Thermal Modeling, Analysis, and Management in VLSI Circuits: Principles and Methods Maximum chip performance under peak permissible temperature limits may be achieved with the help of combined electrical and thermal simulation of VLSI circuits.
01 Jan 2006-
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present a brief discussion of key sources of power dissipation and their temperature relation in CMOS VLSI circuits, and techniques for full-chip temperature calculation with special attention to its implications on the design of high-performance, low-power very large scale integration (VLSI) circuits.
Abstract: The growing packing density and power con- sumption of very large scale integration (VLSI) circuits have made thermal effects one of the most important concerns of VLSI designers. The increasing variability of key process parameters in nanometer CMOS technologies has resulted in larger impact of the substrate and metal line temperatures on the reliability and performance of the devices and interconnec- tions. Recent data shows that more than 50% of all integrated circuit failures are related to thermal issues. This paper presents a brief discussion of key sources of power dissipation and their temperature relation in CMOS VLSI circuits, and techniques for full-chip temperature calculation with special attention to its implications on the design of high-performance, low-power VLSI circuits. The paper is concluded with an over- view of techniques to improve the full-chip thermal integrity by means of off-chip versus on-chip and static versus adaptive methods.
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Dissertation•
01 Jun 2014
1 citations
01 Jan 2016
TL;DR: Ziabari et al. as discussed by the authors presented an ultrafast yet highly accurate technique, based on image blurring and FEM, for thermal modeling of 3D ICs that include thermal vias.
Abstract: Ziabari, Amirkoushyar. Ph.D. Purdue University, August 2016. Finite Element and Imaging Approaches to Analyze Multiscale Electrothermal Phenomena. Major Professor: Ali Shakouri Electrothermal effects are crucial in the design and optimization of electronic devices. Thermoreflectance (TR) imaging enables transient thermal characterization at submicron to centimeter scales. Typically, finite element methods (FEM) are used to calculate the temperature profile in devices and ICs with complex geometry. By comparing theory and experiment, important material parameters and device characteristics are extracted. In this work we combine TR and FEM with image blurring/reconstruction techniques to improve electrothermal characterization of micron and nanoscale devices. We present an ultrafast yet highly accurate technique, based on image blurring and FEM, for thermal modeling of 3D ICs that include thermal vias. Modeling shows the impact of thermal vias placement on the reduction of maximum temperature in different layers of 3D IC. Next, we experimentally investigate high field non-equilibrium in electron gas and its impact on thermoelectric cooling. When there is a large temperature gradient or a high current density, thermoelectric coefficients can become non-linear. We provide the first detailed experimental study of non-linear Peltier coefficient in low-doped InGaAs
1 citations
DOI•
01 Jan 2018
TL;DR: In this article, the authors show the significance of self-heating effects in the design of ICs and provide selfheating aware design guidelines for ICs by considering the SHE and the temperature of each device separately.
Abstract: Bulk CMOS technologies left the semiconductor market to the novel device geometries such as FDSOI and FinFET below 30 nm, mainly due to their insufficient electrical characteristics arising from different physical limitations. These innovative solutions enabled the ongoing device scaling to continue. However, the threshold voltage and the power supply values did not shrink with the device sizes, which caused an excessive amount of heat generation in very small dimensions. With the high thermal resistivity materials used in FDSOI and FinFET, the generated heat cannot leave the device easily, which is not the case in bulk. With all of these, modern geometries brought a major problem, which is the self-heating. Due to self-heating effects (SHE), the temperature of a device rises significantly compared to its surroundings. Having very large local temperature brings important reliability issues. Moreover, the electrical behaviour of a device also changes dramatically when its temperature is very large. These facts bring the need of considering SHE and the temperature of each device separately. Nevertheless, in many of today’s CAD tools, a single global temperature is applied to all of the devices. Even if some advanced simulation options are used, estimating the temperature of a device is not a simple task as it depends on many parameters. The focus of this thesis is to show the significance of SHE in the design of ICs and provide selfheating aware design guidelines. In order to achieve this, different circuit implementations are studied by considering the SHE. The study consists of two main parts, which are the reliability of the high-speed digital circuits and the performance of analog blocks where noise is critical. Moreover, detailed device-level electro-thermal simulations are performed to explain the self-heating phenomena more in detail and to perform a comparison between bulk and FDSOI. The digital part of the self-heating study is performed on two very high-speed full-custom 64bit Kogge-Stone adders in 40 nm and 28 nm technologies. Thermal simulations are performed on these blocks to compare SHE in bulk and FDSOI geometries. The comparison of two implementations also provides the increasing significance of SHE with scaling. Extensive heating analyses are performed to find the most critical devices that are the primary heat generators. Design guidelines and solutions are proposed to flatten the temperature profiles in precharged and static logic implementations and to decrease the probability of electromigration. iii
1 citations
01 Jan 1997
TL;DR: In this article, the authors discuss the latest advances in the SISSI package (simulator for integrated structures by simultaneous iteration) which is a tool developed originally for analog VLSI design.
Abstract: Due to severe thermal problems of today's VLSI integrated circuits the need for reliable and quick thermal, electro-thermal and logi-thermal simulation tools is increasing. In this paper, we discuss the latest advances in the SISSI package (simulator for integrated structures by simultaneous iteration) which is a tool developed originally for analog VLSI design. The improvements include electro-thermal ac and transient simulation and the consideration of the thermal voltage of Si-Al contacts. Furthermore, we introduce a new module of SISSI, LOGITHERM, which is aimed at the self-consistent logic and thermal simulation of large digital VLSI designs. The features of our simulator package are highlighted by simulation examples that are compared in most cases with measurement results.
1 citations
References
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01 May 2000
TL;DR: Wattch is presented, a framework for analyzing and optimizing microprocessor power dissipation at the architecture-level and opens up the field of power-efficient computing to a wider range of researchers by providing a power evaluation methodology within the portable and familiar SimpleScalar framework.
Abstract: Power dissipation and thermal issues are increasingly significant in modern processors. As a result, it is crucial that power/performance tradeoffs be made more visible to chip architects and even compiler writers, in addition to circuit designers. Most existing power analysis tools achieve high accuracy by calculating power estimates for designs only after layout or floorplanning are complete. In addition to being available only late in the design process, such tools are often quite slow, which compounds the difficulty of running them for a large space of design possibilities.This paper presents Wattch, a framework for analyzing and optimizing microprocessor power dissipation at the architecture-level. Wattch is 1000X or more faster than existing layout-level power tools, and yet maintains accuracy within 10% of their estimates as verified using industry tools on leading-edge designs. This paper presents several validations of Wattch's accuracy. In addition, we present three examples that demonstrate how architects or compiler writers might use Wattch to evaluate power consumption in their design process.We see Wattch as a complement to existing lower-level tools; it allows architects to explore and cull the design space early on, using faster, higher-level tools. It also opens up the field of power-efficient computing to a wider range of researchers by providing a power evaluation methodology within the portable and familiar SimpleScalar framework.
2,848 citations
Book•
IBM1
TL;DR: In this article, the authors highlight the intricate interdependencies and subtle tradeoffs between various practically important device parameters, and also provide an in-depth discussion of device scaling and scaling limits of CMOS and bipolar devices.
Abstract: Learn the basic properties and designs of modern VLSI devices, as well as the factors affecting performance, with this thoroughly updated second edition. The first edition has been widely adopted as a standard textbook in microelectronics in many major US universities and worldwide. The internationally-renowned authors highlight the intricate interdependencies and subtle tradeoffs between various practically important device parameters, and also provide an in-depth discussion of device scaling and scaling limits of CMOS and bipolar devices. Equations and parameters provided are checked continuously against the reality of silicon data, making the book equally useful in practical transistor design and in the classroom. Every chapter has been updated to include the latest developments, such as MOSFET scale length theory, high-field transport model, and SiGe-base bipolar devices.
2,680 citations
20 Jan 2001
TL;DR: This work investigates dynamic thermal management as a technique to control CPU power dissipation and explores the tradeoffs between several mechanisms for responding to periods of thermal trauma and the effects of hardware and software implementations.
Abstract: With the increasing clock rate and transistor count of today's microprocessors, power dissipation is becoming a critical component of system design complexity. Thermal and power-delivery issues are becoming especially critical for high-performance computing systems. In this work, we investigate dynamic thermal management as a technique to control CPU power dissipation. With the increasing usage of clock gating techniques, the average power dissipation typically seen by common applications is becoming much less than the chip's rated maximum power dissipation. However system designers still must design thermal heat sinks to withstand the worse-case scenario. We define and investigate the major components of any dynamic thermal management scheme. Specifically we explore the tradeoffs between several mechanisms for responding to periods of thermal trauma and we consider the effects of hardware and software implementations. With approximate dynamic thermal management, the CPU can be designed for a much lower maximum power rating, with minimal performance impact for typical applications.
882 citations
IBM1
TL;DR: In this article, the key challenges in further scaling of CMOS technology into the nanometer (sub-100 nm) regime in light of fundamental physical effects and practical considerations are discussed, including power supply and threshold voltage, short-channel effect, gate oxide, high-field effects, dopant number fluctuations and interconnect delays.
Abstract: Starting with a brief review on 0.1-/spl mu/m (100 nm) CMOS status, this paper addresses the key challenges in further scaling of CMOS technology into the nanometer (sub-100 nm) regime in light of fundamental physical effects and practical considerations. Among the issues discussed are: lithography, power supply and threshold voltage, short-channel effect, gate oxide, high-field effects, dopant number fluctuations and interconnect delays. The last part of the paper discusses several alternative or unconventional device structures, including silicon-on-insulator (SOI), SiGe MOSFET's, low-temperature CMOS, and double-gate MOSFET's, which may lead to the outermost limits of silicon scaling.
861 citations