Don’t Let X Be A Problem For Logic BIST


By Rahul Singhal and Giri Podichetty A failure in the operation of integrated circuits (ICs) or chips deployed in safety-critical applications such as automotive, medical, and aerospace could have catastrophic consequences. These failures could stem from defects in the chip that escaped manufacturing tests or from transient faults that can occur during system operation due to factors such as... » read more

Week in Review: IoT, Security, Auto


Internet of Things Smart-building technology is a factor in marketing new facilities to prospective tenants. The new Cambridge Crossing development in Cambridge, Mass., aspires to attract tech-oriented tenants much like nearby Kendall Square, this analysis notes. Philips has agreed to lease seven floors in Cambridge Crossing’s first office building, making that location its North American he... » read more

Blog Review: April 2


Mentor’s Nazita Saye compares roadway roundabouts to networked systems. One roundabout works fine, but add in a bunch of them and you have a massive traffic jam. How many roundabouts are in your design? Cadence’s Richard Goering interviews Stan Kroliskoski, chair of the IEEE Design Automation Standards Committee, about four working groups on EDA standards and what’s ahead. Speaking ... » read more

Tech Talk: Dealing With The Unknowns


Rebecca Lipon, senior product marketing manager for verification at Synopsys, discusses the problematic X's and where verification teams typically make mistakes in trying to eliminate the false X's from their designs. Power emerges as the biggest problem. [youtube vid=Iym4ITWJJrs] » read more

Low Power Verification – “X” Marks the Spot


Welcome to a new discussion on a range of topics we think will be interesting to folks who design and verify SoCs. Though the name of this blog denotes two top attributes of SoCs—IP implementation and the pervasive need for low power (LP), we certainly may go far beyond the scope of these topics in upcoming posts. We’ll start with a topic on the LP side, and going forward we’ll alternate ... » read more

Unknown Signoff


In last month’s blog, Pranav Ashar, CTO at [getentity id="22416" e_name="Real Intent"], pointed out that the management of unknowns (X’s) in simulation has become a separate verification concern of signoff proportions. Modern power management schemes affect how designs are reset (start). X management and reset analysis are interrelated because many of the X’s in simulation come from unini... » read more