Getting started with the chip industry from scratch

Strive for the development of the Chinese chip industry! ——Lu Xun

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content

1. How to choose design and verification?

2. How to study?

2.1 IC Verification

2.2 FPGA

2.3 IC Design

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1. How to choose design and verification?

For children's shoes who are not from a professional background, IC verification is recommended for career change. Why?

1. Due to the increasing importance of verification, IC verification is currently severely understaffed, and the gap is larger than IC design.
2. IC verification has a set of UVM standard verification framework, and the verification personnel have a green paper + white paper, which can temporarily put aside circuit knowledge and get started quickly. Note that for the time being, a qualified verification engineer is still very demanding, otherwise you can only mention some superficial bugs.
3. Also due to the existence of UVM's general verification methodology, there are many training materials for online IC verification, which are also very systematic, and you can learn by hand.

Of course, the ceiling of IC verification is definitely not as high as IC design. (Verify the boss, don't beat the bricks)

Some children's shoes just want to challenge themselves, so it is recommended to get started with FPGA. WHY?

1. FPGA is relatively simple, and there are many materials, which is easy to get started.
2. FPGA can spend hundreds of dollars to buy a board, make things to see the effect, and learn more vigorously. Do you want to tape out the chip within two years?
3. FPGA can be familiar with the complete process of design-simulation-synthesis-implementation from beginning to end, and IC design may be a screw. First the breadth, then the depth.

       Finally, the IC design is the most demanding, so there is no 211/985. Do you want to change careers? The door can't be knocked on.

2. How to study?

Let's talk about IC design, IC verification, and FPGA separately.

2.1 IC Verification

1. The green paper "SystemVerilog" + the white paper "UVM" will be arranged first. Practitioners have one copy on hand.
2. I haven't participated in the training class, so I won't comment too much.
3. CSDN, official account, Zhihu, etc. have columns on the introduction of IC verification for reference.

       Comparing the above points, let's take a look. First of all, buy the green paper + white paper to get familiar with it first. At the same time, read the column articles of CSDN bosses, compare and combine learning, and use the time of evening and weekend to study for half a year, then you can send your resume to try. Water, find a company to train and study for a few months and can barely work! 1 year in total.

2.2 FPGA

        Switching to FPGA requires two basic skills: verilog + digital electricity, so it is better to find this book to familiarize yourself with, it is very simple stuff, don't be afraid. The recommended period is no more than two months.

        To get started, I have to recommend Brother Atom's "Hands-on FPGA Teaching", so it is best to spend a few hundred dollars to buy an FPGA development board, go through the routines, and master all the code, at least copy it once, familiar with it. If you don't understand, skip it, don't get out of a pit. The recommended period is no more than four months.

        In the same way, after half a year of self-study, I will submit my resume and go to the company for an internship, and follow the project to learn and progress faster. The latter is up to you.

        Here are a few good learning paths:

1. CSDN, the blog content covers most of the FPGA knowledge, you have everything you want~
2. "Build Your Digital Building Blocks": verilog, digital, FPGA are all available
3. Punctual Atom "Teach you to learn FPGA by hand", free, detailed, basic, and praised. It is better to learn with the development board.
4. "Black Gold Tutorial", advanced learning.

2.3 IC Design

        First ask your own school if you can play, there is a threshold here, let alone a career change.

        The basis of IC design is also verilog + counting electricity. So many FPGA to IC players. But the IC design works under the Linux system, so there is an additional requirement to be familiar with the Linux system. You are used to using Windows, but do you see that Linux is a bit empty? If it doesn't exist, it's good to be able to use basic Linux commands. Find a small notebook and write it down and use it a few times. What needs to be learned is the scripting language, and scripting means efficiency. The second point is the use of IC tools. Each link has a set of tools. Unlike FPGA, which can be done by one person and one tool, this problem is not big. Then you need to learn according to the specific content. Like baseband chips, automotive chips, etc., you need a thorough understanding of relevant professional knowledge protocols. Another consideration is low power consumption, design for testability and the like. After all, ICs are more demanding on performance than FPGAs. Tidy it up:

1. verilog + digital basics;
2. Linux basics, common commands, Vim editor;
3. IC tools (DC, VCS, verdi, etc.)
4. Scripting language tcl/Perl
5. AMBA bus familiarity
6. Familiar with common interfaces, skip this first, if you don’t need IP, each interface is enough for you to drink a pot
7. Project background expertise
8. ......

In general, it is the best route to learn the basics by yourself, and then go to the company for an internship.

Note: The time mentioned above is for on-the-job change, students or unemployed people, the time will be shortened by itself.

Note: The above content is limited to entry, that is, the stepping stone to change careers, the master leads the door, and the practice depends on the individual~