A Hybrid Asynchronous System Design Environment

Abstract

A hybrid design scheme for the synthesis of asynchronous circuits is described which exploits the rapid design time achievable using the Tangram silicon compiler (developed by Philips), the high performance of 4-phase micropipelines and the use of synchronous design techniques to increase concurrency and therefore performance. Trade-offs between area, power, performance and design time are thus supported. Substantial performance gains and power reduction may be achieved.

Keywords: 4-phase Micropipelines, Tangram silicon compiler, Precomputation Logic, Dynamic Logic.