LM319M : weekend die-shot

LM319M - "high speed" (80ns) dual comparator.
Die size 2017x700 µm.

Mikron 1663RU1 - first Russian 90nm chip : weekend die-shot

Mikron is currently the most advanced microelectronic fab in Russia, located in Zelenograd. In 2010 they have licensed 90nm technology from STMicroelectronics, and equipment setup was somewhat ready by the end of 2012. Technology transfer was hindered by very small manufacturing volume and scarce funding. Nevertheless, 1663RU1 has became their first 90nm product reached commercial customers. It's 16 Mibit SRAM chip.

There are no redundancy or ECC correction on this chip, bulk-Si technology ("civilian" technology). There are no radiation-hardening tricks implemented. This chip is apparently intended for industrial/military applications, use in space is only possible with great care.


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BFG135 - NPN 7GHz RF BJT transistor : weekend die-shot

BFG135 - 7GHz RF NPN transistor with integrated emitter-ballasting resistors. Transistor is so sparse to lower thermal (mainly) and collector resistance.
Die size 668x538 µm, transistor fin halfpitch - 800nm.



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nRF51822 - Bluetooth LE SoC : weekend die-shot

nRF51822 is a widely used Bluetooth LE SoC with Cortex-M0 core and on-chip buck DC-DC (LC are external).
Die size 3833x3503 µm, ~180nm technology.

RGB flicker LED : weekend die-shot

Unlike previous LED, this one is completely deterministic: diodes differ slightly only in RC oscillator frequency (~±10%). Regular structure at the lower-left side suggests that it's some sort of microcode-driven design.

Die size 553x474 µm, 1.5µm technology.

Thanks for this interesting chip to ASIP department of Gomel State University.
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Flicker LED : weekend die-shot

Some might have seen candle flicker LED - their brightness is modulated randomly to mimic real candle. It is achieved by using digital die copackaged with red LED die in standard 5mm transparent case.



This design is apparently using phase difference between 2 RC oscillators as source of random data. There are multiple designs in the wild, some other apparently based on LFSR with single oscillator. More on the topic: siliconpr0n.org, cpldcpu.wordpress.com, hackaday.com.

Die size 580x476 µm, 3µm technology.

Thanks for this interesting chip to ASIP department of Gomel State University.
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Samsung SuperAMOLED : weekend die-shot

Updated March 20, 2015: Thanks to lucky(?) accident and new lens we managed to take much better photos of Samsung SuperAMOLED display:


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