A silicon compiler is a

software system A software system is a system of intercommunicating components based on software forming part of a computer system (a combination of hardware and software). It "consists of a number of separate programs, configuration files, which are used to se ...

that takes a user's specifications and automatically generates an

integrated circuit An integrated circuit or monolithic integrated circuit (also referred to as an IC, a chip, or a microchip) is a set of electronic circuits on one small flat piece (or "chip") of semiconductor material, usually silicon. Large numbers of tiny ...

(IC). The process is sometimes referred to as

hardware compilation In computer engineering, logic synthesis is a process by which an abstract specification of desired circuit behavior, typically at register transfer level (RTL), is turned into a design implementation in terms of logic gates, typically by a comp ...

. Silicon compilation takes place in three major steps: * Convert a hardware-description language such as

Verilog Verilog, standardized as IEEE 1364, is a hardware description language (HDL) used to model electronic systems. It is most commonly used in the design and verification of digital circuits at the register-transfer level of abstraction. It is also ...

VHDL The VHSIC Hardware Description Language (VHDL) is a hardware description language (HDL) that can model the behavior and structure of digital systems at multiple levels of abstraction, ranging from the system level down to that of logic gates ...

into logic (typically in the form of a "

netlist In electronic design, a netlist is a description of the connectivity of an electronic circuit. In its simplest form, a netlist consists of a list of the electronic components in a circuit and a list of the nodes they are connected to. A network ...

"). * Place equivalent

logic gate A logic gate is an idealized or physical device implementing a Boolean function, a logical operation performed on one or more binary inputs that produces a single binary output. Depending on the context, the term may refer to an ideal logic gate, ...

s on the IC. Silicon compilers typically use standard-cell libraries so that they do not have to worry about the actual integrated-circuit layout and can focus on the placement. * Routing the standard cells together to form the desired logic. Silicon compilation was first described in 1979 by David L. Johannsen, under the guidance of his thesis adviser,

Carver Mead Carver Andress Mead (born May 1, 1934) is an American scientist and engineer. He currently holds the position of Gordon and Betty Moore Professor Emeritus of Engineering and Applied Science at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), ...

.Johannsen, D. L., "Bristle Blocks: A Silicon Compiler," Proceedings 16th Design Automation Conference, 310–313, June 1979. Johannsen, Mead, and Edmund K. Cheng subsequently founded Silicon Compilers Inc. (SCI) in 1981. Edmund Cheng designed an Ethernet Data Link Controller chipEdmund K. Cheng, "The Design of an Ethernet Data Link Controller Chip", 26th IEEE Computer Society International Conference, COMPCON Spring 83, San Francisco, Feb 25-Mar 3, 1983, pp. 157–160. in 1981–82 using structured design methodology, in order to drive the software and circuit-library development at SCI. The project went from concept to chip specification in 3 months, and from chip specification to tape-out in 5 months. Fabricated using a 3-

micron The micrometre ( international spelling as used by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures; SI symbol: μm) or micrometer (American spelling), also commonly known as a micron, is a unit of length in the International System of Unit ...

NMOS process, the chip measured 50,600 square mils in die area, and was being marketed and manufactured in volume-production by 1983 under license from SCI.

John Wawrzynek John Wawrzynek is Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of California at Berkeley. He holds a joint appointment with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), ...

at Caltech used some of the earliest silicon compilers in 1982 as part of the "Yet Another Processor Project" (YAPP). "Silicon compilers and foundries will usher in user-designed VLSI" article by Carver A. Mead and George Lewicki. Caltech. "Electronics" magazine 1982 Aug 11. In 1983–84, the SCI team designed and implemented the data-path chip used in the

MicroVAX The MicroVAX is a discontinued family of low-cost minicomputers developed and manufactured by Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC). The first model, the MicroVAX I, was introduced in 1983.(announced October 1983) They used processors that implemen ...

in seven months. MicroVAX's data-path chip contains the entire 32-bit processor, except its microcode store and control-store sequencer, and contains 37,000 transistors. At the time, chips with similar levels of complexity required about 3 years to design and implement. Including those seven months,

Digital Equipment Corporation Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC ), using the trademark Digital, was a major American company in the computer industry from the 1960s to the 1990s. The company was co-founded by Ken Olsen and Harlan Anderson in 1957. Olsen was president unt ...

completed the design and implementation of the MicroVAX within one year. "Silicon compiler lets systems engineers design their own VLSI chips", article by Stephen C. Johnson of Silicon Compilers Inc. in "Electronic Design" magazine, October 4, 1984, pp. 167–181.

References

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Definition
from ''

PC Magazine ''PC Magazine'' (shortened as ''PCMag'') is an American computer magazine published by Ziff Davis. A print edition was published from 1982 to January 2009. Publication of online editions started in late 1994 and have continued to the present d ...

''
Computer Aids for VLSI Design by Steven M. Rubin

Hardware compilation information

Electronic design automation Computing terminology

See also

References

External links