| name | date |
| description | Writing and formatting guidance for DATE (Design, Automation and Test in Europe) papers. Use when drafting, formatting, or submitting to DATE 2026. Covers IEEEtran conference class, EDA/design automation-specific conventions, page limits, and camera-ready preparation with IEEE Xplore metadata. |
DATE Writing Guide
DATE (Design, Automation and Test in Europe) is a CCF-B design automation conference (https://www.date-conference.com). DATE uses single-blind review — author information is typically included. DATE is Europe's premier venue for electronic design and design automation research.
Document Setup
Template Files
- Template folder:
DATE/
- Document class: IEEEtran with conference mode
- Main class file:
IEEEtran.cls
Required LaTeX Structure
For Submission:
\documentclass[conference,compsoc]{IEEEtran}
% Optional packages
\usepackage{graphicx}
\usepackage{cite}
\usepackage{amsmath}
\usepackage{hyperref}
\begin{document}
% Title
\title{Your Paper Title}
% Author blocks — DATE uses IEEE author format
\author{
\IEEEauthorblockN{Author Name}
\IEEEauthorblockA{Institution\\Department\\email@example.com}
}
\maketitle
\begin{abstract}
Your abstract here — summarize contribution and key results.
\end{abstract}
% Keywords
\begin{IEEEkeywords}
design automation, VLSI, EDA, keywords
\end{IEEEkeywords}
% Main content
\section{Introduction}
...
% References: IEEE style
\bibliographystyle{IEEEtran}
\bibliography{references}
\end{document}
Key Formatting Requirements
- Document class:
IEEEtran with [conference] option
- Layout: Two-column (IEEE conference format)
- Author format:
\IEEEauthorblockN{} and \IEEEauthorblockA{}
Page Limits
- 6-8 pages typical for DATE 2026
- References do NOT count toward page limit
- Supplementary materials may be submitted separately
Submission Requirements
Double-Blind Status
DATE is typically single-blind. Author information should be included in the submission.
Submission Format
- Submit a single PDF file
- Ensure all fonts are embedded
- Use hyperref for clickable links in PDF
- Follow IEEE Xplore compatibility guidelines
Design Automation Writing Conventions
EDA Focus
DATE papers focus on:
- Electronic design automation
- System design
- Hardware/software codesign
- Verification and testing
Methodology Requirements
- Describe design methodology clearly
- Report experimental results
- Include comparison with existing methods
- Discuss scalability
Evaluation Best Practices
- Report runtime, quality of results
- Include benchmark comparisons
- Discuss limitations
- Report design metrics
Section Ordering (Recommended)
- Abstract — 150 words, highlight key contribution and results
- Introduction — Problem, motivation, contributions
- Background — Design automation context
- Design/Approach — Methodology or tool design
- Implementation/Evaluation — Results and analysis
- Related Work — Positioning within literature
- Conclusion — Summary
- References
Figure and Table Guidelines
EDA Figures
- Design flow diagrams
- Circuit/layout examples
- Experimental results
- Use vector graphics (PDF)
Table Best Practices
- Clear headers with units
- Highlight best results
- Use IEEE style formatting
- Include runtime/QoR metrics
Reference Format
\bibliographystyle{IEEEtran}
\bibliography{references}
- IEEE citation format
- Numbered citations
[1], [2]
- Full author names
Camera-Ready Preparation
- Verify PDF compliance with IEEE Xplore requirements
- Include all author information and acknowledgments
- Ensure page numbers are correct
- Add IEEE copyright notice
- Submit through IEEE PDF eXpress or conference system
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Using wrong document class (use IEEEtran conference mode)
- Missing
\IEEEauthorblockN{} for author names
- Exceeding page limit
- Non-embedded fonts in PDF
- Missing abstract or keywords
Useful Resources