A Tabu-Based Partitioning and Layer Assignment Algorithm for 3-D FPGAs

Integrating more functionality in a smaller form factor with higher performance and lower power consumption is pushing semiconductor technology scaling to its limits. Three-dimensional (3-D) chip stacking is touted as the silver bullet technology that can keep Moore´s momentum and fuel the next wave of consumer electronics products. This letter introduces a TSV-aware partitioning algorithm that enables higher performance for application implementation onto 3-D field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). Unlike other algorithms that minimize the number of connections among layers, our solution leads to a more efficient utilization of the available (fabricated) interlayer connectivity. Experimental results show average reductions in delay and power consumption, as compared to similar 3-D computer-aided design (CAD) tools, about 28% and 26%, respectively.