Dynamic Voltage Scaling Dissertação para obtenção do Grau de ...

Abstract
The present work reports a new methodology to improve the power efficiency of microelectronics
digital cores, without compromising their performance or reliability. Nowadays, the industry most
common strategy to support variations of the circuit fabrication Process, power supply Voltage,
Temperature and Aging (PVTA) is based on imposing a custom voltage high enough to ensure the
correct operation of the circuit in a worst case scenario. However, this approach leads to a
considerable waste of energy since most of the time circuits do not operate under worst case
conditions.
Nevertheless, the solution for this problem is not trivial since it is mandatory to develop a
methodology were the system is able to adapt itself to different conditions but without compromising
its performance or reliability.
In this context, a new methodology is here proposed that aims to guarantee maximum efficiency
through the use of a sensor that monitors the performance degradation of circuits in order to adjust its
power supply voltage, guaranteeing the best power consumption but without compromising its
performance or reliability. To demonstrate the sensor operation, a prototype circuit was developed
and implemented in a FPGA. The developed prototype includes a multiplier, and corresponding self-
-test (BIST), to which the developed sensor was applied in order to ensure its operation without
errors, guaranteeing at the same time minimal power consumption.
Keywords
PVTA Sensor, FPGA, Prototyping, Power Management for Microelectronics
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