IC comprising functional blocks for which a mask pattern is patterned according to connection and placement data

• US 5,576,969 A
• Filed: 03/09/1994
• Issued: 11/19/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 03/09/1993
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Original Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Inventors: Uno, Kousuke, Aoki, Yasushi, Kayano, Minoru
• Primary Examiner(s): Teska, Kevin J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Walker, Tyrone V.
• Application Number:
  US08/207,663
• Time in Patent Office: 986 Days
• Field of Search: 364/488, 364/489, 364/490, 364/491, 257/206, 257/208, 257/211, 307/303.1
• US Class Current: 257/208
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 30/39 Circuit design at the physical level physical level design for reconfigurable circuits G06F30/347
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/0207 Geometrical layout of the components, e.g. computer aided design; custom LSI, semi-custom LSI, standard cell technique

Abstract

For functional blocks of an IC, each functional block comprising a plurality of macroblocks, each macroblock comprising a plurality of basic cells, a mask pattern is patterned in accordance with a layout design by using its connection data of the macroblocks in each functional block and its placement data of the basic cells in each functional block. Use of the placement data in addition to the connection data makes it possible to regularly and systematically arrange the basic cells in each functional block to achieve shortest possible connections in each fundamental block and a narrowest possible area of each functional block. In order to put a CPU in operation of patterning the mask pattern, an operating system comprises for read by the CPU first and second memories loaded with the connection and the placement data, respectively.

Claims

1. A semiconductor integrated circuit, comprising:

polycell functional blocks for which a mask pattern is patterned by an automatic placement and routing digital computer in accordance with a layout design,

each polycell functional block comprising a plurality of macroblocks,

each macroblock comprising a plurality of basic cells having a substantially common height,

said mask pattern being determined based on connection data of said macroblocks in each of said functional blocks and based on placement data of said basic cells in each of said functional blocks corresponding to said connection data,

wherein said placement data includes a physical arrangement of each of said basic cells relative to other of said basic cells and a physical arrangement of said macroblocks relative to each other,

wherein each of said basic cells is rectangular in shape,

wherein at least one of said functional blocks has a bit-sliced structure in which at least a predetermined number of said macroblocks comprise a plurality of basic cells, each of said basic cells having a common bit width of a plurality of bits and each being placed throughout said macroblocks of said at least one of said functional blocks, in accordance with common placement data, and

wherein said common placement data is used to configure said at least one of said functional blocks to achieve a narrowest allowable connection distance among said basic cells and a narrowest allowable layout area of said at least one of said functional blocks.

2. A semiconductor integrated circuit, comprising:

polycell functional blocks for which a mask pattern is patterned by an automatic placement and routing digital computer in accordance with a layout design,

each polycell functional block comprising a plurality of macroblocks,

each macroblock comprising a plurality of basic cells having a substantially common height,

said mask pattern being determined based on connection data of said macroblocks in each of said functional blocks and based on placement data of said basic cells in each of said functional blocks corresponding to said connection data,

wherein said placement data includes a physical arrangement of each of said basic cells relative to other of said basic cells and a physical arrangement of said macroblocks relative to each other, and

wherein in said placement data, said macroblocks adjacent to each other are segmented by a line renewal code, and in each of said macroblocks, said basic cells adjacent to each other are segmented by a comma.

3. A computer-controlled apparatus for generating a mask pattern used in manufacturing polycell functional blocks of a semiconductor integrated circuit, each polycell functional block comprising a plurality of macroblocks, each macroblock comprising a plurality of basic cells having a substantially common height, said apparatus comprising:

a first memory for storing connection data of said macroblocks in each of said functional blocks, and

a second memory for storing placement data of said basic cells in each of said functional blocks corresponding to said connection data,

wherein said placement data includes a physical arrangement of each of said basic cells relative to other of said basic cells and a physical arrangement of said macroblocks relative to each other, and

wherein in said placement data, said macroblocks adjacent to each other are segmented by a line renewal code and in each of said macroblocks, said basic cells adjacent to each other are segmented by a comma.

4. A computer-controlled apparatus for generating a mask pattern used in manufacturing polycell functional blocks of a semiconductor integrated circuit, each polycell functional block comprising a plurality of macroblocks, each macroblock comprising a plurality of basic cells having a substantially common height, said apparatus comprising:

a first memory for storing connection data of said macroblocks in each of said functional blocks, and

a second memory for storing placement data of said basic cells in each of said functional blocks corresponding to said connection data,

wherein said placement data includes a physical arrangement of each of said basic cells relative to other of said basic cells and a physical arrangement of said macroblocks relative to each other, and

wherein when a currently read basic cell in one of said macroblocks is determined to be preceded by a comma in said placement data, said currently read basic cell is determined to be positioned adjacent to and in a rightward direction with respect to a most previously read basic cell in said one of said macroblocks, and when said currently read basic cell is determined to be preceded by a line renewal code in said placement data, said currently read basic cell is determined to be positioned at a leftmost position and directly below a most previously read macrocell.