Modern VLSI Design: System-on-Chip Design, Third Edition

2Transistors and Layout

Highlights:

Fabrication methods.

Transistor structures.

Characteristics of transistors and wires.

Design rules.

Layout design.

2.1 Introduction

We will start our study of VLSI design by learning about transistors and wires and how they are fabricated. The basic properties of transistors are clearly important for logic design. Going beyond a minimally-functional logic circuit to a high-performance design requires the consideration of parasitic circuit elements—capacitance and resistance. Those parasitics are created as necessary by-products of the fabrication process which creates the wires and transistors, which gives us a very good reason to understand the basics of how integrated circuits are fabricated. ...