Modeling and Design of Reliable, Process Variation-Aware Nanoelectronic Devices, Circuits and Systems

The influence of process variations is becoming extremely critical for nanoCMOS technology nodes, due to geometric tolerances and manufacturing non-idealities (such as edge or surface roughness, or the fluctuation of the number of doping atoms). As a result, production yields and figures of merit of a circuit such as performance, power, and reliability have become extremely sensitive to uncontrollable statistical process variations. Although some kind of variability has always existed and been taken into account for designing integrated circuits, the largest impact of variability and the greater influence of random or spatial aspects are setting up a completely new challenge. On top of those difficulties, the deficiency of design techniques and EDA methodologies for tackling PVs makes that challenge even more critical.
The objective of the MODERN project is to develop new paradigms in integrated circuit design which will enable the manufacturing of reliable, low cost, low EMI, high-yield complex products using unreliable and variable devices.

Durch die geometrischen Toleranzen und Ungenauigkeiten in den Herstellungsprozesswen wird der Einfluss von Prozessvariationen auf Nano-CMOS Technologien immer kritischer. In Konsequenz erhöht sich die Sensitivität der Ausbeute und die der Leistungskenngrößen auf unkontrollierbare Prozessschwankungen in unerträglicher Weise. Obwohl Prozessschwankungen stets Teil jeder Technologie waren, hat sich deren relative Auswirkung auf Grund der extremen Miniaturisierung dramatisch erhöht.
Ziel des Projektes MODERN ist es, neue Paradigmen und Werkzeuge zu entwicklen, welche den Herstellern die Herstellung zuverlässiger Bauelemente und Schaltungen erlauben.