Integrated Circuit Timing Analysis Using Cell Voltage-Frequency Sweep Lookup Tables
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for determining the highest working frequency of a processor are costly and inefficient, requiring completed product development and packaging, limiting design flexibility and convenience.
Innovation Solution
A method and device that perform a voltage-frequency sweep test on integrated circuit cells to generate parameters, create a lookup table, and analyze timing paths to predict operation parameters, allowing for quick and accurate prediction of integrated circuit performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If correlation detection is performed on the processor after product development and packaging to obtain the highest working frequency, then the accuracy of the operation parameter is improved, but the cost increases and the design flexibility decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs voltage-frequency sweep tests and establishes lookup tables during the product design stage before packaging, enabling early prediction of operation parameters. This preliminary action allows designers to evaluate different design schemes and select optimal configurations without waiting for post-packaging correlation detection, thereby improving design flexibility while maintaining prediction accuracy through the established lookup tables.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a test model that replicates the actual processor's circuit structure and characteristics. This virtual copy allows correlation detection and parameter measurement to be performed on the test model instead of the physical processor, enabling early-stage prediction without requiring the actual packaged product, thus preserving design flexibility while maintaining measurement accuracy.
2Measurement precision
If correlation detection is performed on the processor after product development and packaging to obtain the highest working frequency, then the accuracy of the operation parameter is improved, but the cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a test model as a virtual copy of the actual processor to perform correlation detection and parameter measurement. This eliminates the need for physical packaged processors during the testing phase, reducing material costs and manufacturing expenses while maintaining measurement accuracy through the faithful replication of circuit characteristics in the test model.
Solution Approach 2:
By performing voltage-frequency sweep tests and establishing lookup tables during the design stage rather than after packaging, the patent avoids the high costs associated with post-packaging correlation detection. The preliminary establishment of prediction models eliminates the need for expensive physical testing of packaged processors, thereby reducing overall development costs while maintaining prediction accuracy.
3Productivity
If voltage-frequency sweep test is performed on each cell through test model to generate parameters and establish lookup table, then the prediction speed is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the processor into multiple independent cells and performs voltage-frequency sweep tests on each cell separately through the test model. This segmentation allows for efficient, parallel data collection and lookup table generation, significantly improving prediction speed. The modular approach to testing individual cells rather than the entire processor reduces the overall complexity of the test system by breaking down the testing process into manageable, independent units.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for predicting an operation parameter of an integrated circuit includes the following steps. A plurality of cells used by the integrated circuit are provided. A voltage-frequency sweep test is performed on each of cells through a test model to generate a plurality of parameters, wherein the parameters correspond to a voltage value. A lookup table is established according to the parameters. A timing signoff corresponding to the integrated circuit is obtained. A timing analysis is performed on a plurality of timing paths of the integrated circuit according to the timing signoff and the parameters of the lookup table to obtain a critical timing path, and the operation parameter of the integrated circuit is predicted according to the critical timing path.