Introduction to

CMOS VLSI
Design


Logical Effort
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 2
Outline
Introduction
Delay in a Logic Gate
Multistage Logic Networks
Choosing the Best Number of Stages
Example
Summary
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 3
Introduction
Chip designers face a bewildering array of choices
What is the best circuit topology for a function?
How many stages of logic give least delay?
How wide should the transistors be?

Logical effort is a method to make these decisions
Uses a simple model of delay
Allows back-of-the-envelope calculations
Helps make rapid comparisons between alternatives
Emphasizes remarkable symmetries
? ? ?
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 4
Example
Ben Bitdiddle is the memory designer for the Motoroil 68W86,
an embedded automotive processor. Help Ben design the
decoder for a register file.

Decoder specifications:
16 word register file
Each word is 32 bits wide
Each bit presents load of 3 unit-sized transistors
True and complementary address inputs A[3:0]
Each input may drive 10 unit-sized transistors
Ben needs to decide:
How many stages to use?
How large should each gate be?
How fast can decoder operate?
A[3:0] A[3:0]
16
32 bits
1
6

w
o
r
d
s
4
:
1
6

D
e
c
o
d
e
r
Register File
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 5
Delay in a Logic Gate
Express delays in process-independent unit


abs
d
d
t
=
t = 3RC
~ 12 ps in 180 nm process
40 ps in 0.6 m process
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 6
Delay in a Logic Gate
Express delays in process-independent unit


Delay has two components
abs
d
d
t
=
d f p = +
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 7
Delay in a Logic Gate
Express delays in process-independent unit


Delay has two components

Effort delay f = gh (a.k.a. stage effort)
Again has two components
abs
d
d
t
=
d p f = +
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 8
Delay in a Logic Gate
Express delays in process-independent unit


Delay has two components

Effort delay f = gh (a.k.a. stage effort)
Again has two components
g: logical effort
Measures relative ability of gate to deliver current
g 1 for inverter
abs
d
d
t
=
d f p = +
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 9
Delay in a Logic Gate
Express delays in process-independent unit


Delay has two components

Effort delay f = gh (a.k.a. stage effort)
Again has two components
h: electrical effort = C
out
/ C
in
Ratio of output to input capacitance
Sometimes called fanout
abs
d
d
t
=
d f p = +
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 10
Delay in a Logic Gate
Express delays in process-independent unit


Delay has two components

Parasitic delay p
Represents delay of gate driving no load
Set by internal parasitic capacitance
abs
d
d
t
=
d p f = +
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 11
Delay Plots
d = f + p
= gh + p

Electrical Ef f ort:
h = C
out
/ C
in
N
o
r
m
a
l
i
z
e
d
D
e
l
a
y
:
d
Inverter
2-input
NAND
g =
p =
d =
g =
p =
d =
0 1 2 3 4 5
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 12
Delay Plots
d = f + p
= gh + p

What about
NOR2?


Electrical Ef f ort:
h = C
out
/ C
in
N
o
r
m
a
l
i
z
e
d
D
e
l
a
y
:
d
Inverter
2-input
NAND
g = 1
p = 1
d = h + 1
g = 4/3
p = 2
d = (4/3)h + 2
Ef f ort Delay: f
Parasitic Delay: p
0 1 2 3 4 5
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 13
Computing Logical Effort
DEF: Logical effort is the ratio of the input
capacitance of a gate to the input capacitance of an
inverter delivering the same output current.
Measure from delay vs. fanout plots
Or estimate by counting transistor widths
A Y
A
B
Y
A
B
Y
1
2
1 1
2 2
2
2
4
4
C
in
= 3
g = 3/3
C
in
= 4
g = 4/3
C
in
= 5
g = 5/3
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 14
Catalog of Gates
Gate type Number of inputs
1 2 3 4 n
Inverter 1
NAND 4/3 5/3 6/3 (n+2)/3
NOR 5/3 7/3 9/3 (2n+1)/3
Tristate / mux 2 2 2 2 2
XOR, XNOR 4, 4 6, 12, 6 8, 16, 16, 8
Logical effort of common gates
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 15
Catalog of Gates
Gate type Number of inputs
1 2 3 4 n
Inverter 1
NAND 2 3 4 n
NOR 2 3 4 n
Tristate / mux 2 4 6 8 2n
XOR, XNOR 4 6 8
Parasitic delay of common gates
In multiples of p
inv
(~1)
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 16
Example: Ring Oscillator
Estimate the frequency of an N-stage ring oscillator




Logical Effort: g =
Electrical Effort: h =
Parasitic Delay: p =
Stage Delay: d =
Frequency: f
osc
=
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 17
Example: Ring Oscillator
Estimate the frequency of an N-stage ring oscillator




Logical Effort: g = 1
Electrical Effort: h = 1
Parasitic Delay: p = 1
Stage Delay: d = 2
Frequency: f
osc
= 1/(2*N*d) = 1/4N
31 stage ring oscillator in
0.6 m process has
frequency of ~ 200 MHz
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 18
Example: FO4 Inverter
Estimate the delay of a fanout-of-4 (FO4) inverter




Logical Effort: g =
Electrical Effort: h =
Parasitic Delay: p =
Stage Delay: d =
d
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 19
Example: FO4 Inverter
Estimate the delay of a fanout-of-4 (FO4) inverter




Logical Effort: g = 1
Electrical Effort: h = 4
Parasitic Delay: p = 1
Stage Delay: d = 5
d
The FO4 delay is about
200 ps in 0.6 m process
60 ps in a 180 nm process
f/3 ns in an f m process
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 20
Multistage Logic Networks
Logical effort generalizes to multistage networks
Path Logical Effort

Path Electrical Effort

Path Effort
i
G g =
[
out-path
in-path
C
H
C
=
i i i
F f g h = =
[ [
10
x
y
z
20
g
1
= 1
h
1
= x/10
g
2
= 5/3
h
2
= y/x
g
3
= 4/3
h
3
= z/y
g
4
= 1
h
4
= 20/z
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 21
Multistage Logic Networks
Logical effort generalizes to multistage networks
Path Logical Effort

Path Electrical Effort

Path Effort

Can we write F = GH?
i
G g =
[
out path
in path
C
H
C

=
i i i
F f g h = =
[ [
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 22
Paths that Branch
No! Consider paths that branch:

G =
H =
GH =
h
1
=
h
2
=
F = GH?
5
15
15
90
90
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 23
Paths that Branch
No! Consider paths that branch:

G = 1
H = 90 / 5 = 18
GH = 18
h
1
= (15 +15) / 5 = 6
h
2
= 90 / 15 = 6
F = g
1
g
2
h
1
h
2
= 36 = 2GH
5
15
15
90
90
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 24
Branching Effort
Introduce branching effort
Accounts for branching between stages in path





Now we compute the path effort
F = GBH


on path off path
on path
C C
b
C
+
=
i
B b =
[
i
h BH =
[
Note:
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 25
Multistage Delays
Path Effort Delay

Path Parasitic Delay

Path Delay
F i
D f =

i
P p =

i F
D d D P = = +

CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 26

1
N
i i
f g h F = =
1
N
D NF P = +
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 27
Gate Sizes
How wide should the gates be for least delay?





Working backward, apply capacitance
transformation to find input capacitance of each gate
given load it drives.
Check work by verifying input cap spec is met.

out
in
i
i
C
C
i out
in
f gh g
g C
C
f
= =
=
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 28
Example: 3-stage path
Select gate sizes x and y for least delay from A to B
8
x
x
x
y
y
45
45
A
B
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 29
Example: 3-stage path



Logical Effort G =
Electrical Effort H =
Branching Effort B =
Path Effort F =
Best Stage Effort
Parasitic Delay P =
Delay D =
8
x
x
x
y
y
45
45
A
B

f =
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 30
Example: 3-stage path



Logical Effort G = (4/3)*(5/3)*(5/3) = 100/27
Electrical Effort H = 45/8
Branching Effort B = 3 * 2 = 6
Path Effort F = GBH = 125
Best Stage Effort
Parasitic Delay P = 2 + 3 + 2 = 7
Delay D = 3*5 + 7 = 22 = 4.4 FO4
8
x
x
x
y
y
45
45
A
B
3

5 f F = =
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 31
Example: 3-stage path
Work backward for sizes
y =
x =
8
x
x
x
y
y
45
45
A
B
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 32
Example: 3-stage path
Work backward for sizes
y = 45 * (5/3) / 5 = 15
x = (15*2) * (5/3) / 5 = 10
P: 4
N: 4
45
45
A
B
P: 4
N: 6
P: 12
N: 3
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 33
Best Number of Stages
How many stages should a path use?
Minimizing number of stages is not always fastest
Example: drive 64-bit datapath with unit inverter


D =
1 1 1 1
64 64 64 64
Initial Driver
Datapath Load
N:
f:
D:
1 2 3 4
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 34
Best Number of Stages
How many stages should a path use?
Minimizing number of stages is not always fastest
Example: drive 64-bit datapath with unit inverter


D = NF
1/N
+ P
= N(64)
1/N
+ N
1 1 1 1
8 4
16 8
2.8
23
64 64 64 64
Initial Driver
Datapath Load
N:
f:
D:
1
64
65
2
8
18
3
4
15
4
2.8
15.3
Fastest
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 35
Derivation
Consider adding inverters to end of path
How many give least delay?





Define best stage effort
N - n
1
Extra Inverters
Logic Block:
n
1
Stages
Path Ef f ort F
( )
1
1
1
1
N
n
i inv
i
D NF p N n p
=
= + +

1 1 1
ln 0
N N N
inv
D
F F F p
N
c
= + + =
c
( )
1 ln 0
inv
p + =
1
N
F =
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 36
Best Stage Effort
has no closed-form solution

Neglecting parasitics (p
inv
= 0), we find = 2.718 (e)
For p
inv
= 1, solve numerically for = 3.59
( )
1 ln 0
inv
p + =
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 37
Sensitivity Analysis
How sensitive is delay to using exactly the best
number of stages?






2.4 < < 6 gives delay within 15% of optimal
We can be sloppy!
I like = 4
1.0
1.2
1.4
1.6
1.0 2.0 0.5 1.4 0.7
N / N
1.15
1.26
1.51
( =2.4) (=6)
D
(
N
)

/
D
(
N
)
0.0
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 38
Example, Revisited
Ben Bitdiddle is the memory designer for the Motoroil 68W86,
an embedded automotive processor. Help Ben design the
decoder for a register file.

Decoder specifications:
16 word register file
Each word is 32 bits wide
Each bit presents load of 3 unit-sized transistors
True and complementary address inputs A[3:0]
Each input may drive 10 unit-sized transistors
Ben needs to decide:
How many stages to use?
How large should each gate be?
How fast can decoder operate?
A[3:0] A[3:0]
16
32 bits
1
6

w
o
r
d
s
4
:
1
6

D
e
c
o
d
e
r
Register File
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 39
Number of Stages
Decoder effort is mainly electrical and branching
Electrical Effort: H =
Branching Effort: B =

If we neglect logical effort (assume G = 1)
Path Effort: F =

Number of Stages: N =
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 40
Number of Stages
Decoder effort is mainly electrical and branching
Electrical Effort: H = (32*3) / 10 = 9.6
Branching Effort: B = 8

If we neglect logical effort (assume G = 1)
Path Effort: F = GBH = 76.8

Number of Stages: N = log
4
F = 3.1

Try a 3-stage design
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 41
Gate Sizes & Delay
Logical Effort: G =
Path Effort: F =
Stage Effort:
Path Delay:
Gate sizes: z = y =
A[3] A[3] A[2] A[2] A[1] A[1] A[0] A[0]
word[0]
word[15]
96 units of wordline capacitance
10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10
y z
y z

f =
D =
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 42
Gate Sizes & Delay
Logical Effort: G = 1 * 6/3 * 1 = 2
Path Effort: F = GBH = 154
Stage Effort:
Path Delay:
Gate sizes: z = 96*1/5.36 = 18 y = 18*2/5.36 = 6.7
A[3] A[3] A[2] A[2] A[1] A[1] A[0] A[0]
word[0]
word[15]
96 units of wordline capacitance
10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10
y z
y z
1/ 3

5.36 f F = =

3 1 4 1 22.1 D f = + + + =
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 43
Comparison
Compare many alternatives with a spreadsheet
Design N G P D
NAND4-INV 2 2 5 29.8
NAND2-NOR2 2 20/9 4 30.1
INV-NAND4-INV 3 2 6 22.1
NAND4-INV-INV-INV 4 2 7 21.1
NAND2-NOR2-INV-INV 4 20/9 6 20.5
NAND2-INV-NAND2-INV 4 16/9 6 19.7
INV-NAND2-INV-NAND2-INV 5 16/9 7 20.4
NAND2-INV-NAND2-INV-INV-INV 6 16/9 8 21.6
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 44
Review of Definitions
Term Stage Path
number of stages
logical effort
electrical effort
branching effort
effort
effort delay
parasitic delay
delay
i
G g =
[
out-path
in-path
C
C
H =
N
i
B b =
[
F GBH =
F i
D f =

i
P p =

i F
D d D P = = +

out
in
C
C
h =
on-path off-path
on-path
C C
C
b
+
=
f gh =
f
p
d f p = +
g
1
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 45
Method of Logical Effort
1) Compute path effort
2) Estimate best number of stages
3) Sketch path with N stages
4) Estimate least delay
5) Determine best stage effort

6) Find gate sizes
F GBH =
4
log N F =
1
N
D NF P = +
1
N
f F =

i
i
i out
in
g C
C
f
=
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 46
Limits of Logical Effort
Chicken and egg problem
Need path to compute G
But dont know number of stages without G
Simplistic delay model
Neglects input rise time effects
Interconnect
Iteration required in designs with wire
Maximum speed only
Not minimum area/power for constrained delay
CMOS VLSI Design Logical Effort Slide 47
Summary
Logical effort is useful for thinking of delay in circuits
Numeric logical effort characterizes gates
NANDs are faster than NORs in CMOS
Paths are fastest when effort delays are ~4
Path delay is weakly sensitive to stages, sizes
But using fewer stages doesnt mean faster paths
Delay of path is about log
4
F FO4 inverter delays
Inverters and NAND2 best for driving large caps
Provides language for discussing fast circuits
But requires practice to master