Synthesis of Arithmetic Circuits: FPGA, ASIC and Embedded Systems

9.1 DESIGN METHODS FOR ELECTRONIC SYSTEMS

With the passing of time, integrated circuit (IC) technology has provided a variety of implementation formats for system designers. The implementation format defines the technology to be used, how the switching elements are organized and how the system functionality will be materialized. The implementation format also affects the way systems are designed and sets the limits of the system complexity. Today the majority of IC systems are based on complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) technology. In modern digital systems, CMOS switching elements are prominent in implementing basic Boolean functions such as AND, OR, and NOT. With respect to the organization of switching elements, regularity and granularity of elements are essential parameters. The regularity has a strong impact on the design effort, because the reusability of a fairly regular design can be very simple. The problem raised by the regularity is that the structure may limit the usability and the performances of the resource. The granularity expresses the level of functionality encapsulated into one design object. Examples of fine-grain, medium-grain, and coarse-grain are logic gates, arithmetic and logic units (ALUs), and intellectual property components (processor, network interfaces, etc.), respectively. The granularity affects the number of required design objects and, thereby, the required design or integration effort.

Depending on how often the structure of the system ...