VHDL:Modular Design and Synthesis of Cores and Systems, Third Edition
Utilize the Latest VHDL Tools and Techniques for Desigining Embedded Cores, Cutting-Edge Processors, RT Level Components, and Complex Digital Systems
Considered and industry classis, VHDL:Modular Design and Synthesis of Cores and Systems has been fully updated to cover methodologies of modern design and the latest uses of VHDL for digital system design. You'll learn how to utilize VHDL to create specific constructs for specific hardware parts, focusing on VHDL's new libraries and packages.
The cutting-edge resource explores the design of RT level components, the application of these components in a core-based, and the development of a complete processor design with its hardware and software as a core in a system-on-a-chip(SOC). Filled with over 150 illustrations, VHDL:Modular Design and Synthesis of Cores and Systems features:
An entire toolkit for register-transfer level digital system design
Testbench development techniques
New to this edition: Coverage of the latest uses of VHDL for digital system design, design of IP cores, interactive and self-checking testbench development, and VHDL's new libraries and packages
Inside this State-of-the-Art VHDL Design Tool
Design Methodology
VHDL Overview
Structure of VHDL
Simulation Model
Combinational Circuits
Sequential Circuits
Testbench Development
Control-Data Partitioned Designs
Design of RTL Embedded Cores
CPU RT Level Design
CPU Memory Indtruction Level Testing
Software Tools
Embedded System Design
Why Read This Book
You should read this book if you want a practical, synthesis-oriented guide to writing reusable, modular VHDL for real hardware: it walks from idiomatic VHDL constructs to RT-level components, core-based design, and integrating a processor into an SoC. You will gain patterns and coding styles that ease synthesis, portability, and IP reuse across FPGA/ASIC flows.
Who Will Benefit
Hardware engineers and FPGA/ASIC designers with basic HDL experience who want to write synthesizable, reusable VHDL and build core-based systems or small SoCs.
Level: Intermediate — Prerequisites: Basic digital logic and HDL familiarity (VHDL or similar), comfort with boolean algebra, finite state machines, and RTL simulation tools.
Key Takeaways
- Write synthesizable, well-structured VHDL using packages, generics, and configurations for reusable IP.
- Design and implement RTL components (registers, FSMs, arithmetic units) with synthesis-friendly coding styles.
- Compose and integrate cores into a core-based system and understand HW/SW partitioning for an SoC.
- Apply practical synthesis considerations and constraints to map VHDL to FPGA/ASIC targets.
- Develop testbenches and verification constructs to validate RTL and core integration.
- Use VHDL libraries, packages, and design units to manage large designs and improve portability.
Topics Covered
- Introduction to VHDL and Design Methodology
- Data Types, Operators, and Basic Modeling
- Structural, Behavioral and RTL Modeling Styles
- Combinational and Sequential Logic (FSMs, Registers)
- Packages, Libraries, Generics and Configurations
- Coding Styles for Synthesis and Synthesis Primitives
- Arithmetic and Parametric Component Design
- Core-Based Design Methodology and IP Reuse
- Processor Core Design and HW/SW Integration
- Testbench Techniques and Verification
- Timing, Constraints, and Implementation Considerations
- Design Examples: Processors, Peripherals, and Systems-on-Chip
- Appendices: VHDL-93/2002 Notes, Synthesis Tool Notes
Languages, Platforms & Tools
How It Compares
Compared with Peter Ashenden's The Designer's Guide to VHDL (more of an exhaustive language reference), Navabi is more application- and synthesis-oriented and focuses on modular, core-based design with practical examples.
