Optimizing an Open-Source Processor for FPGAs: A Case Study

Optimizing a processor for FPGA architectures is a challenging task. In this paper, we attempt to bridge the performance gap between commercial and open-source processors by introducing various design and implementation strategies at the register transfer abstraction level, where most optimizations require several design trade-offs to ensure an efficient and proper use of available resources. Using an open-source processor as a case study, we demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed methods through a set of synthesis and benchmark results.