YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 30, NOYAN TAPAN. The Third Annual Armenian Microelectronics Olympiad, held earlier in September 2008 in Yerevan, included 115 competitors, including 32 participants from Gyumri, NT was informed by Gayane Markosyan, PR officer of the Olympiad's chief sponsor - Synopsys Armenia company, Armenian branch of Synopsys, Inc., a world leader in software and IP for semiconductor design and manufacturing. The Olympiad was conducted in two stages. The first stages were held on September 16 in Gyumri and on September 18 in Yerevan and took the form of a test involving a number of basic tasks. The top contestants were admitted to the second stage, which involved a challenging contest and complex tasks requiring advanced solutions. Of the 115 participants in the first stage (15 of them from Gyumri), 49 passed to the second stage (8 of them from Gyumri). The Olympiad reflects the growing development of microelectronics design in Armenia by putting the spotlight on Armenia's brightest and most talented engineers under the age of 30. The competition's goals are to stimulate interest in microelectronics design, add the element of competition to the educational process, and determine these young engineers' depth of knowledge in order to adjust future educational programs if necessary. Olympiad topics included Digital IC Design and Testing, Analog and Mixed-Signal IC Design and Testing, Semiconductor Devices and Technology, and Mathematical and Algorithmic Issues of Electronic Design Automation (EDA). Synopsys held an evening reception to announce the final winners. Six prizes were given for the following categories: Notebook computer to the winner; 300,000 AMD to each of two winners; 150,000 AMD to each of three winners. Prizes were also awarded in a number of sponsored categories: Most Efficient Approach; Most Creative Approach; Best Engineering Solution; Best Out-of-the-Box Solution; Youngest Participant; Best Result among Female Participants; Best Result among Participants from Gyumri; Best Result from Radio Frequency Circuits. Olympiad Sponsors were: Synopsys Armenia CJSC, K-Telecom (VIVACELL-MTS), Virage Logic Corporation, Unicomp CJSC, MICROSOFT RA, ACBA Bank, "Enterprise Incubator" Foundation (EIF), USAID CAPS, APAVEN LLC, Viasphere Technopark CJSC, Union of Manufacturers & Businessmen of Armenia (UMBA), Union of Information Technology Enterprises (UITE), ARMINCO CJSC, Yerkir Media TV, N-Sourcer TM Art Sight LLC, ARCA Agency, "ECOnomics" Magazine, "Media style" Holding, "168 Hours" Daily, and "Business Express" Weekly. It should be mentioned that the First Armenian Microelectronics Olympiad was held on September 22-26, 2006. Eighty-two participants took part in the first stage, 32 of which passed to the second stage. The Second Annual Armenian Microelectronics Olympiad was held on September 18-26, 2007. One hundred and eighteen participants took part in the first stage, 48 of which passed to the second stage.

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