Advanced VLSI technology and design techniques for future telecom systems

The impact of the introduction of telecommunication products, such as next-generation switching systems, optical transmission, and digital cellular radio, on VLSI technology and design methodology is discussed. It is shown how design concepts, supported by appropriate CAD (computer-aided design) tools, can make designs of complexities of up to 700000 transistors with operating frequencies of up to 150 MHz viable. In particular, it is shown that the present Alcatel CAD strategy is fully capable of tackling the design of VLSI components for extremely complex telecommunications systems, such as the broadband ISDN (integrated services digital network) switching network. It is also demonstrated how technology constraints can be handled by using appropriate VLSI architectures.<>