VLSI design automation activities at M.I.T.

A large part of the M.I.T. research program in very large-scale integrated circuits (VLSI) deals with design automation. Industry today is facing a "design crisis" that requires substantial advances in the state of the art in design aids. University.research such as that at M.I.T. is aimed at making such advances. The design of an integrated circuit is viewed as a series of transformations among various domains of representation for the design. Many computer tools which assist in those transformations have been developed at M.I.T. There appear to be two new design methodologies emerging which are radically different from design styles currently in use in industry.