International Business Machines Corporation

Ricardo H Nigaglioni

Sourav Saha

Christopher J Berry

Pinaki Chakrabarti

Kaustav Guha

Haifeng Qian

Sridhar H Rangarajan

George Antony

Vinay K Singh

David James Hathaway

William Vincent Huott

James Douglas Warnock

Arun Joseph

Nagashyamala R Dhanwada

Arjen Alexander Mets

Charudhattan Nagarajan

Hagen Schmidt

Gaurav Mittal

Yiu-Hing Chan

William W Dungan

Hameedbasha Shaik

Wilhelm Ernst Haller

Bao G Truong

Michael J Lee

Mark D Mayo

Eddie K Chan

Hartmut Sturm

Generating a contributor-based power abstract for a device, including: identifying a clock power component for each of a plurality of clock gating domains, identifying a switching characteristic for each of the clock gating domains, combining the switching characteristics for all of the clock gating domains into a domain combination list, performing a per-case simulation based at least on the domain combination list, calculating an effective capacitance for each of the clock gating domains based at least on the per-case simulation, and generating a power abstract for each of the clock gating domains based at least on the effective capacitance.

Methods for generating a contributor-based power abstract for a device

A method and system to identify a region of a design block of an integrated circuit for redesign are described. The method includes dividing the design block into grids, each of the grids including a corresponding number of logic elements. The method also includes filtering each of the grids based on a specified criteria, the filtering including determining a number (B) of the corresponding logic elements among a total number (A) of the logic elements in each grid that meet the specified criteria. The region is a set of two or more of the grids based on a result of the filtering.

Critical region identification

Embodiments relate to cross-hierarchy interconnect adjustment. An aspect includes receiving chip layout data corresponding to a chip design, wherein a first portion of a metal stack of the chip design is assigned to a first hierarchy and a second portion of the metal stack is assigned to a second hierarchy based on a contract between the first and second hierarchy. Another aspect includes determining an unused portion of the first portion of the metal stack. Another aspect includes moving an interconnect of the second hierarchy from the second portion of the metal stack that is assigned to the second hierarchy to the unused portion of the first portion of the metal stack in the chip layout data. Another aspect includes performing power recovery on the chip layout data after moving the interconnect based on an amount of slack margin generated in the chip design by the moving of the interconnect.

Cross-hierarchy interconnect adjustment for power recovery

Aspects include a computer-implemented method for initializing scannable and non-scannable latches from a clock buffer. The method includes receiving a clock signal; receiving control signals including a hold signal, a scan enable signal, and a non-scannable latch force signal; responsive to receiving a low input from the hold signal and the scan enable signal, outputting a high signal from a functional clock port on a next cycle; responsive to receiving a high input from the scan enable signal and a low input from the hold signal, outputting a high slave latch scan clock signal on the next cycle; responsive to receiving a high input from the hold signal and the scan enable signal, outputting a high master latch clock signal on the next clock cycle; and responsive to receiving a high input from the non-scannable latch force signal, outputting a low master latch clock signal on a current cycle.

Initializing scannable and non-scannable latches from a common clock buffer

A system and method to implement an integrated circuit design are described. The method includes obtaining a timing database of current timing slack values based on current cell selection, placement, and routing for a plurality of cycles defined by a plurality of cycle boundaries, each cycle representing devices between a corresponding pair of the plurality of cycle boundaries, identifying candidate cycle boundaries among the plurality of cycle boundaries for slack redistribution, every one of the candidate cycle boundaries being associated with a positive timing slack, and selecting redistribution cycle boundaries among the candidate cycle boundaries. A modified timing database is generated based on redistributing the positive timing slack associated with the redistribution cycle boundaries, and power recovery is performed using the modified timing database to reduce power at one of more of the redistribution cycle boundaries.

Slack redistribution for additional power recovery

A method and system to obtain a physical design of an integrated circuit from a logical design are described. The system includes a memory device to store a logical design, and a processor to execute a synthesis engine. The processor performs a baseline synthesis to obtain a baseline physical design using timing constraints and an overall power budget, computes power assertions, performs a re-synthesis using the timing constraints and the power assertions to obtain a new physical design, compares the new physical design with the baseline physical design to determine a degradation of the new physical design in comparison with the baseline physical design, reduces a weighting of the power assertions relative to the timing constraints based on the degradation, and iteratively performs the re-synthesis, compares the new physical design with the baseline physical design, and reduces the weighting until the degradation is below a threshold value.

Boundary based power guidance for physical synthesis

A method and system to obtain a physical design of an integrated circuit from a logical design are described. The method includes performing a baseline synthesis to obtain a baseline physical design using timing constraints and an overall power budget. The method also includes computing power assertions, performing a re-synthesis using the timing constraints and the power assertions to obtain a new physical design, comparing the new physical design with the baseline physical design to determine a degradation of the new physical design in comparison with the baseline physical design, and reducing a weighting of the power assertions relative to the timing constraints based on the degradation. The executing the performing the re-synthesis, the comparing, and the reducing are done iteratively until the degradation is below a threshold value.

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Austin, TX, United States of America

Ricardo H Nigaglioni