Silicon compilation: the answer to reducing IC development costs

ABSTRACT

Developing today's increasingly large and complex digital integrated circuit (IC) and system-on-chip (SoC) devices is becoming cost-prohibitive in terms of engineering resources and development time. Packing the advanced functionality of a microprocessor, a graphics processor, or a network controller into a silicon die just 18 millimeters on a side is a complex undertaking that can require a 50-person engineering team and up to 4 million lines of HDL code. In these complex designs managing and minimizing power is becoming a huge challenge. Meanwhile, the cost of the mask set needed to drive the semiconductor production equipment stands at more than $1 million. Errors found after the mask set is created increase costs by an additional $1 million or more.