On-demand DRC within P&R cuts closure time in half for MaxLinear

By TDF Editor |  No Comments  |  Posted: December 18, 2019
Topics/Categories: Design to Silicon, Blog - EDA  |  Tags: , , , , , , ,  | Organizations: ,

A newly published case study describes how MaxLinear’s digital design team was able to use the recently launched Calibre RealTime Digital suite to perform on-demand design rule checks (DRC) during place and route.

The company is a specialist in RF and AMS CMOS systems. The case study outlines how the tool was appllied during a DSP system-on-chip design that can help to deliver high-speed optical interconnect for the largest cloud and enterprise data centers. Such designs set a high bar for timing, reliability and manufacurability.

A key advantage for MaxLinear is that Calibre RealTime Digital allows engineers to perform DRC analysis without leaving the P&R environment and receive dynamic feedback as their work evolves. This can greatly speed up floorplanning and placement while improving the final results.

This feedback helps users catch issues that might be introduced by automated P&R, manual fixes, last-minute functional or timing ECO changes, and via swaps aimed at optimizing manufacturability.

A comparison of the Calibre RealTime Digital flow and a traditional P&R flow is shown in Figure 1.

Calibre RealTime Digital vs traditional place and route flow

Figure 1. Comparison of Calibre RealTime Digital and traditional place and route flows.

The case study describes how MaxLinear used the tool in the contexts of via selection, the avoidance of multi-patterning violations and to perform last-mile DRC closure (e.g., spacing violations and ECO errors).

MaxLinear says the process allowed it to meet its constraints and cut physical verification closure time in half for each design iteration at both established and advanced process nodes.

Faster sign-off DRC convergence plus design optimization for manufacturability is available for immediate download.

 

 

Comments are closed.

PLATINUM SPONSORS

Synopsys Cadence Design Systems Siemens EDA
View All Sponsors