The integration of logic synthesis and physical design stages will become more important to meet the challenges of integrated circuit design as device densities continue to grow and feature sizes continue to shrink [1, 2]. Many contemporary designs use a combination of macro cells and standard cells to implement the desired system functions. In a typical design, there are usually many more stan...

This study examines the effect of library instruction on two sections of the same senior-level electrical engineering course in analog integrated circuit design. One section received a onehour library instruction session while the other section did not. The premise of the study is that inclusion of library instruction will result in higher utilization of scholarly resources in the students’ fin...

An increasing demand on qualified IC designers requires engineering schools to train more graduates with specialty in IC design. These newly trained graduates should not only have strong fundamentals, but also good analytical and practical skills. They should be able to quickly adapt to the commercial environment and require minimum training when hired by the design firms. A twosemester project...

Since the semiconductor industry hit the 0.18-micron generation, device feature sizes have become increasingly smaller than the wavelength of light used by available optical-lithography equipment. In this subwavelength arena, manufacturing requirements must be handled up front in the IC design stage—while changes can still be made—to enhance quality and yield. This paper defines the components ...

Despite 30 years of Electronic Design Automation, analog IC layouts are still handcrafted in a laborious fashion today due to the complex challenge of considering all relevant design constraints. This paper presents Self-organized Wiring and Arrangement of Responsive Modules (SWARM), a novel approach addressing the problem with a multi-agent system: autonomous layout modules interact with each ...

We present the structure of an analog integrated circuit design laboratory to instruct at both, senior undergraduate and entry graduate levels. The teaching material includes: a laboratory manual with analog circuit design theory, pre-laboratory exercises and circuit design specifications; a reference web page with step by step instructions and examples; the use of mathematical tools for automa...