Development of complex System on Chip (SoC) for modern communication systems has become more and more challenging. A designer has to bridge the gap between the requirements of the system at algorithmic level and its cycle true hardware description; the latter being synthesized for an Application Specific Integrated Circuit. This development requires numerous sub-steps, i.e., several intermediat...

IN DESIGNING COMPLEX, highperformance boards, the designer must make several decisions: What surface-mount-technology (SMT) process should I use? What test escape rate is tolerable for custom ASICs (application-specific integrated circuits)? Is IEEE Std 1149.1 boundary scan necessary? What levels of board test coverage are best? If the designer failsto optimize these fundamental parameters of b...

This article describes an effective, low-cost solution for sequential, one-time programming (OTP) and verification of zener diodes in an electronic micro-system. Using the proper structures of zener diodes (also known as ‘zener zap’) in a standard CMOS process, it is possible to achieve better accuracy in high-precision integrated circuits. For this purpose a solution has been developed for fas...

The design of Integrated Circuit ASICs and SoCs typically relies on the availability of a library consisting of predefined components called technology cells. Silicon vendors use proprietary formats to describe technology cells and macro modules in conjunction with numerous translators to feed technology library data to Electronic Design Automation EDA tools. Multiple grammar formats are used t...

Development of complex System on Chip (SoC) for modern communication systems has become more and more challenging. A designer has to bridge the gap between the requirements of the system at algorithmic level and its cycle true hardware description; the latter being synthesised for an Application Specific Integrated Circuit. This development requires numerous sub-steps, i.e., numerous intermedia...

The MOSIS Service at the University of Southern California’s information Sciences Institute offers services to obtain custom designed, prototype quantities of ASICs and Multichip Modules (MCMs). The service recently added MIDAS, the MultiChip Module Designers’ Access Service for MCM fabrication to the list of standard oflerings. Thus a designer can now access domestic, high-volume IC and MCM pr...

The evolution of computer networking technology will likely require hardware that is flexible enough to adapt to changing standards while maintaining the highest possible performance. Much research has recently been done in active networks, which increase network flexibility by allowing the routers to be reprogrammed, often at the cost of lower throughput. A reconfigurable router implemented on...

In a knowledge-based economy, if an enterprise has adept knowledge management, an increasingaccumulation of intellectual capital, and is able to improve organizational performance, it can master competition of the future. The major purpose of this study is to validate and understand the impact of knowledge management, of the listed IC design houses in Taiwan, on organizational performance, usin...

To achieve higher performing systems, microelectronic system designers should consider the e ects of packaging while developing integrated circuits (ICs). This practice, which we call \Design for Packageability", should permit a global optimization of the entire system by incorporating critical packaging factors into the IC design ow. Managers and engineers must be able to perform an early anal...

0740-7475/98/$10.00 © 1998 IEEE 17 EMBEDDED SYSTEMS are computers incorporated in consumer products or other devices to perform application-specific functions. The product user is usually not even aware of the existence of these systems. From toys to medical devices, from ovens to automobiles, the range of products incorporating microprocessor-based, softwarecontrolled systems has expanded rapi...