System Integration of Beyond-Binary Computing

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The present-day VLSI systems are designed on the basis of binary (radix-2) arithmetic algorithms combined with binary logic devices. As the VLSI technology scales down to deep sub-micron geometry, performance bottlenecks caused by increased wiring complexity and delay are becoming significantly severe. In order to overcome the performance bottlenecks, this research project investigates system integration based on a novel computing paradigm called "Beyond-Binary Computing". Listed below are major results of this project :1. A hardware description language called ARITH was developed for describing hardware algorithms in VLSI systems. By using ARUM, we developed an advanced library containing high-performance arithmetic algorithms using both binary and non-binary number systems. As an application, we used the proposed library to develop a practical module generator supporting various multiplier structures. The generator is available from our website, and is widely used all over the world. … More 2. A new high-level design method with ARITH was developed for designing high-performance beyond-binary arithmetic circuits. The ARITH description can be transformed into a technology-dependent netlist in binary/multiple-valued fused logic. For the prototype design, we used voltage-mode and current-mode CMOS technologies for binary logic and multiple-valued logic, respectively. The process of transforming the netlist into a physical layout pattern is automatically performed by an off-the-shelf place-and-route tool. The capability of the proposed method was investigated through some arithmetic circuit designs.3. A content-addressable memory circuits based on Single-Electron Transistors (SETs) was developed and evaluated for studying next-generation low-power LSI circuits. Also, a redox microarray for wire-free circuit integration using artificial catalyst devices was investigated experimentally. A prototype of redox microarray was demonstrated through an excitable reaction-diffusion dynamics, which was implemented by chemical reaction(e.g. B-Z reaction)waves. The visualization of the chemical waves was also investigated. Less