1High-Performance Microprocessor DesignHigh-Performance Microprocessor DesignOutline• Introduction• Technology scaling• Power• Clock• Verification2High-Performance Microprocessor DesignIntroduction• Alpha has historically been at the forefront of processor performance– Clean architectural design– Clever micro-architectural design– Aggressive circuit design• As a result, Alpha designers had to be at the forefront in dealing with the challenges of DSM scaling.High-Performance Microprocessor DesignPower• Power dissipation limits performance– Lower voltage– Conditional clocks• Power distribution is a major concern– Supply affects circuit performance, reliability– IR drops, L dI/dt drops– Requires careful design of power supply grid– On/off chip decoupling capacitors3High-Performance Microprocessor DesignClock• High clock rates require extremely careful clock design. Must control– Slew rate–Skew– Jitter• And try not to burn up the chip doing itHigh-Performance Microprocessor DesignVerification• Verification has become the largest component of design effort.• Static timing• Electrical checks• Logic
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