An embedded reconfigurable datapath for SoC

In this paper we present the new version of a multi-context reconfigurable datapath called PiCoGA (pipelined configurable gate array). The device provides a clear interface model and can be easily embedded in SoC systems where low power consumption and high computation capability are required. New logic cells and routing architecture have been designed for an efficient implementation of computation-intensive algorithms. The integration of a dedicated control unit for pipeline activity control provides a dataflow computational model which is easy to be integrated in a SoC. The embedded datapath has been designed using a 0.13 μm CMOS technology. The implementation of several functions in the datapath achieves an average gate density of 1.3 KGates/mm² for each of the four available contexts.