category: EDA For Manufacturability

category: IoT, Security & Automotive

It’s Time to Bring GDS “Reality” Into Routing Closure
By Jean-Marie Brunet - 17 Jul, 2014 - Comments: 0

By Nancy Nguyen and Jean-Marie Brunet Imported cells, whether macros, standard cells, or intellectual property (IP), are a common element of today’s integrated circuit (IC) designs. Historically, when designers incorporate these cells into a design, they import them using an abstract format defined by a layout exchange format (LEF) file. This abstract view provides basic information about th... » read more

Designing And Testing FinFET-based IC Designs
By Mentor Graphics Staff Writers - 19 Jun, 2014 - Comments: 0

By Carey Robertson and Steve Pateras The emergence of FinFET transistors has had a significant impact on the IC physical design and design-for-test flows. The introduction of FinFETs means that CMOS transistors must be modeled as three-dimensional (3D) devices during the IC design process, with all the complexity and uncertainty this entails. The BSIM Group of the UC Berkeley Device Group has ... » read more

Self-Aligned Double Patterning, Part One
By David Abercrombie - 15 May, 2014 - Comments: 0

I’m sure most of you have seen a Rorschach test ink blot (Figure 1). Psychiatrists ask the subjects to tell them what they “see” in the ink blot. The answers are used to characterize the respondent’s personality and emotional functioning. I am never sure if I would feel more uncertain being the psychiatrist asking the question, or the subject trying to decide what to say, given there ar... » read more

Getting A Clearer Picture
By Geir Eide - 17 Apr, 2014 - Comments: 1

Scan test diagnosis is an established software-based methodology for localizing defects causing failures in digital semiconductor devices. Using structural test patterns (such as ATPG) and the design description, diagnosis turns failing test cycles into valuable data. Exactly how valuable this data is depends on the quality of the diagnosis results. A result that points to a small group of nets... » read more

When Order Matters
By David Abercrombie - 20 Mar, 2014 - Comments: 0

Do you brush your teeth before dinner? Put on your shoes before going to bed? Iron your clothes before you wash them? Okay, forget that last one. No one irons clothes anymore…do they? Anyway, my point is, if you want to achieve the best results from a process, order can be really important. And so it is with double patterning (DP) error debugging. As I’ve discussed, there are many types ... » read more

Does It Take A Catastrophe?
By Linda Prowse Fosler - 20 Feb, 2014 - Comments: 0

What makes a company search for new verification methods and tools? Sometimes organizations change, proactively, because they are wise and want to avoid problems; but sadly, more often it is a catastrophe that forces change. This was the case with a large U.S. supplier of safety-critical and high-reliability ICs. After a failed chip, it finally moved from simply verifying the analog and digi... » read more

The Trouble With Triples—Part 2
By David Abercrombie - 23 Jan, 2014 - Comments: 1

In my last blog, we started to look at some of the challenges of triple patterning (TP) compared to double patterning (DP). In particular, we looked at the algorithmic complexity of determining if a valid coloring solution exists, and if so, producing a three-mask decomposition. This time, let’s look into the challenges of what to do if a layout is not legally decomposable into three colors. ... » read more

Routing Closure Challenges At 28nm And Below
By Jean-Marie Brunet - 03 Jan, 2014 - Comments: 1

As I described in my last article, the gap between router tech files and signoff rule decks at 28 nm and below is generating some serious impacts on tapeout schedules. The mismatch between the router’s simplified tech file and the complex rules that represent the intricate manufacturing requirements at these leading-edge nodes means designs that come from the router “DRC/DFM-clean” will, ... » read more

The Trouble With Triples—Part 1
By David Abercrombie - 14 Nov, 2013 - Comments: 0

If you’re a true geek like me, you may remember the Star Trek episode “The Trouble with Tribbles,” about the cute furry little aliens that purr when you pet them. They seemed so nice and friendly on the surface, but in the end, they became an exponentially growing mass of ravenous monsters that almost broke down the ship and consumed the storehouse of grain that was meant to provide human... » read more

Reducing The Tapeout Crunch With Signoff Confidence
By Jean-Marie Brunet - 17 Oct, 2013 - Comments: 1

Crunch time—that last six to eight weeks before tapeout. There’s always too much to do, and too little time. No one wants problems at this stage, because problems mean changes, and changes mean delays. At leading-edge nodes, however, we’re running into some new problems that need new solutions. We all know design rule numbers and complexity are going through the roof as we try to use 1... » read more

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