This document discusses career options and opportunities in VLSI and embedded systems for ECE students. It outlines potential career paths in telecommunications, consumer electronics, semiconductor companies, and embedded systems. It also describes the different types of companies - product based companies that build their own products and service based companies that build products for other companies. The rest of the document provides more details on specific roles and responsibilities in areas like ASIC design, FPGA design, EDA software, fabrication plants, and embedded systems. It lists the necessary skills for roles such as design engineers, verification engineers, EDA engineers, application engineers, and technical support. Finally, it discusses the growth prospects in the embedded systems domain.

1. Career Options for ECE Students
in VLSI and Embedded Domain

2. o Telecommunication
o Software Development
o Consumer Electronics
o Semiconductor
o Embedded Systems
o Etc.

3. o Product Based Company – Building their own
product and selling it in market
o Service Based company – Building product,
application or part of them, for other companies
and their clients

5. o Telecom equipment R&D, manufacturing
companies are purely under Embedded Systems
and VLSI Industry
o Telecom Equipments built on embedded
platforms with advanced micro processors called
network processors
Ex. Products: Modem, Routers, Switches, Firewalls etc
Ex. Companies: Agere Systems, Broadcom, Infineon and
Cisco etc.
o Monitoring Network 24x7
Ex: Airtel, Idea, Reliance, Tata Indicom etc

7. o EDA Company – Electronics Design Automation
Software development
Ex. Synopsys, Cadence, Mentor, Xilinx etc.
o ASIC Design Company – Application Specific
Integrated Circuit
Ex. Texas Instruments, Intel, Cisco, Xilinx, Altera etc.
o FPGA Design Company – Programmable Logic
Devices like FPGA and CPLD Design
Ex. Xilinx, Altera, Tejas Network, Cisco etc.
o Fab/Foundry – IC manufacturing/fabrication
Ex. Intel, STMicro, IBM, TSMC, UMC, TI and Samsung etc

8. 1. EDA
Flow
2. ASIC
Design Flow
3. PLDs Flow
(FPGA/CPLDs)
Frontend
Tools
Backend
Tools
VLSI
4. Chip
Fabrication
Frontend
Flow
Backend
Flow
Frontend
Flow
Backend
Flow

9. Physical design
Design
Architecture

10. Design
Architecture
Backend

11. o Software designed and developed to serve
ASIC Design, FPGA Design, Analog Mixed
signal and Circuit design community
o Software IP designs
o Etc.

12. o Specialization is required in Microelectronics
from some premier institutions
o Semiconductor fabrication plants (fab) is a
factory where devices such as integrated
circuits are manufactured

13. Design Engineers
•ASIC frontend designer
•FPGA frontend designer
•ASIC physical design engineer
•AMS (Analog Mixed Signal)
designer
•Library developer
•IP design engineer
Verification Engineers
•Front-end verification
engineer
•FPGA Back-end verification
engineer
•Physical design verification
engineer
•AMS verification engineer
•EDA tool validation engineer
•IP verification engineer
•Board validation engineer

14. EDA/CAD Engineers
•Software
Development
Engineer
•Software Test
Engineer
•Regression and
Automation
Engineer
•Build and Release
Engineer
Application
Engineers
•Field Application
Engineer (FAE)
•Corporate
Application
Engineer (CAE)
•Application
Engineer
Technical Support
•Tech Support
Engineer
•Product
Application
Engineer (PAE)

15. Reliability Engineer
Fab/Foundry Engineer
Marketing and Sales Executive

16. • Proficient in C, C++, Java
• Data Structures
• C/Java Debugger
• Understanding of ASIC/FPGA flow
• HDL (VHDL, Verilog, SV etc)
Knowledge
• Scripting Language CShell, Perl, Tcl
and Python etc
EDA/CAD
Engineer

17. •Proficient in Digital Electronics Design
•FPGA Architecture
•RTL coding using HDL (VHDL, Verilog, System
Verilog)
•Test bench writing using HDL
•Verification Methodologies like OVM, VMM
•Protocol knowledge
•Knowledge of ASIC/FPGA frontend tools (Synthesis,
Simulation, FV etc)
•Scripting Language CShell, Perl, Tcl and Python etc
•Knowledge of C
ASIC/FPGA
Frontend
Design &
Verification

18. •Exposure with Cadence, Magma or Synopsys backend
tools
•Digital circuit to transistor level design translation
•Floor planning, power grid analysis, placement and
routing
•CTS (clock tree synthesis), DRC-LVS (layout versus
schematic) closure, timing closure, signal integrity
•Layout design and verification
•Scripting Language like CShell, Perl and Tcl
•Knowledge of C
ASIC
Physical
Design &
Verification

19. •FPGA Architecture
•Exposure with FPGA backend tools
•Floor planning, power grid analysis,
placement and routing
•CTS (clock tree synthesis), timing closure,
signal integrity
•Debugging on FPGA board
•Scripting Language like CShell, Perl and Tcl
•Knowledge of C
FPGA
Backend
Design &
Verification

21. o Embedded system is combination of
hardware (micro-computer) and software,
either fixed in capability of programmable,
Specifically designed for particular
functionality
Ex applications: Industrial Machines, automobiles,
medical equipment, Space, cameras, household
appliances, agriculture, airplanes, vending
machines, cellular phone, PDA and toys etc.

22. •Automotive embedded (Includes robotics)
•Healthcare devices
•Telecommunications
(Mobiles,2G,3G,4G,LTE, Data
Communications)
•Satellite communications
•Avionics (Aeroplanes ...)
•Testing and Measurement
Sub
Domains

24. o Embedded systems opportunity is expected
to touch $36 billion in terms of the
semiconductors by 2015.
o The jobs in embedded space will increase
ten-fold from the current 60,000
professionals to over 6 lakh people by 2015.
-According to survey by Frost and Sullivan

26. Embedded Software Engineers
•System software engineer
(Kernel and RTOS)
•Application software engineer
(Device Drivers)
•Software test engineer
Embedded Hardware Engineers
•Hardware engineer
•Board (hardware) validation
engineer

27. Application
Engineers
• Application
Engineer
Technical
Support
• Tech Support
Engineer
• Product
Application
Engineer (PAE)
Marketing and
Sales
• Marketing
executive
• Sales
executive

28. Software/Programming Skills
• Proficient in C ad C++
• Data Structures
• C Debugger
• Kernel Programming
• Device Drivers
• Real Time Operating Systems
(RTOS)
• Creative Thinking (to automate
solution)
Hardware Skills
• Basic electrical, electronics
concepts
• Micro-computer/Microprocessor
architecture
• Microcontroller Programming
Environment
• Protocol knowledge
• Sensors, actuators and peripheral
hardware
• Electronic Circuit Board Design
and Troubleshooting