architecture

name	architecture
description	Microarchitecture exploration, PPA estimation, risk assessment, and architecture sign-off for digital chip design. Use when evaluating design candidates, estimating power/area/performance, assessing technical risk, or producing a microarchitecture document for handoff to RTL design.
version	1.0.0
author	chuanseng-ng
license	MIT
allowed-tools	Read, Write, Bash

Skill: Architecture Evaluation

Invocation

• If invoked by a user presenting a design task: immediately spawn the digital-chip-design-agents:architecture-orchestrator agent and pass the full user request and any available context. Do not execute stages directly.
• If invoked by the architecture-orchestrator mid-flow: do not spawn a new agent. Treat this file as read-only — return the requested stage rules, sign-off criteria, or loop-back guidance to the calling orchestrator.

Spawning the orchestrator from within an active orchestrator run causes recursive delegation and must never happen.

Pre-run Context

Before executing or advising on any stage, read the following files if they exist:

1. memory/architecture/knowledge.md — known failure patterns, successful tool flags, PDK/tool quirks. Incorporate its guidance into every stage decision. If absent, proceed without it.
2. memory/architecture/run_state.md — current run identity (run_id, design_name, tool, last_stage). Use this to resume correctly after interruption. If absent, a new run is starting; the orchestrator will create this file before the first stage.

This pre-run read applies whether this skill is loaded by a user or called by the orchestrator mid-flow. It ensures the fix database is consulted before any diagnosis step.

Purpose

Guide the full microarchitecture evaluation process from product specification through to a signed-off microarchitecture document ready for RTL handoff. Covers specification decomposition, candidate architecture exploration, performance and PPA modelling, risk assessment, and sign-off.

---

Supported EDA Tools

Open-Source

• gem5 (gem5) — full-system micro-architectural simulator for performance modelling
• McPAT (mcpat) — processor power, area, and timing estimator
• CACTI (cacti) — SRAM/cache power and area estimator
• Python estimation scripts (python3 estimate.py) — custom PPA models

Proprietary

• Synopsys Platform Architect — IP-level performance and power exploration
• ARM Performance Models — cycle-accurate ARM subsystem models
• Cadence Virtual System Platform (VSP) — SoC-level virtual prototyping

---

Stage: spec_analysis

Domain Rules

1. Classify every requirement: functional, performance, power, area, interface, safety/security
2. Identify under-specified areas and flag as open questions for the product team
3. Map each use case to required hardware blocks (datapath, control, memory, IO)
4. Extract all interface requirements with protocols (AXI, PCIe, USB, Ethernet, etc.)
5. Identify safety/security requirements (ISO 26262, FIPS, CC) if applicable
6. Assign priority: Must-Have / Should-Have / Nice-to-Have
7. Produce a structured requirements document before any architecture work begins

QoR Metrics to Evaluate

• Requirements coverage: 100% of spec sections mapped to at least one requirement
• Ambiguity count: all unresolved items captured in open questions list
• Interface completeness: all external interfaces named with protocol and bandwidth

Common Issues & Fixes

Issue	Fix
Spec section not mapped	Add to open questions; do not assume
Interface bandwidth unspecified	Request from product team before proceeding
Conflicting requirements	Flag as blocker; request resolution

Output Required

• Structured requirements document (JSON or Markdown)
• Interface list with protocols and bandwidths
• Open questions list

---

Stage: arch_exploration

Domain Rules

1. Generate minimum 3 candidate architectures: conservative, balanced, aggressive
2. Evaluate pipeline depth trade-offs (deeper = higher frequency, more area/power)
3. Evaluate parallelism: SIMD, superscalar, spatial unrolling — with area/power cost
4. Cache/memory hierarchy: size, associativity, latency vs area trade-off per use case
5. Interconnect topology: bus, crossbar, NoC — evaluate bandwidth vs complexity
6. Consider IP reuse: identify hard macros or licensed IPs before designing custom
7. Document all assumptions for each candidate explicitly
8. Produce a trade-off matrix comparing all candidates

Trade-off Matrix Template

Candidate	Freq Target	Area Est.	Power Est.	Risk	Notes
Option A	1GHz	3mm²	300mW	Low	...
Option B	2GHz	6mm²	700mW	High	...

QoR Metrics to Evaluate

• Minimum 3 candidates explored with distinct trade-off profiles
• Each candidate: performance estimate within 20% of target
• Single recommended candidate with clear quantitative justification

Output Required

• Trade-off matrix with all candidates
• Recommended candidate with quantitative justification
• Assumptions and risk summary per candidate

---

Stage: perf_modelling

Domain Rules

1. Use analytical models (Amdahl, Roofline) for initial estimates
2. Build TLM/SystemC or Python models for complex pipelines
3. Model all bottlenecks: compute, memory bandwidth, IO throughput
4. Sweep key parameters: clock frequency, parallelism, cache size
5. Validate with representative workloads from the use-case list
6. Include best/typical/worst-case scenarios
7. Flag any model assumption that has not been validated

QoR Metrics to Evaluate

• Throughput: meets or exceeds target by ≥ 10% margin
• Latency: meets target at worst-case workload
• Memory bandwidth: does not exceed DRAM/SRAM ceiling
• Model confidence: HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW

Output Required

• Performance model (script or spreadsheet)
• Throughput/latency results per use case
• Sensitivity analysis
• Comparison table: modelled vs target

---

Stage: power_area_estimation

Domain Rules

1. Area: use technology library scaling data (gates/mm² at target node)
2. Dynamic power: P = α × C × V² × f (get activity factor from use cases)
3. Leakage: estimate from library characterisation at target Vt mix
4. Memory area: use SRAM compiler estimates for given depth × width
5. IO pad area: per pad ring design rules
6. Apply 15–20% margin — RTL is never minimal
7. Flag immediately if any estimate exceeds 80% of budget

Clock Gating Opportunity Analysis

Perform this analysis using the activity factors already collected for dynamic power:

1. For each identified clock domain, record its activity factor α derived from the use-case workload sweep (gem5 simulation or analytical model).

2. Classify each domain using thresholds from design_state.constraints.power.activity_factors (defaults: {"default": 0.15, "high": 0.40}):

   • α < activity_factors.default (default: 0.15) — high gating opportunity: clock gating will save > 30% dynamic power for that domain; flag as a must-have RTL requirement.
   • activity_factors.default ≤ α < activity_factors.high (defaults: 0.15–0.40) — moderate gating opportunity: clock gating recommended; flag as should-have RTL requirement.
   • α ≥ activity_factors.high (default: 0.40) — always-active: no gating benefit; document as always-on.

3. Produce a clock_power_budget table (one row per domain):

   Domain	Frequency	α (activity)	Est. Clock Power (mW)	Gating Class
   core	1 GHz	0.08	45	high
   dsp	500 MHz	0.55	30	always-on

4. McPAT clocking component already models clock network power — ensure the frequency-sweep input reflects per-domain frequencies, not a single global clock.

5. Include the clock_power_budget table in the hand-off package to RTL design. The RTL agent will use it to target ICG (Integrated Clock Gate) insertion.

Supported Tools for Clock/Power Analysis

Tool	Type	Use
McPAT	Open-source	Clock network + dynamic/leakage power (already in flow)
gem5	Open-source	Workload activity factor extraction (already in flow)
CACTI	Open-source	Memory clock power estimate (already in flow)
Yosys + ABC	Open-source	Post-synth switching activity cross-check (optional)
Synopsys PrimePower	Proprietary	RTL-level power sign-off (optional)
Cadence Joules RTL	Proprietary	RTL power analysis (optional)

QoR Metrics to Evaluate

• Area estimate: < 80% of design_state.constraints.area.area_um2 budget (required constraint — see architecture-orchestrator Behaviour Rule 9)
• Dynamic power: < 80% of design_state.constraints.power.power_mw budget (required constraint)
• Leakage: < design_state.constraints.power.leakage_pct_max% of total estimated power (default: 15%)
• Clock-gating coverage: ≥ design_state.constraints.power.gating_coverage_pct_min% of register-bank bits in high-opportunity domains (default: 60%) (measured using planned register-map estimates from the microarchitecture specification; mark estimate confidence as HIGH if register counts are frozen, MEDIUM if approximate, LOW if based on scaling from similar designs)
• Confidence: HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW

Output Required

• Area breakdown by block
• Power breakdown: dynamic, leakage, per domain
• Margin analysis vs targets
• clock_power_budget table (domain → frequency, activity factor, estimated clock power mW, gating class)

---

Stage: risk_assessment

Domain Rules

1. Risk categories: schedule, technical feasibility, IP availability, tool support, verification complexity, power closure, manufacturing yield
2. Score every risk: Probability (1–5) × Impact (1–5) = Risk Score
3. Risk score ≥ 15: classified HIGH — must have mitigation plan before sign-off
4. IP risks: verify availability, licensing timeline, silicon-proven status
5. Tool risks: verify EDA tool certification for chosen technology node
6. Verification risks: flag if testbench complexity > 6 months estimated effort
7. Every risk must have an assigned owner

QoR Metrics to Evaluate

• No unmitigated HIGH risks at sign-off
• All risks: assigned owner and mitigation plan
• Schedule risk assessed vs team capacity

Output Required

• Risk register (ID, description, score, mitigation, owner)
• Top 5 risks for management review

---

Stage: arch_signoff

Sign-off Checklist

• All Must-Have requirements addressed
• Performance targets met in model (≥ 10% margin)
• Power and area within budget (< 80% of design_state.constraints.area.area_um2 / power.power_mw)
• All HIGH risks have mitigation plans and owners
• Interface specifications complete and agreed
• Memory map defined
• Clock domains identified; CDC strategy agreed
• Reset strategy defined
• DFT strategy agreed
• Verification strategy agreed
• RTL coding guidelines documented
• clock_power_budget table produced; gating class assigned per domain
• Clock-gating coverage ≥ design_state.constraints.power.gating_coverage_pct_min% of register bits in high-opportunity domains (default: 60%)
• Hand-off package complete for RTL team (includes clock_power_budget table)

Output Required

• Signed-off microarchitecture document
• Final trade-off decision record
• RTL design guidelines
• Hand-off package

---

Constraint Validation

See plugins/meta/skills/pipeline-orchestration/SKILL.md §Constraints Schema for the authoritative schema and stage-entry validation rule.

Required at entry (spec_analysis) — hard-fail if missing:

• constraints.clock.clk_mhz — target frequency
• constraints.area.area_um2 — area budget
• constraints.power.power_mw — power budget

Optional (schema defaults apply when absent):

• constraints.power.leakage_pct_max (default: 15%) — leakage threshold
• constraints.power.gating_coverage_pct_min (default: 60%) — ICG coverage target
• constraints.power.activity_factors (defaults: {default: 0.15, high: 0.40}) — domain classification thresholds

---

Memory

Write on stage completion

After each stage completes (regardless of whether an orchestrator session is active), write or overwrite one JSON record in memory/architecture/experiences.jsonl keyed by run_id. This ensures data is persisted even if the flow is interrupted or called without full orchestrator context.

Use run_id = architecture_<YYYYMMDD>_<HHMMSS> (set once at flow start; reuse on each stage update). Set signoff_achieved: false until the final sign-off stage completes.

Run state (write before first stage, update after each stage)

Write memory/architecture/run_state.md as the first action before launching any tool:

run_id:      architecture_<YYYYMMDD>_<HHMMSS>
design_name: <design>
tool:        <primary tool>
start_time:  <ISO-8601>
last_stage:  null

Update last_stage to the completed stage name only after each stage finishes successfully. This file lets wakeup-loop prompts and resumed sessions identify the correct run without relying on in-memory state. Create the file and parent directories if they do not exist.

Optional: claude-mem index

If mcp__plugin_ecc_memory__add_observations is available in this session, emit each applied fix as an observation to entity chip-design-architecture-fixes after writing to experiences.jsonl. Skip silently if the tool is absent — JSONL is the canonical record.