Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1295812
10 DESIGN007 MAGAZINE I OCTOBER 2020 Our technology roadmaps issue started with a question for Happy Holden. A few months ago, we were planning con- tent for the fall issues of our magazines. We had just launched the "Just Ask Happy" series, with readers sending him all manner of ques- tions about HDI, automation, predictive engi- neering, TQM, markets—you name it. But one question caught our attention: How will the PCB design process change to align with the IEEE Heterogeneous Integration Road- map (HIR), and do you think this will happen? Good question. Happy explained that IEEE is now refer- ring to chip-on-board (COB), multi-chip mod- ules (MCM), and system-in-packages (SIP) as heterogeneous integrated modules (HIM). As Happy noted: "Heterogeneous was chosen because the future modules will incorporate not just IC chips, but also power devices, passive discretes, photonics, MEMS, sensors, antennas, and batteries. Sys- tems-on-chip (SoC) will continue to be an activ- ity, but as Moore's Law has flattened out, using multiple-cores processor chips with memory is more cost-effective for greater computing power. As applications grow—and size, cost, and weight are more critical—heterogeneous inte- grated modules offer the best choice to move all of these elements closely together in a module." In other words, these packages are becoming a lot like little circuit boards. In the future, we'll be mounting small PCBs on traditional PCBs. My first thought is, "Cool! What will they think of next?" But there are going to be ripple effects from this. What kind of thermal, signal integrity, and EMC issues will traditional PCB designers have to contend with 10 years from now when each board is essentially a system, comprised The Shaughnessy Report by Andy Shaughnessy, I-CONNECT007 The Future Is Now