Taur and Ning have written a book that will surely be referenced for many years. Rather than trying to write about every modern electronic device, they concentrate on sub-micron MOS and bipolar transistors in silicon, and do so very well. It is clear that the authors know what they are talking about (they are both IEEE Fellows and long-time employees of IBM). They draw heavily from their experience of industrial VLSI technology, and cover subjects such as device optimization, tradeoffs between power consumption and packing density, and physical limits to scaling. Half the book is dedicated to MOS (including CMOS circuitry) and half to bipolar transistors, but there is also enough basic semiconductor physics for review. This book should be useful for practicing engineers, but the ample amounts of exercises in each chapter is why I use it for teaching a senior undergraduate / first-year graduate course in advanced VLSI devices.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Taur/Ning (IBM) - Fundamentals of Modern VLSI Devices, January 10, 2002

By 

Constantin Bulucea (Santa Clara, California) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Fundamentals of Modern VLSI Devices (Hardcover)

This is the best book currently available on device electronics. Written by renown contributors to the field from IBM, it takes the complexity of integrated semiconductor devices down to its first-order, industry-proven essentials. In this respect, "Fundamentals of Modern VLSI Devices" comes in line with what I consider to be the epitoms of the class of lasting transistor books, Alvin Phillips' "Transistor Engineering" (McGraw-Hill 1962) and Andrew Grove's "Physics and Technology of Semiconductor Devices" (Wiley, 1967). The treatment of the subject matter is outstandingly thorough, covering the basic device physics and technology integration of bipolar and field-effect metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOSFET) and highlighting the subtle tradeoffs involved in modern transistor design and optimization. The approach is first-order analytical, with refrainment from the use of computer-simulations tools that would have run the risk of diminishing the teaching strength of the book. Equations and parameters provided are checked continuously against the reality of silicon data. This makes the book invaluably useful in practical transitor design as well as in the classroom. I keep it on my desk at all times. The bipolar-transitor part takes the reader all the way from the classical junction transistor to the modern polysilicon-emitter, SiGe-base variety. The MOSFET part is equally sweeping, coming as far as to the technology node (gate length) of 100 nm. Each chapter concludes with real-life exercises that actually extend the depth of analysis, getting the reader directly involved.