Reproduce “Croc: Training the Next Generation Chip Designers on Domain-Specific End-to-End Open Source Silicon” on OpenResearch

About this paper

Enrico Zelioli, Philippe Sauter, Thomas Benz, Hannah Pochert, Luisa Wüthrich, Beat Muheim, Frank K. Gürkaynak, Luca Benini

ETH Zurich researchers developed Croc, an open-source RISC-V SoC platform, enabling an end-to-end chip design and fabrication flow to train engineers in VLSI design. The platform, used in a course with 65 students, resulted in 30 manufacturable ASIC layouts and successful fabrication of five diverse designs, with a demonstrator chip operating at 82 MHz and consuming 52.3 mW.

Key insights

• Open-source hardware platforms, EDA tools, and open PDKs can effectively overcome traditional barriers to hands-on VLSI education, making it more accessible and scalable for diverse institutions and students.
• An end-to-end open-source design flow enables students to successfully create manufacturable ASIC layouts and incorporate domain-specific customizations, directly contributing to addressing the semiconductor industry's skill gap.
• The successful characterization of fabricated silicon using open-source tools demonstrates the maturity and capability of the open-source hardware and EDA ecosystem for producing functional chips with performance comparable to established products.

Summary by alphaXiv.