Since register transfer level (RTL) design is less about being a bright engineer, and more about knowing the downstream implications of your work, this book explains the impact of design decisions taken that may give rise later in the product lifecycle to issues related to testability, data synchronization across clock domains, synthesizability, power consumption, routability, etc., all which are a function of the way the RTL was originally written. Readers will benefit from a highly practical approach to the fundamentals of these topics, and will be given clear guidance regarding necessary safeguards to observe during RTL design.

The first edition of Principles of Verifiable RTL Design offered a common sense method for simplifying and unifying assertion specification by creating a set of predefined specification modules that could be instantiated within the designer's RTL. Since the release of the first edition, an entire industry-wide initiative for assertion specification has emerged based on ideas presented in the first edition. This initiative, known as the Open Verification Library Initiative (www.verificationlib.org), provides an assertion interface standard that enables the design engineer to capture many interesting properties of the design and precludes the need to introduce new HDL constructs (i.e., extensions to Verilog are not required). Furthermore, this standard enables the design engineer to `specify once,' then target the same RTL assertion specification over multiple verification processes, such as traditional simulation, semi-formal and formal verification tools. The Open Verification Library Initiative is an empowering technology that will benefit design and verification engineers while providing unity to the EDA community (e.g., providers of testbench generation tools, traditional simulators, commercial assertion checking support tools, symbolic simulation, and semi-formal and formal verification tools). The second edition of Principles of Verifiable RTL Design expands the discussion of assertion specification by including a new chapter entitled `Coverage, Events and Assertions'. All assertions exampled are aligned with the Open Verification Library Initiative proposed standard. Furthermore, the second edition provides expanded discussions on the following topics: start-up verification; the place for 4-state simulation; race conditions; RTL-style-synthesizable RTL (unambiguous mapping to gates); more `bad stuff'. The goal of the second edition is to keep the topic current. Principles of Verifiable RTL Design, A Functional Coding Style Supporting Verification Processes, Second Edition tells you how you can write Verilog to describe chip designs at the RTL level in a manner that cooperates with verification processes. This cooperation can return an order of magnitude improvement in performance and capacity from tools such as simulation and equivalence checkers. It reduces the labor costs of coverage and formal model checking by facilitating communication between the design engineer and the verification engineer. It also orients the RTL style to provide more useful results from the overall verification process.

This book is a comprehensive guide to new DFT methods that will show the readers how to design a testable and quality product, drive down test cost, improve product quality and yield, and speed up time-to-market and time-to-volume. - Most up-to-date coverage of design for testability. - Coverage of industry practices commonly found in commercial DFT tools but not discussed in other books. - Numerous, practical examples in each chapter illustrating basic VLSI test principles and DFT architectures.

Are you an RTL or system designer that is currently using, moving, or planning to move to an HLS design environment? Finally, a comprehensive guide for designing hardware using C++ is here. Michael Fingeroff's High-Level Synthesis Blue Book presents the most effective C++ synthesis coding style for achieving high quality RTL. Master a totally new design methodology for coding increasingly complex designs! This book provides a step-by-step approach to using C++ as a hardware design language, including an introduction to the basics of HLS using concepts familiar to RTL designers. Each chapter provides easy-to-understand C++ examples, along with hardware and timing diagrams where appropriate. The book progresses from simple concepts such as sequential logic design to more complicated topics such as memory architecture and hierarchical sub-system design. Later chapters bring together many of the earlier HLS design concepts through their application in simplified design examples. These examples illustrate the fundamental principles behind C++ hardware design, which will translate to much larger designs. Although this book focuses primarily on C and C++ to present the basics of C++ synthesis, all of the concepts are equally applicable to SystemC when describing the core algorithmic part of a design. On completion of this book, readers should be well on their way to becoming experts in high-level synthesis.

Principles of Asynchronous Circuit Design - A Systems Perspective addresses the need for an introductory text on asynchronous circuit design. Part I is an 8-chapter tutorial which addresses the most important issues for the beginner, including how to think about asynchronous systems. Part II is a 4-chapter introduction to Balsa, a freely-available synthesis system for asynchronous circuits which will enable the reader to get hands-on experience of designing high-level asynchronous systems. Part III offers a number of examples of state-of-the-art asynchronous systems to illustrate what can be built using asynchronous techniques. The examples range from a complete commercial smart card chip to complex microprocessors. The objective in writing this book has been to enable industrial designers with a background in conventional (clocked) design to be able to understand asynchronous design sufficiently to assess what it has to offer and whether it might be advantageous in their next design task.

One of the main problems in chip design is the enormous number of possible combinations of individual chip elements within a system, and the problem of their compatibility. The recent application of data structures, efficient algorithms, and ordered binary decision diagrams (OBDDs) has proven vital in designing the computer chips of tomorrow. This book provides an introduction to the foundations of this interdisciplinary research area, emphasizing its applications in computer aided circuit design.

Master digital design with VLSI and Verilog using this up-to-date and comprehensive resource from leaders in the field Digital VLSI Design Problems and Solution with Verilog delivers an expertly crafted treatment of the fundamental concepts of digital design and digital design verification with Verilog HDL. The book includes the foundational knowledge that is crucial for beginners to grasp, along with more advanced coverage suitable for research students working in the area of VLSI design. Including digital design information from the switch level to FPGA-based implementation using hardware description language (HDL), the distinguished authors have created a one-stop resource for anyone in the field of VLSI design. Through eleven insightful chapters, youll learn the concepts behind digital circuit design, including combinational and sequential circuit design fundamentals based on Boolean algebra. Youll also discover comprehensive treatments of topics like logic functionality of complex digital circuits with Verilog, using software simulators like ISim of Xilinx. The distinguished authors have included additional topics as well, like: A discussion of programming techniques in Verilog, including gate level modeling, model instantiation, dataflow modeling, and behavioral modeling A treatment of programmable and reconfigurable devices, including logic synthesis, introduction of PLDs, and the basics of FPGA architecture An introduction to System Verilog, including its distinct features and a comparison of Verilog with System Verilog A project based on Verilog HDLs, with real-time examples implemented using Verilog code on an FPGA board Perfect for undergraduate and graduate students in electronics engineering and computer science engineering, Digital VLSI Design Problems and Solution with Verilogalso has a place on the bookshelves of academic researchers and private industry professionals in these fields.

A comprehensive resource on Verilog HDL for beginners and experts Large and complicated digital circuits can be incorporated into hardware by using Verilog, a hardware description language (HDL). A designer aspiring to master this versatile language must first become familiar with its constructs, practice their use in real applications, and apply them in combinations in order to be successful. Design Through Verilog HDL affords novices the opportunity to perform all of these tasks, while also offering seasoned professionals a comprehensive resource on this dynamic tool. Describing a design using Verilog is only half the story: writing test-benches, testing a design for all its desired functions, and how identifying and removing the faults remain significant challenges. Design Through Verilog HDL addresses each of these issues concisely and effectively. The authors discuss constructs through illustrative examples that are tested with popular simulation packages, ensuring the subject matter remains practically relevant. Other important topics covered include: Primitives Gate and Net delays Buffers CMOS switches State machine design Further, the authors focus on illuminating the differences between gate level, data flow, and behavioral styles of Verilog, a critical distinction for designers. The book's final chapters deal with advanced topics such as timescales, parameters and related constructs, queues, and switch level design. Each chapter concludes with exercises that both ensure readers have mastered the present material and stimulate readers to explore avenues of their own choosing. Written and assembled in a paced, logical manner, Design Through Verilog HDL provides professionals, graduate students, and advanced undergraduates with a one-of-a-kind resource.

Uses Verilog HDL to illustrate computer architecture and microprocessor design, allowing readers to readily simulate and adjust the operation of each design, and thus build industrially relevant skills Introduces the computer principles, computer design, and how to use Verilog HDL (Hardware Description Language) to implement the design Provides the skills for designing processor/arithmetic/cpu chips, including the unique application of Verilog HDL material for CPU (central processing unit) implementation Despite the many books on Verilog and computer architecture and microprocessor design, few, if any, use Verilog as a key tool in helping a student to understand these design techniques A companion website includes color figures, Verilog HDL codes, extra test benches not found in the book, and PDFs of the figures and simulation waveforms for instructors

The skills and guidance needed to master RTL hardware design This book teaches readers how to systematically design efficient, portable, and scalable Register Transfer Level (RTL) digital circuits using the VHDL hardware description language and synthesis software. Focusing on the module-level design, which is composed of functional units, routing circuit, and storage, the book illustrates the relationship between the VHDL constructs and the underlying hardware components, and shows how to develop codes that faithfully reflect the module-level design and can be synthesized into efficient gate-level implementation. Several unique features distinguish the book: * Coding style that shows a clear relationship between VHDL constructs and hardware components * Conceptual diagrams that illustrate the realization of VHDL codes * Emphasis on the code reuse * Practical examples that demonstrate and reinforce design concepts, procedures, and techniques * Two chapters on realizing sequential algorithms in hardware * Two chapters on scalable and parameterized designs and coding * One chapter covering the synchronization and interface between multiple clock domains Although the focus of the book is RTL synthesis, it also examines the synthesis task from the perspective of the overall development process. Readers learn good design practices and guidelines to ensure that an RTL design can accommodate future simulation, verification, and testing needs, and can be easily incorporated into a larger system or reused. Discussion is independent of technology and can be applied to both ASIC and FPGA devices. With a balanced presentation of fundamentals and practical examples, this is an excellent textbook for upper-level undergraduate or graduate courses in advanced digital logic. Engineers who need to make effective use of today's synthesis software and FPGA devices should also refer to this book.