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Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur

Course Name: VLSI PHYSICAL DESIGN

Assignment- Week 4
TYPE OF QUESTION: MCQ/MSQ/SA
Number of questions: 10 Total mark: 10 x 1 = 10
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QUESTION 1:
Which of the following properties must be considered for channel routing:
a. Connection type (signal, power, ground, etc.).
b. The number of layers for routing.
c. Number of terminals.
d. All of these.
Correct Answer: d

Detailed Solution: All the properties mentioned above must be considered for channel routing.
The correct option is (d).
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QUESTION 2:
In channel routing, under what conditions must two nets X and Y be assigned to separate
tracks?
a. There is a directed edge from X to Y in the vertical constraint graph.
b. There is a directed edge from Y to X in the vertical constraint graph.
c. There is an edge between X and Y in the horizontal constraint graph.
d. All of these.
Correct Answer: d

Detailed Solution: In channel routing, segments of two nets X and Y must be assigned to
separate tracks when there is an edge between X and Y in the HCG or the VCG. The former
specifies that the horizontal segments of X and Y overlap, while the latter specifies that one of
the nets must be above the other. Hence, the correct option is (d).
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QUESTION 3:
Consider a channel with TOP = (0, 2, 3, 4, 1, 1) and BOT = (4, 3, 0, 0, 0, 2). Which of the following
edges will be present in the VCG?

a. 2 to 3
b. 3 to 2
c. 1 to 2
d. 4 to 3

Correct Answer: a, c

Detailed Solution: As per the TOP and BOTTOM lists, net 2 is above net 3, and net 1 is above
net 2. Hence these will be corresponding edges in the VCG. The correct options are (a) and (c).
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QUESTION 4:
Which of the following channel routing algorithms cannot handle cycles in the VCG?

a. Extended left edge channel router

b. Net merge channel router
c. Greedy channel router
d. Left edge channel router

Correct Answer: a, b, d

Detailed Solution: None of left-edge channel router, extended left-edge channel router, or the
net-merge channel router can handle cycles in the VCG. To handle such cases, additional
columns have to be added, which can be done using the greedy channel router. Hence correct
options are (a), (b) and (d).

QUESTION 5:
Consider a channel routing problem with TOP = (0, 2, 3, 4, 1, 1) and BOT = (4, 3, 0, 0, 0, 2).
If we use the left‐edge channel routing algorithm is performed, which of the following
statements will be true?

a. 8 vias and 8 branches are used for the connections

b. 4 trunks are present in the routing solution
c. In total 4 tracks are needed to connect all terminals
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d. None of these
Correct Answer: a, b

Detailed Solution: After the LEA Algorithm, a total of 4 tracks and trunks, as well as 8 branches
and 8 via are needed for the connection of the terminals. All properties have to be considered.

The number of tracks and trunks are equal, because in LEA no doglegs are allowed. The number
of branches can be directly counted from the TOP and BOT list, by counting all the none zero
numbers. For option (c) the connections from terminal 3 to 3 and terminal 1 to 1 cannot be
placed on the same track, because the connection from terminal 2 to 2 is directly vertically
placed above 3 or below 1 in the channel.

Hence the correct options are (a) and (b).

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QUESTION 6:
Consider a channel routing problem with TOP = (1, 2, 0, 3, 0, 0) and BOT = (0, 0, 1, 0, 2, 3).
For the left‐edge algorithm which of the following statements will be true?

a. Terminal 2 and terminal 3 share a track

b. Terminal 1 and terminal 3 share a track
c. All terminals need separate tracks
d. Some terminals can share tracks
Correct Answer: b, d

Detailed Solution: Terminal 2 and Terminal 3 overlap, therefore they cannot share a track. But
for terminal 1 and 3 there is no overlap, hence they can share a track. Therefore the correct
options are (b) and (d).

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QUESTION 7:
Consider a channel with TOP = (3, 2, 3, 2, 1, 1, 0) and BOT = (0, 3, 0, 0, 2, 0, 1). What will be the
minimum number of tracks required to route the channel without any dogleg and with dogleg
respectively?

a. 4 and 2
b. 3 and 2
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c. 4 and 2
d. 3 and 3
Correct Answer: b

Detailed Solution: If we use the extended left-edge algorithm that does not support dogleg
connections, the number of tracks required is 3. However, if we use the dogleg algorithm, only 2
tracks are required. The correct option is (b).

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QUESTION 8:
Which of the following is true for clock skew with respect to distribution of clock signal?
a. There is variation in the on and off periods of the clock signal as it propagates.
b. There is variation in the delay between successive clock pulses at the same clock
target.
c. The active clock edge appears at different times at different clock targets.
d. None of these.
Correct Answer: c

Detailed Solution: As per the definition of clock skew, the propagation times of the clock signal
to the different clock targets will be different. Hence, option (c) is correct.
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QUESTION 9:
Logical errors in the design phase can result in clock skew – true or false?
a. True
b. False
Correct Answer: b

Detailed Solution: Logic errors in the design phase do not affect clock skew. Hence the correct
option is (b).
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QUESTION 10:
The dynamic power dissipation of the clock distribution network is directly proportional to:
a. Directly proportional to the frequency of the clock.
b. Inversely proportional to the output load capacitance.
c. Directly proportional to the square of the supply voltage.
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d. Directly proportional to the supply voltage.

Correct Answer: a, c

Detailed Solution: Dynamic power dissipation in a clock distribution network is directly

proportional to the capacitive load that the network is driving, square of the supply voltage and
also the clock frequency. The correct options are (a) and (c).
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