The contents of this book were first presented as a series of lectures at the first IEE Vacation School on Semi-Custom IC Design and VLSI held at the University of Edinburgh on 4-8 July 1983. The earlier chapters provide an introduction to silicon IC technology and include descriptions of the various processing techniques employed in the manufacture of microelectronic components. Different types of semi-custom IC are then reviewed and the factors that have to be considered in choosing a semi-custom technique are examined in detail. Logic design is next presented as an activity that is best carried out at a higher level of abstraction than the customary/logic gate level by using the algorithmic state machine (ASM) method. In the sections that follow, computer aids to design and design automation tools are introduced as essential requirements for the rapid and error-free design of semicustom ICs. Testing strategies and the need to design for testability are also covered in some detail.
Although a heavy emphasis is placed on the design of semi-custom ICs, consideration is also given to the ways in which custom VLSI circuits will be designed in future. The merits of the programmable logic array (PLA) as a VLSI building-block are put forward, and the silicon compiler is presented as possibly the ultimate 'semi-custom' technique.
The authors who have contributed to this volume are specialists in their field who can claim many years of experience either in the microelectronics industry or in universities throughout the UK.
Peter Hicks is a lecturer in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Electronics at UMIST where he has been engaged in teaching and research into the design and application of microelectronic components since 1978. Before that he worked for six years in the Physics Department at the University of Manchester researching into detector systems and instrumentation techniques for scientific analytical instruments. His current research interests include VLSI and semi-custom design methodologies and the design of digital systems for image processing. As the Course Organiser of a Masters degree course on Integrated Circuit System Design at UMIST he has been responsible for introducing the teaching of full-custom and semi-custom IC design into the postgraduate curriculum.
A Member of the IEEE and also the Institute of Physics, he received his B.Sc. in Physics and Electronic Engineering from Manchester in 1969 and the degree of Ph.D. from the same University in 1973.
