Digitizing, layout, rule checking—The everyday tasks of chip designers

The layout phase is most critical in the design of integrated circuits (IC´s) because of the cost of the phase itself, since it involves expensive tools and a large amount of human intervention, and also because of the consequences for production Cost. Several approaches are used that need more or less computer and/or man time. The compromise is difficult because of the number of parameters to be taken into account. This paper presents the methods most commonly used with their advantages and disadvantages.