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Integrating Asynchronous Digital Design and Testing into the Undergraduate Computer Engineering Curriculum | ![]() |
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| OVERVIEW |
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The development of synchronous circuits currently dominates the semiconductor design industry.
However, there are major limiting factors to the synchronous, clocked approach, including the increasing difficulty
of clock distribution, increasing clock rates, decreasing feature size, increasing power consumption, timing closure
effort, and difficulty with design reuse. Asynchronous (clockless) circuits require less power, generate less noise,
produce less electro-magnetic interference (EMI), and allow for easier reuse of components, compared to their
synchronous counterparts, without compromising performance. As the demand continues for designs with higher
performance, higher complexity, and decreased feature size, asynchronous paradigms will become more widely used in
the industry, as evidenced by the 2003 International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors’ (ITRS) prediction of a likely
shift from synchronous to asynchronous design styles in order to increase circuit robustness, decrease power, and
alleviate many clock-related issues. The 2005 ITRS predicts that asynchronous circuits will account for 19% of chip area
within the next 5 years, and 30% of chip area within the next 10 years. Therefore it is extremely important for
Computer Engineering students to be introduced to asynchronous paradigms to make them more marketable and more
prepared for the challenges faced by the digital design community for years to come. |