Beat the competition: a knowledge-based design process addressing the antenna effect and cell placement

Working within the application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) industry, time to market is very important. With very deep submicron (VDSM) processes, issues with timing enclosure, cell placement efficiency, the antenna effect, signal integrity, etc., have impacted our ability to meet market requirements in a timely manner. By focusing on the design process, two of the major issues, the antenna problem and cell placement efficiency, can be addressed. I propose using knowledge-based priority placement (KBPP), which utilizes design knowledge to simplify those two issues.