Grant: Strategic Projects Supplemental Competition

The development of computer chips normally requires access to a chip fabrication plant. The cost of accessing such a plant is out-of-reach for most small and medium-sized Canadian electronics companies. In the proposed research, we focus on an alternate way of building computer chips: using a Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA). An FPGA is a pre-manufactured chip which can be configured, in seconds, to implement virtually any electronic circuit. Once configured, these devices can be included in electronic devices such as communication equipment, computers, and consumer devices. The development of new architectures for FPGAs is a time-consuming process. Typically, FPGA architectural enhancements are developed in a somewhat ad-hoc manner. Expert FPGA architects perform experiments in which benchmark circuits are mapped using representative computer-aided design (CAD) tools, and the resulting density, speed, and/or power are estimated In this project, we propose the development of an analytical model that describes the architecture of an FPGA. FPGA architects could then use this model to help develop new devices that are more efficient than current parts. The model will consist of a set of equations that, taken together, model not only the fundamental behaviour of a programmable logic architecture, but also the important aspects of the corresponding CAD algorithms. In the second part of the project, we will use the model to investigate novel architectures that are more efficient than current architectures.