“The company specialises in programmable logic, one of the fastest-growing segments of the semiconductor industry. Xilinx designs the hardware and software behind Programmable Logic Devices (PLDs), which include Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs): chips which can be customised to perform specific functions. “FPGAs offer the highest amount of logic density, the most features, and the highest performance. These advanced devices also offer features such as built-in hardwired processors (such as the IBM Power PC), substantial amounts of memory, clock management systems, and support for many of the latest, very fast device-to-device signalling technologies. “These FPGAs have a wide variety of applications ranging from data processing and storage, to connectivity and networking, instrumentation, telecommunications, and digital signal processing. “Most people think of Xilinx in terms of the physical chips. As designs get increasingly complex and the FPGAs become more and more dense, manag