NXP Semiconductors Accelerates Design Cycle using New Cadence Encounter Digital Implementation System for Industry’s First 45nm Digital TV Processor

Encounter’s Integrated Advanced Node Design-for-Manufacturing Capabilities Boosts Designer Productivity and Time-to-Market

SAN JOSE, Calif. --  May 18, 2009 --  Cadence Design Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CDNS), the leader in global design innovation, announced today that NXP Semiconductors utilized the new Cadence® Encounter® Digital Implementation System (EDI System), and its seamless design-for-manufacturing (DFM) technologies to ensure reliable production of its advanced 45-nanometer PNX85500 digital TV processor chip with a significant acceleration in productivity. The integrated, front-to-back EDI System, with native DFM analysis and optimization, and Encounter Timing System, provided the performance and accuracy necessary for rapid signoff of the next-generation HDTV processor, enabling NXP quickly achieve volume production of the chip.

The PNX85500, from NXP’s Home Business Unit, is the industry‘s first 45-nanometer digital TV processor, delivering an unprecedented viewing experience. It supports switching from analog to digital, SD to HD and broadcast to networked TV with a global single-chip TV platform. The EDI System enabled this complex single-chip integration at 45 nanometers, consolidating the features and functionality of two 90-nanometer chips to create the area- and performance-efficient design layout, leading to unparalleled picture quality.

“We had to meet an aggressive timeline for the PNX85500, since the whole world is making a digital TV switchover,” said Barry Dennington, senior vice president of Design Technology at NXP Semiconductors. “The scalable performance of the multi-CPU backplane and the completeness of EDI System solution feature-set meant we could stay in a single design environment from start to finish. These performance and productivity advantages, coupled with EDI System’s native DFM optimization capabilities, and built-in timing and signal integrity signoff, helped achieve a significant improvement in overall turnaround time and time-to-market for our design.”

EDI System features a silicon-proven Litho Physical Analyzer and CMP Predictor that can ameliorate 45-nanometer manufacturability issues early in the design flow, enabling fast and predictable design convergence. Combined with the industry-leading litho-driven Cadence NanoRoute® Router, this reduced the need for post-GDSII DFM optimization, further accelerating design time. The Encounter Timing System is a complete and integrated advanced signoff environment, enabling faster optimization, debug, statistical analysis, and final verification of designs for timing, signal integrity, and variability.

“We are excited to have yet another key collaborator success using our new EDI System in production for advanced process nodes,” said Dr. Chi-Ping Hsu, senior vice president of the Implementation Products Group at Cadence. “This new system has been successfully adopted by multiple worldwide customers and providing performance and productivity advantages across the board. EDI System brings customers a single scalable design environment for high performance and quality design closure, with low-power, mixed-signal and advanced node capabilities.”

The Encounter Digital Implementation System is a configurable and extensible high-performance, high-capacity, scalable design solution uniquely delivering flat and hierarchical design closure and signoff analysis, as well as low-power, advanced node and mixed-signal design capabilities. Cadence DFM technologies are seamlessly interwoven with the Encounter Digital Implementation System, enabling early identification, analysis and repair of yield-limiting design challenges. The system delivers superior results and interoperability with package, logic and custom IC design environments.

About Cadence
Cadence enables global electronic design innovation and plays an essential role in the creation of today's integrated circuits and electronics. Customers use Cadence software and hardware, methodologies, and services to design and verify advanced semiconductors, consumer electronics, networking and telecommunications equipment, and computer systems. The company is headquartered in San Jose, Calif., with sales offices, design centers, and research facilities around the world to serve the global electronics industry. More information about the company, its products, and services is available at www.cadence.com.