ECE330 SoC CAD Lab

The goals of the course include (1) the presentation and in-depth discussion of industrial design implementation and test methodologies for Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASIC), (2) getting to grips with the relevant theoretical and practical issues, processes and flow standards, and (3) gaining practical experience actually using industrial ASIC design tools.

In the course, industrial design and implementation tools are presented, which begin with the circuit in High Level Description (HDL) format, and produce a complete floorplanning and placement of the circuit in the form (GDSII) needed for delivery at a fab.

The course syllabus will enable the student, upon its completion, to:

• familiarize themselves with industrial flows for circuit design, from RTL to GDSII
• be able to use industrial design tools as an experienced user, and to comprehend changes undergone by the circuit while optimized for area, performance or power consumption
• gain insight into the design issues of timing, performance, power consumption, verification and test
• become knowledgeable enough so as to be able to work as a junior VLSI engineer in an corporate environment using CAD tools