RF and Analog IC design - end of year review

Leon Morrison, Senior Consultant, recently wrote the following newsletter for his contacts in the RF and Analog IC design community.

Once again the Merry (aka the Wet and Windy) Month of December is nearly upon us.  I thought this would be a good time to send the 2nd Annual Analog Almanac to our  Most Excellent and Revered RF and Analog IC design community. Any feedback, comments or questions would be most welcome.

The General Picture

Design activity and the demand for skills remains strong, with a wide range of companies throughout the UK and mainland Europe busy on new designs. At the recent Future Horizons IEF conference, Maria Marced (President of TSMC Europe) said that RF and Analog has grown from 60% to 80% of the European market since 2008 (note I’m not sure this included IP, as ARM and Imagination must make up a good chunk). See article below.

RF, Analog and Mixed Signal IC design skills are in high demand, with a current “spike” in CAD/PDK Support and Design Methodology positions. Layout requirements have been low for a number of months – this may be a natural design cycle, or a trend within companies to outsource / take on contractors – however there are 2 layout roles in the UK. I work closely with Dan and Tom in our contracts division so we offer full permanent and contract cover across Europe (and certain other international locations).

Specific Trends / Skills

1.   Over the last few years, as Analog design has evolved, some companies have become more specific about the “sector” experience they’re looking for. Currently three primary sectors of interest are:

• Power Management
• High Speed
• RF IC (High Frequency)

2.   New areas such as Smart Home, Remote Healthcare, Smart & Renewable Energy, Connected Car, etc. are driving Analog and RF skills demand. Of particular interest is the Internet of Things (IoT) (see another article below). Current demand is spread geographically:

• RFIC:    Cambridge, Thames Valley, Ireland, Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland
• Analog / Mixed Signal IC:   England, Scotland, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, France, even Malaysia and Singapore

3.   Some of the jobs we’re currently working on are in particularly interesting technology fields – 4 highlights include:

• Envelope Tracking – very challenging full custom Analog designs
• Imaging for space applications – client’s chip on Mars rover!
• NFC – creating new business models with smartphones
• LTE for next generation wireless communication

Work Permits
 

Certain countries seem to be waking up to the fact that they have a chronic skills shortage, so are slowly becoming more open to work permits. In the UK it is possible to obtain work permits but the bureaucracy and cost is making the majority of companies hesitant to undergo the process. Neil Dickins, a founder of IC Resources, has been asked to participate on an advisory board to the UK Border department, so if you have any comments or views on this issue please let us know.

IC Resources News

IC Resources (and the IC Group) has continued to grow over the last two years. We’re pleased to announce the addition of Peter Markl to the team, who will head up a new Munich office for us. Peter has more than 25 years of semiconductor experience.

We’ve also launched mobile websites – see www.ic-resources.com  on the move!

Recommendation Scheme

 

As always, we’re keen to hear from strong RF or Analog IC Design engineers as well as CAD/PDK and layout professionals. We hope that recommendations are made because you trust our service, but we should also say “thank you” in a concrete way. Therefore for anyone reading this newsletter we’re happy to raise the highest value our recommendation scheme to £1000 (depending on seniority).

Getting in Touch

Please get in touch if you have any questions or comments about this information, or about the market in general. I’d love to hear an update from you, either professional or personal.

All the best for December, the holidays (only 3 weeks away) and of course next year. And remember…..the REAL world is ANALOG.

Links:
Maria Marced / EIF:    Click here
Internet of Things:   Click here 
Leon Morrison: LinkedIn
Peter Markl: LinkedIn

 

Cheers, Leon
Senior Consultant
+44 20 8400 2483  | +44 20 8400 2444