UMIPS: A Semiconductor IP Repository for IC Design Research and Education Lecturer Michael S. McCorquodale Authors Michael S. McCorquodale and Richard B. Brown Solid State Electronics Laboratory Center for Wireless Integrated Microsystems Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science University of Michigan Ann Arbor, MI USA American Society of Engineering Education Annual Conference, Salt Lake City, 2004

2 Presentation Outline Overview of Semiconductor IP Recent Research Founding UMIPS UMIPS Standards and Framework UMIPS in the Classroom Conclusion Overview Research UMIPS Standards Classroom Conclusion

3 Overview of Semiconductor IP Semiconductor IP: What is it? –Essentially blueprints or code which describe IC subcircuits –Typically IP is instantiated into larger IC designs –Reduces design cycle time –Focuses design effort on in-house expertise IP use now a cornerstone of commercial IC design –Many commercial resources –Almost no resources in the research environment Could IC research and coursework benefit from IP? Are the benefits of IP use tangible? Overview Research UMIPS Standards Classroom Conclusion

4 Overview of Semiconductor IP Semiconductor design-productivity gap –Design productivity increasing by ~28%/yr. –Capacity increasing by ~58%/yr. ASIC vs. SoC –ASIC productivity increased by 2.5X from –SoC productivity increased by 7X from Why the difference? –IP design and reuse Challenges –Need for repositories and standards –Need for analog/RF and mixed-signal IP –VCX, D&R, etc. exist for industry, what about the research community? UMIPS –University of Michigan Intellectual Property Source –Developed for all IC IP: digital, analog, RF, and MEMS IP Overview Research UMIPS Standards Classroom Conclusion

5 Recent Research Overview Research UMIPS Standards Classroom Conclusion Memory CMOS-MEMS CLK Ref. Memory Peripherals Pipeline Analog Front End Analog Test Cache 16-Bit MS MCU 16-bit low-power MCU 12-bit  -ADC Integrated RF-MEMS Clock Reference Physical Design TSMC 0.18  m MM/RF ~3.5 million transistors 12.8mm 2

6 Recent Research Overview Research UMIPS Standards Classroom Conclusion External Memory Memory Management Unit FetchDecodeExecute Register Files Boot ROM 64KB RAM Timer X2 USART X3 SPI X2 Test Int. ADC Int. Loop Cache CMOS-MEMS Clock Reference PGA Buffer V in+ V - Analog Front End  ADC

7 Founding UMIPS UMIPS Founding –Logical outgrowth of large scale VLSI projects at Michigan Previously described IP marked the founding contributions UMIPS Mission –UMIPS is a collaborative effort between Electrical Engineering and Computer Science students, faculty, and researchers to leverage each others’ integrated circuit development in the pursuit of cutting-edge microsystems and SoC research Motivation: Benefits of design reuse to research –Elimination of repetitive basic design activities –Focus IC design effort on novel research –Research IP repository can support many semiconductor technologies –Student experience with IP development –Potential for collaboration with IC design courses Overview Research UMIPS Standards Classroom Conclusion

8 Founding UMIPS: The Main Internet Portal Overview Research UMIPS Standards Classroom Conclusion

9 UMIPS Standards and Framework: Overview UMIPS is managed by founders at UMICH –Accessible by all researchers in the academic community –For noncommercial use only UMIPS submissions –Received and posted submissions from UMICH & other institutions Access –Main internet portal: –Nonproprietary descriptions of the IP components UMIPS IP Checkout –Submit a request for IP to the management team –Authentication information provided for the specific IP Overview Research UMIPS Standards Classroom Conclusion

10 UMIPS Standards and Framework: Supported IP UMIPS supported IP –Application formats: functional and structural –Delivery formats: hard, soft, and design methodology formats –Deliverables for each format described in references Organized by function and by process technology –All MOSIS supported processes –Future: UMIPS will support IP specific internal solid-state electronics laboratory as well as MEMS foundries Overview Research UMIPS Standards Classroom Conclusion

11 UMIPS Standards and Framework: Quality Control Pre-silicon verified –Simulation, extraction, and verification –Least rigorous Post-silicon verified –Verified by test –Most rigorous Uninstantiated –Has not been developed into larger project Instantiated –Has been developed into larger project –Indicates deliverables are indeed sufficient Overview Research UMIPS Standards Classroom Conclusion

12 UMIPS Standards and Framework: Challenges General Management Qualification and auditing –Most rigorous and time-consuming, but the most important –Automation of portions of these activities expected in the future Participation difficult to stimulate –Breadth of requirements for depositing IP into UMIPS –Award program: most highly utilized IP and the most novel IP submissions –Organic growth Technical challenges –Managing IP deliverables across various tool suites –Analog and digital design suites differ –Incompatible verification decks Overview Research UMIPS Standards Classroom Conclusion

13 UMIPS in the Classroom UMIPS presents unique classroom opportunity –Students design critical functional blocks as part of coursework –These blocks can be checked into UMIPS –Student researchers can check out blocks and fab them into designs Highlights –Students in the classroom can see their designs turn into Si and potentially gain authorship of published research –Researchers can focus design effort on their block –Researchers can solicit design projects from courses –Potential for collaboration between IC researchers and educators Targeted Courses –i.e. Monolithic Amplifier Circuits: Basic Op-Amp Project Overview Research UMIPS Standards Classroom Conclusion

14 Conclusion Clear benefits to IP use in IC development cycles Industry has developed many resources for IP use but research resources are immature UMIPS founded logically out of large VLSI design efforts at Michigan and extended to much broader scope UMIPS has received submissions from several universities and countries UMIPS IP has been utilized in several IC design cycles since its founding UMIPS aims to expand into the classroom both at Michigan and other interested Universities next year Overview Research UMIPS Standards Classroom Conclusion