EE 739 – PROCESSOR DESIGN

Course offered in:

Spring 2018

Instructor(s):

Virendra Singh

Motivation :

Increase in processing power is the driving force behind the computer revolution. And processors lie at the heart of this revolution. In EE309, we were introduced to the basics of microprocessor design which were in use till 1990s. In this course, we pick up from there and explore the advancements in processor design till around 2010. In the 2000s, the processor industry was faced with new challenges regarding power consumption and Moore’s law breaking down. Hence, smarter innovations were needed to increase the performance. All these issues and their solutions are discussed in this course.

Course Content:

VLIW design, superscalar architecture,limitations of superscalar, multicore architecture, network on chip(NOC) design, gpu, performance and power considerations for processor design

Prerequisites:

The course was run in 2 batches with slightly different syllabus. One was for postgraduate students which does not have any prerequisites. The one for undergraduates is a direct continuation of EE309 microprocessors. This review is for the latter

Feedback on Lectures:

The lectures were pretty heavy on content but extremely engaging, interactive and intellectually stimulating. Every lecture began with a recap of the previous content. The professor highly encourages doubts and discussions. Towards the end, he discussed a few research papers to give us a flavour of the new innovations being done in this field. He is also very accommodating in terms of lecture timings and other logistics.

Feedback on Tutorials, Assignments and Exams:

4-5 short surprise quizzes, midsem and endsem were conducted. All exams were open notes, open book and open time. The questions are application based, often open-ended and test one’s thorough conceptual understanding. Thus, though solving the exams are usually fun, they tend to be difficult and require you to think.

There was also a design project which was the most important part of evaluation. It is advisable to start it as soon as superscalar part is done in class otherwise it becomes difficult to complete it.

Difficulty:

The course is pretty extensive and content heavy. Studying just one day before rarely helps. However, if one has paid attention in class and kept up with the professor, not much extra effort is required. Doing the project diligently also ensures that one has grasped the concepts.For those who enjoyed EE309, the course is extremely interesting.

Study Material and References:

JP Shen and MH Lipasti, Modern Processor Design (Good for Superscalar Design) Lecture notes are enough for most part of the course. The professor’s lecture slides are also a good reference.

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