System-on-Chip Technologies

This course provides basics, current trends and challenges in the development of digital system-on-chip (SoC). We start with the main steps for building arbitrary CMOS-based combinatorial logic and sequential digital data processing and control circuitry (e.g. Finite State Machines) and explaining their role and significance in the scope of key system-on-chip components: microprocessors, memories and interconnects. The microarchitectural structure and building blocks of processor elements (RISC cores), on-/off-chip memory technology (SRAM, DRAM, Flash), bus and point-to-point interconnect standards (Processor Local Bus, Advanced Microcontroller Bus Architecture, FIFO) as well as the design of communications specific arithmetic blocks (adder, multipliers, shift and comparators) will be introduced and analyzed. Finally, we will introduce main implementation methods for SoCs, such as FPGA, standard cell and full custom design, and discuss methods for low power design, which is vital for the development of SoCs in embedded systems.

At the end of the module students are able to analyze and evaluate the structure and operation of systems-on-chip, including its main building blocks, e.g. processor, on-/off-chip memories, and interconnect, as well as implementation methods and techniques for low power consumption.

Bachelor courses on semiconductor devices and digital circuits, basics in computer architecture

Lecture material is accompanied by corresponding tutorials.
Students will analyze technical publications (as distributed during the course) like data-sheets as representation of building blocks and for usage in own developments of building blocks during the tutorials.

- Presentations
- Lecture notes
- Exercises with solutions as download

- J. Hennessy, "Computer Architecture. A Quantitative Approach", Elsevier
- J. Rabaey, "Digital Integrated Circuits", Prentice Hall
- N. Weste, K. Eshraghian, "Principles of CMOS VLSI Design", Addison Wesley

The module exam is a written exam (75 min).
Students demonstrate that they have gained both fundamental and deeper understanding in various aspects of System on Chip Technologies and their analysis, from combinatorial logic to complete Embedded Systems. They have to answer the questions with self-formulated responses, checking boxes of multiple choice questions, sketch circuit or qualitative performance diagrams and do quantitative calculations. The allowed support material is constraint to a single sheet, individually prepared reminder notice.