Implementation Issues for Algorithmic VLSI (Very Large Scale Integration) Processor Arrays.
Abstract
Advances in very large scale integration (VLSI) have led to a great deal of interest in highly parallel cellular architectures as high-performance solutions to computational bottlenecks. These architectures pose a number of novel implementation issues not encountered in traditional designs. This thesis investigates and resolves some of the most important of these issues, taking both practical and theoretical points of view. Chapter 2 considers the subject of programmability for arrays of processors. It describes some of the advantages and disadvantages of flexible implementations, and discusses processor design issues in light of the requirements of the array environment. In particular, it describes the design of PSC, a chip designed for systolic array implementations, which has been realized in nMOS. It also discusses alternative combinations of processors and memories for the implementation of systolic algorithms. Chapter 3 examines the question of synchronization in large arrays of processors. It gives asymptotic upper and lower bounds for the speed of clocked arrays of differing topologies under differing models of clock stew, and also makes some observations on practical issues of synchronization in large systems. Chapter 4 concentrates on implementations in which arithmetic is broken up into serial bit or subword steps; it shows how systolic serialized systems can be designed, and discusses some practical issues of cost and performance. Finally, Chapter 5 presents a case study of architectures for a family of information retrieval tasks.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 01, 1984
- Accession Number
- ADA156699
Entities
People
- A. L. Fisher
Organizations
- Carnegie Mellon University