This book contains extended and revised versions of the best papers presented at the 24th IFIP WG 10.5/IEEE International Conference on Very Large Scale Integration, VLSI-SoC 2016, held in Tallinn, Estonia, in September 2016. The 11 papers included in the book were carefully reviewed and selected from the 36 full papers presented at the conference. The papers cover a wide range of topics in VLSI technology and advanced research. They address the latest scientific and industrial results and developments as well as future trends in the field of System-on-Chip (SoC) Design.
This book contains extended and revised versions of the best papers presented at the 25th IFIP WG 10.5/IEEE International Conference on Very Large Scale Integration, VLSI-SoC 2017, held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, in August 2017. The 11 papers included in this book were carefully reviewed and selected from the 33 full papers presented at the conference. The papers cover a wide range of topics in VLSI technology and advanced research. They address the latest scientific and industrial results and developments as well as future trends in the field of System-on-Chip (SoC) Design. On the occasion of the silver jubilee of the VLSI-SoC conference series the book also includes a special chapter that presents the history of the VLSI-SoC series of conferences and its relation with VLSI-SoC evolution since the early 80s up to the present.
Despite the growing mainstream importance and unique advantages of autonomic networking-on-chip (ANoC) technology, Autonomic Networking-On-Chip: Bio-Inspired Specification, Development, and Verification is among the first books to evaluate research results on formalizing this emerging NoC paradigm, which was inspired by the human nervous system. The FIRST Book to Assess Research Results, Opportunities, & Trends in "BioChipNets" The third book in the Embedded Multi-Core Systems series from CRC Press, this is an advanced technical guide and reference composed of contributions from prominent researchers in industry and academia around the world. A response to the critical need for a global information exchange and dialogue, it is written for engineers, scientists, practitioners, and other researchers who have a basic understanding of NoC and are now ready to learn how to specify, develop, and verify ANoC using rigorous approaches. Offers Expert Insights Into Technical Topics Including: Bio-inspired NoC How to map applications onto ANoC ANoC for FPGAs and structured ASICs Methods to apply formal methods in ANoC development Ways to formalize languages that enable ANoC Methods to validate and verify techniques for ANoC Use of "self-" processes in ANoC (self-organization, configuration, healing, optimization, protection, etc.) Use of calculi for reasoning about context awareness and programming models in ANoC With illustrative figures to simplify contents and enhance understanding, this resource contains original, peer-reviewed chapters reporting on new developments and opportunities, emerging trends, and open research problems of interest to both the autonomic computing and network-on-chip communities. Coverage includes state-of-the-art ANoC architectures, protocols, technologies, and applications. This volume thoroughly explores the theory behind ANoC to illustrate strategies that enable readers to use formal ANoC methods yet still make sound judgments and allow for reasonable justifications in practice.
Modern electronics testing has a legacy of more than 40 years. The introduction of new technologies, especially nanometer technologies with 90nm or smaller geometry, has allowed the semiconductor industry to keep pace with the increased performance-capacity demands from consumers. As a result, semiconductor test costs have been growing steadily and typically amount to 40% of today's overall product cost. This book is a comprehensive guide to new VLSI Testing and Design-for-Testability techniques that will allow students, researchers, DFT practitioners, and VLSI designers to master quickly System-on-Chip Test architectures, for test debug and diagnosis of digital, memory, and analog/mixed-signal designs. - Emphasizes VLSI Test principles and Design for Testability architectures, with numerous illustrations/examples. - Most up-to-date coverage available, including Fault Tolerance, Low-Power Testing, Defect and Error Tolerance, Network-on-Chip (NOC) Testing, Software-Based Self-Testing, FPGA Testing, MEMS Testing, and System-In-Package (SIP) Testing, which are not yet available in any testing book. - Covers the entire spectrum of VLSI testing and DFT architectures, from digital and analog, to memory circuits, and fault diagnosis and self-repair from digital to memory circuits. - Discusses future nanotechnology test trends and challenges facing the nanometer design era; promising nanotechnology test techniques, including Quantum-Dots, Cellular Automata, Carbon-Nanotubes, and Hybrid Semiconductor/Nanowire/Molecular Computing. - Practical problems at the end of each chapter for students.
This book describes the various tradeoffs systems designers face when designing embedded memory. Readers designing multi-core systems and systems on chip will benefit from the discussion of different topics from memory architecture, array organization, circuit design techniques and design for test. The presentation enables a multi-disciplinary approach to chip design, which bridges the gap between the architecture level and circuit level, in order to address yield, reliability and power-related issues for embedded memory.
This book provides readers with an up-to-date account of the use of machine learning frameworks, methodologies, algorithms and techniques in the context of computer-aided design (CAD) for very-large-scale integrated circuits (VLSI). Coverage includes the various machine learning methods used in lithography, physical design, yield prediction, post-silicon performance analysis, reliability and failure analysis, power and thermal analysis, analog design, logic synthesis, verification, and neuromorphic design. Provides up-to-date information on machine learning in VLSI CAD for device modeling, layout verifications, yield prediction, post-silicon validation, and reliability; Discusses the use of machine learning techniques in the context of analog and digital synthesis; Demonstrates how to formulate VLSI CAD objectives as machine learning problems and provides a comprehensive treatment of their efficient solutions; Discusses the tradeoff between the cost of collecting data and prediction accuracy and provides a methodology for using prior data to reduce cost of data collection in the design, testing and validation of both analog and digital VLSI designs. From the Foreword As the semiconductor industry embraces the rising swell of cognitive systems and edge intelligence, this book could serve as a harbinger and example of the osmosis that will exist between our cognitive structures and methods, on the one hand, and the hardware architectures and technologies that will support them, on the other....As we transition from the computing era to the cognitive one, it behooves us to remember the success story of VLSI CAD and to earnestly seek the help of the invisible hand so that our future cognitive systems are used to design more powerful cognitive systems. This book is very much aligned with this on-going transition from computing to cognition, and it is with deep pleasure that I recommend it to all those who are actively engaged in this exciting transformation. Dr. Ruchir Puri, IBM Fellow, IBM Watson CTO & Chief Architect, IBM T. J. Watson Research Center
This book examines the issue of design of fully-integrated frequency synthesizers suitable for system-on-a-chip (SOC) processors. This book takes a more global design perspective in jointly examining the design space at the circuit level as well as at the architectural level. The coverage of the book is comprehensive and includes summary chapters on circuit theory as well as feedback control theory relevant to the operation of phase locked loops (PLLs). On the circuit level, the discussion includes low-voltage analog design in deep submicron digital CMOS processes, effects of supply noise, substrate noise, as well device noise. On the architectural level, the discussion includes PLL analysis using continuous-time as well as discrete-time models, linear and nonlinear effects of PLL performance, and detailed analysis of locking behavior. The material then develops into detailed circuit and architectural analysis of specific clock generation blocks. This includes circuits and architectures of PLLs with high power supply noise immunity and digital PLL architectures where the loop filter is digitized. Methods of generating low-spurious sampling clocks for discrete-time analog blocks are then examined. This includes sigma-delta fractional-N PLLs, Direct Digital Synthesis (DDS) techniques and non-conventional uses of PLLs. Design for test (DFT) issues as they arise in PLLs are then discussed. This includes methods of accurately measuring jitter and built-in-self-test (BIST) techniques for PLLs. Finally, clocking issues commonly associated to system-on-a-chip (SOC) designs, such as multiple clock domain interfacing and partitioning, and accurate clock phase generation techniques using delay-locked loops (DLLs) are also addressed. The book provides numerous real world applications, as well as practical rules-of-thumb for modern designers to use at the system, architectural, as well as the circuit level. This book is well suited for practitioners as well as graduate level students who wish to learn more about time-domain analysis and design of frequency synthesis techniques.
This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Concept Mapping, CMC 2016, held in Tallinn, Estonia, in September 2016. The 25 revised full papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from 135 submissions. The papers address issues such as facilitation of learning; eliciting, capturing, archiving, and using “expert” knowledge; planning instruction; assessment of “deep” understandings; research planning; collaborative knowledge modeling; creation of “knowledge portfolios”; curriculum design; eLearning, and administrative and strategic planning and monitoring.
How should I prepare for a Digital VLSI Verification Interview? What all topics do I need to know before I turn up for an interview? What all concepts do I need to brush up? What all resources do I have at my disposal for preparation? What does an Interviewer expect in an Interview? These are few questions almost all individuals ponder upon before an interview. If you have these questions in your mind, your search ends here as keeping these questions in their minds, authors have written this book that will act as a golden reference for candidates preparing for Digital VLSI Verification Interviews. Aim of this book is to enable the readers practice and grasp important concepts that are applicable to Digital VLSI Verification domain (and Interviews) through Question and Answer approach. To achieve this aim, authors have not restricted themselves just to the answer. While answering the questions in this book, authors have taken utmost care to explain underlying fundamentals and concepts. This book consists of 500+ questions covering wide range of topics that test fundamental concepts through problem statements (a common interview practice which the authors have seen over last several years). These questions and problem statements are spread across nine chapters and each chapter consists of questions to help readers brush-up, test, and hone fundamental concepts that form basis of Digital VLSI Verification. The scope of this book however, goes beyond technical concepts. Behavioral skills also form a critical part of working culture of any company. Hence, this book consists of a section that lists down behavioral interview questions as well. Topics covered in this book:1. Digital Logic Design (Number Systems, Gates, Combinational, Sequential Circuits, State Machines, and other Design problems)2. Computer Architecture (Processor Architecture, Caches, Memory Systems)3. Programming (Basics, OOP, UNIX/Linux, C/C++, Perl)4. Hardware Description Languages (Verilog, SystemVerilog)5. Fundamentals of Verification (Verification Basics, Strategies, and Thinking problems)6. Verification Methodologies (UVM, Formal, Power, Clocking, Coverage, Assertions)7. Version Control Systems (CVS, GIT, SVN)8. Logical Reasoning/Puzzles (Related to Digital Logic, General Reasoning, Lateral Thinking)9. Non Technical and Behavioral Questions (Most commonly asked)In addition to technical and behavioral part, this book touches upon a typical interview process and gives a glimpse of latest interview trends. It also lists some general tips and Best-Known-Methods to enable the readers follow correct preparation approach from day-1 of their preparations. Knowing what an Interviewer looks for in an interviewee is always an icing on the cake as it helps a person prepare accordingly. Hence, authors of this book spoke to few leaders in the semiconductor industry and asked their personal views on "What do they look for while Interviewing candidates and how do they usually arrive at a decision if a candidate should be hired?". These leaders have been working in the industry from many-many years now and they have interviewed lots of candidates over past several years. Hear directly from these leaders as to what they look for in candidates before hiring them. Enjoy reading this book. Authors are open to your feedback. Please do provide your valuable comments, ratings, and reviews.
