Replay‑based Validation as a Scalable Methodology for Chiplet‑based Systems (Intel, Synopsys)


A new technical paper, "ODIN-Based CPU-GPU Architecture with Replay-Driven Simulation and Emulation," was published by researchers at Intel, Nvidia and Synopsys. Abstract "Integration of CPU and GPU technologies is a key enabler for modern AI and graphics workloads, combining control-oriented processing with massive parallel compute capability. As systems evolve toward chiplet-based archite... » read more

Heterogeneous Multicore System IP


For many of today’s embedded applications, compute requirements demand multiple cores (compute units). These applications also run various types of workloads. A heterogeneous multicore system enables designers to reduce energy and area costs while meeting performance requirements across various workloads. Data crunching by these multiple cores also puts a huge demand on the interconnect and m... » read more

Software-Defined Hardware-Assisted Verification: Scaling To Quadrillions Of Cycles For Verification In The AI Era


The semiconductor industry is at an inflection point. The convergence of advanced multi-die architectures, AI-driven workloads, and rapidly evolving interface protocols is creating unprecedented design complexity. At the same time, market pressures demand faster time-to-market and higher performance, leaving little room for error. From data center to edge developments, users have to run softwar... » read more

Benchmark Before You Build


Traditional verification methods, static analysis, RTL simulation and emulation have long depended on constrained-random or targeted test suites to confirm that a design operates as intended. However, none of these approaches accurately reproduce how real users will interact with the silicon once it’s deployed in phones, datacenters, or embedded systems. To stay competitive, the semiconductor... » read more

Locking When Emulating Xtensa LX Multi-Core On A Xilinx FPGA


Today's high-performance computing systems often require the designer to instantiate multiple CPU or DSP cores in their subsystem. However, the performance gained by using multiple CPUs comes with additional programming complexity, especially when accessing shared memory data structures and hardware peripherals. CPU cores need to access shared data in an atomic fashion in a multi-core environme... » read more

Accelerating The Pace And Precision Of AI Chip Innovation


The Hot Chips 2024 conference, which took place this week in Silicon Valley, was a showcase for AI chip innovation. The three-day program illustrated the race among both established chipmakers and new entrants to explore advanced architectures and embrace novel design solutions to deliver the next breakthrough AI processor. In this article, I share a few “hot takes” from the conference that... » read more

Communication Is Key To Finding And Fixing Bugs In ICs


Experts at the Table: Finding and eliminating bugs at the source can be painstaking work, but it also can prevent even greater problems from developing later on. To examine the best ways to tackle this problem, Semiconductor Engineering sat down with Ashish Darbari, CEO at Axiomise; Ziyad Hanna, corporate vice president R&D at Cadence; Jim Henson, ASIC verification software product manager ... » read more

Engineers Or Their Tools: Which Is Responsible For Finding Bugs?


Experts at the table: Finding and eliminating bugs at the source can be painstaking work, but it can prevent bigger problems later in the design flow, when they are more difficult and expensive to fix.  Semiconductor Engineering sat down to discuss these issues with Ashish Darbari, CEO at Axiomise; Ziyad Hanna, corporate vice president R&D at Cadence; Jim Henson, ASIC verification software... » read more

Complex Safety Mechanisms Require Interoperability And Automation For Validation And Metric Closure


The race to autonomous mobility among the automobile manufacturers is driving the evolution of the underlying semiconductors. As a result, semiconductor technologies are moving towards higher densities and lower operating voltages, and this migration is introducing increasing sensitivity to random hardware failures – the failures which occur unpredictably over a semiconductor’s lifetime. Mo... » read more

FPGA-Based HW/SW Platform For Pre-Silicon Emulation Of RISC-V Designs (Barcelona Supercomputing Center)


A technical paper titled “Makinote: An FPGA-Based HW/SW Platform for Pre-Silicon Emulation of RISC-V Designs” was published by researchers at Barcelona Supercomputing Center and Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya. Abstract: "Emulating chip functionality before silicon production is crucial, especially with the increasing prevalence of RISC-V-based designs. FPGAs are promising candidate... » read more

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