When the forebears of SystemVerilog and UVM were being created, the world was a different place. Verification was primarily directed testing and code coverage was good enough to signal completion. Development of directed tests was getting to be slow, cumbersome and difficult to maintain. Languages and tools were created that added the ability to randomize stimulus but that created two problems. First, you had no idea what a test had accomplished and second, you had no idea that the design had actually reacted in the right manner. Thus, two additional models became necessary: a combination of checkers and scoreboard and the coverage model. The big problem was, and remains, that the three models are independent models only unified by a thin layer of syntax.
Despite increasing costs of development, IC manufacturers are still making great strides.
The success and proliferation of integrated circuits has largely hinged on the ability of IC manufacturers to continue offering more performance and functionality for the money. Driving down the cost of ICs (on a per-function or per-performance basis) is inescapably tied to a growing arsenal of technologies and wafer-fab manufacturing disciplines as mainstream CMOS processes reach their theoretical, practical, and economic limits. Among the many levers being pulled by IC designers and manufacturers are: feature-size reductions, introduction of new materials and transistor structures, migration to larger-diameter silicon wafers, higher throughput in fab equipment, increased factory automation, three-dimensional integration of circuitry and chips, and advanced IC packaging and holistic system-driven design approaches.
For logic-oriented processes, companies are fabricating leading-edge devices such as high-performance microprocessors, low-power application processors, and other advanced logic devices using the 14nm and 10nm generations (Figure 1). There is more variety than ever among the processes companies offer, making it challenging to compare them in a fair and useful way. Moreover, “plus” or derivative versions of each process generation and half steps between major nodes have become regular occurrences.
San Jose should be hopping next week as chip design verification enthusiasts from all over arrive for the annual DVCon conference and exposition that runs Monday through Thursday, February 26-March 1, at the DoubleTree Hotel.
If you plan to attend, stop by our tabletop in the foyer directly across from the entrance to the exhibit area. You can find out about the ESD Alliance’s charter, programs, initiatives and ongoing events. Exhibitors and attendees can pick up copies of its latest newsletter and giveaways for members and companies interested in joining.
While Monday’s a full day of tutorials, attendees will stick around for the DVCon Expo and Reception that will be held from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. The exhibit floor is open Tuesday, February 27, and Wednesday, February 28, from 2:30 p.m. until 6 p.m. as well. The tutorial program continues Thursday.