Rochester Electronics Provides Semiconductor Replication Process With Guaranteed Product Performance and Reliability

Semiconductor re-creation is often times more cost effective than re-designing a system, said George Karalias, director of marketing and communications at Rochester Electronics. One of our customers recently went through two multi-million dollar re-designs for the same helicopter project. Each time, the semiconductors that were used in the new design went end-of-life right after the new system was up and running. Subsequently, we were able to re-create the part they needed, and we are now manufacturing a continuous supply, supporting their production indefinitely. In the future, they will be working with us to plan for end-of-life scenarios, avoid re-design where appropriate, and as a result, save millions of dollars.

Even when the IP is no longer available from the original manufacturer, Rochester's experienced design engineers can deconstruct and electrically analyze a device, re-design it, and re-engineer it onto a matched mature foundry process. Rochester can then test all circuit parameters with a collection of custom developed tools to analyze device characterization.

Rochester's unique Semiconductor Replication Process(TM) (SRP(TM)) guarantees that replicated devices perform as effectively as the original semiconductor devices. Rochester has successfully completed 83 semiconductor replication projects in the last 18 months and is currently engaged in more than 30 additional re-creation projects.

Rochester Electronics' re-creation expertise is distinctive because of our technology, experience, testing capabilities, and quality of the end product we supply, said Karalias.

Customers should not be fooled by emulated devices, however, which are sometimes promoted as comparable to replicated devices. Although these emulated semiconductors may be procured at an initial price that seems very reasonable, says Karalias, they merely mimic the characteristics of the original device without any consideration to comparative performance analysis. The cost of failure rates and trial-and-error foundry processes often make the investment fiscally irresponsible. As an alternative to introducing a questionable emulated device to the system, Rochester can provide the exact semiconductor through our SRP.

Additionally, emulated semiconductors are not always tested to the original manufacturer's specifications, so there is no guarantee that they will perform as required.

Rochester recently did a successful re-creation for a company that had previously contracted with two other companies for emulations that turned out to be unsuccessful because they were based on the company's original intellectual property. Rochester's SRP went beyond the IP, evaluated the actual device, and produced an exact replica that worked exactly as the original on the first production run, thus avoiding any additional foundry costs.

Rochester has agreements with most of the major semiconductor manufacturers and is proud to serve the industry as a reliable, long-term source for authorized, traceable, and quality end-of-life semiconductors.