ELEC 402

Introduction to VLSI Systems

Static CMOS combinational logic circuits. Standard cells design and layout. Memory element (flip-flop and latch) design. Dynamic logic families. Synchronous logic and timing analysis. Power, scaling, and industry trends. Verification. VHDL/Verilog design, layout and synthesis project using CAD tools. [3-0-2]

4 credits

Course Overview

This is a course on the design of very large scale integrated circuits and systems implemented in CMOS technology. Key aspects of transistor operation, gate level design, IC design, fabrication, and layout of digital CMOS integrated will be covered. This is an exciting field that changes almost daily. Integrated circuits are used throughout Electrical Engineering, from cell-phones, consumer devices, signal processing systems, computers, and even biomedical devices. Understanding how these chips work and how they are designed is important to anyone planning a career in Electrical and Computer Engineering.
This course will be of interest to three types of students:

• For students that want to specialize in VLSI or Circuit Design, this course will provide the fundamentals you will need for ELEC 403 and ELEC 401.
• For students who want to focus on embedded system design or computer engineering, this course will provide enough information that you will understand the trade-offs that are made in those fields every day.
• For students who want to focus on other areas of Electrical and Computer Engineering, the material you learn in this course will help you understand what IC technology is capable of, and just as importantly, what it is not capable of.