PARAGRAPH: a parallel algorithm for simultaneous placement and routing using hierarchy

Proposes a new parallel algorithm for combined standard cell placement and routing. The focus in this research has been to develop a hierarchical decomposition scheme so that the subproblems are completely independent of each other and can be evaluated in parallel. The authors´ have developed a parallel algorithm such that the solution quality does not degrade with the addition of multiple processors, a common problem encountered by most previously reported parallel placement and routing algorithms. The new parallel algorithm hierarchically integrates a quadrisection cell placement algorithm, a bisection placement algorithm, a global routing algorithm, and a detailed routing algorithm. Unique partitioning techniques are used to decompose the various stages of the algorithm into independent tasks which are evaluated in parallel using dynamic task scheduling. Finally, the authors present results of an implementation of their parallel algorithm on a shared memory multiprocessor for several industrial benchmark circuits