Decoupling capacitor assignment technique with respect to leakage power
AssigneeSun Microsystems, Inc.
InventorsPradeep Trivedi, Sudhakar Bobba, Tyler Thorp
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A decoupling capacitor assignment technique that increases decoupling capacitance without violating a leakage power constraint of an integrated circuit is provided. The decoupling capacitor assignment technique selectively replaces decoupling capacitors associated with high driver decoupling capacitance need to available decoupling capacitance ratios with thin-oxide decoupling capacitors such that decoupling capacitance is increased and the leakage power constraint is met.
Claims19
A method for assigning decoupling capacitors on an integrated circuit, the integrated circuit having a plurality of drivers and a leakage power constraint, the method comprising:
- determining a plurality of decoupling capacitance need to available decoupling capacitance ratios for the plurality of drivers;
- selecting a high ratio from the plurality of ratios, wherein the high ratio is associated with a decoupling capacitor;
- determining whether a total leakage power would be greater than the leakage power constraint if the decoupling capacitor associated with said high ratio, is replaced with a thin-oxide decoupling capacitor;
- and
- if the total leakage power would not be greater than the leakage power constrain, then replacing the decoupling capacitor associated with said high ratio, with the thin-oxide decoupling capacitor.
A computer system, comprising:
- a processor;
- a memory;
- and
- instructions, residing in the memory and executable in the processor, for determining a plurality of decoupling capacitance need to available decoupling capacitance ratios for a plurality of drivers, and using the plurality of ratios to increase an amount of decoupling capacitance by replacing a decoupling capacitor with a thin-oxide decoupling capacitor without violating a leakage power constraint of the integrated circuit.
A computer-readable medium having recorded therein instructions executable by a processor, the instructions for comprising:
- determining a plurality of decoupling capacitance need to available decoupling capacitance ratios for a plurality of drivers on an integrated circuit;
- selecting a high ratio from the plurality of ratios, wherein the high ratio is associated with a decoupling capacitor;
- determining whether a total leakage power would be greater than a leakage power constraint if the decoupling capacitor associated with said high ratio, is replaced with a thin-oxide decoupling capacitor;
- and
- if the total leakage power would not be greater than the leakage power constraint, then replacing the decoupling capacitor associated with said high ratio, with the thin-oxide decoupling capacitor.
A method for assigning decoupling capacitors on an integrated circuit, the integrated circuit having a plurality of drivers and a leakage power constraint, the method comprising:
- determining a plurality of available decoupling capacitance to decoupling capacitance need ratios for the plurality of drivers;
- selecting a low ratio from the plurality of ratios, wherein the low ratio is associated with a decoupling capacitor;
- determining whether a total leakage power would be greater than the leakage power constraint if the decoupling capacitor associated with said low ratio, is replaced with a thin-oxide decoupling capacitor;
- and
- if the total leakage power would not be greater than the leakage power constraint, then replacing the decoupling capacitor associated with said low ratio, with the thin-oxide decoupling capacitor.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.