Design for inherent manufacturability of electronic products

The principal goal of an integrated circuit DFM (design for manufacturing) initiative is to insure arrival at electrical circuit designs and packaged IC components which are inherently producible within the manufacturing environment. In order to achieve this objective the component design must, from early in the product concept phase, incorporate a full range of manufacturing production constraints and considerations. DFM not only implies designing for physical product fabrication but also must include design for testability, design for assembly or packaging, design for reliability and integration, and networking of all these areas. The key to the success of a DFM program lies in increased accuracy in the modeling of the process and product designs, product simulations, and effective manufacturing feedback of key parametric data. Factory fabrication efficiency increases as the design accuracy and tolerances increase. Statistically valid models, extracted from and representative of the controlled process, can be fed back to product designers via advanced CAD/CAM/CAE integrated systems, thus reducing design cycle times by limiting the design space to be explored in order to achieve a predetermined product yield.<>