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feat(lane-l-z02): operand isolation — +8 TOPS/W via toggle suppression#54

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feat(lane-l-z02): operand isolation — +8 TOPS/W via toggle suppression#54
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feat/lane-l-z02-operand-isolation

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L-Z02 Operand Isolation (Data Gating)

AND-gate operand bus inputs to unused functional units. Prevents toggle activity propagation into idle blocks. Saves ~8% dynamic power → +8 TOPS/W.

Design Intent

  • Each functional unit (gf16_mul lanes, gf16_add, gf16_dot4/dot8, alu9_decoder) gets an operand_iso_en signal from the tile FSM
  • Operand register outputs AND-ed with enable before reaching the unit
  • When enable=0 → operand inputs see all-zero → zero toggle activity downstream

Files Changed

File Change
src/operand_iso_buf.v NEW — Parameterized N-bit operand isolator: assign out = {N{enable}} & in;
src/trinity_gf16_tile.v 16 operand_iso_buf instances (a0..a7, b0..b7), operand_iso_en from FSM
src/trinity_mesh_2x2.v L-Z02 comment block documenting mesh-level isolation
src/tt_um_ghtag_trinity_gf16.v 8-bit isolator on alu9_decoder inputs (enable=post_done)
sim/tb_l_z02_operand_iso.v NEW — 6-test toggle-count verification testbench
info.yaml Added operand_iso_buf.v to source_files

Enable Signal Logic

  • Trinity tiles: operand_iso_en register, initialized 0 (isolated) at reset. Set on first LOAD_A packet (tile armed). Tiles that never receive a load packet propagate all-zero operands permanently.
  • alu9_decoder: enable = post_done — decoder inputs isolated during reset/POST phase.

Cell Budget

Path Instances Bits AND2 cells
Tile a0..a3 (dot4) 4 16 64
Tile b0..b3 (dot4) 4 16 64
Tile a4..a7 (dot8 upper) 4 16 64
Tile b4..b7 (dot8 upper) 4 16 64
alu9_decoder 1 8 8
4 tiles total 4 × 256 + 8 = 1032

~1032 sky130_fd_sc_hd__and2_1 cells. Well within budget.

Verification

All 6 tests pass under iverilog -g2005:

  • T1a/T1b: enable=0 → out=0x0000 for any input
  • T2a/T2b: enable=1 → transparent pass-through (GF16 1.0, 30.0)
  • T3: enable=0 → 0 toggles across 100 LFSR random vectors
  • T4: enable=1 → 100 toggles across same vectors

Constitutional Compliance

  • R-SI-1: zero * operators in all new/modified code
  • Pure Verilog-2005: no SystemVerilog constructs
  • No external IP added

Projected Gain

8% dynamic power reduction per tile → **+8 TOPS/W** system-wide.


Anchor: φ² + φ⁻² = 3 · DOI 10.5281/zenodo.19227877

L-Z02 Operand Isolation (data gating) implementation.

## Summary
AND-gate operand bus inputs to unused functional units to prevent toggle
activity propagation into idle blocks. Saves ~8% dynamic power → +8 TOPS/W.

## Files Changed
- src/operand_iso_buf.v (NEW): Parameterized N-bit operand isolator
  `assign out = {N{enable}} & in;`
  Pure Verilog-2005, R-SI-1 clean (no `*` operator).
  ~N AND2 cells per instance.

- src/trinity_gf16_tile.v: 16 operand_iso_buf instances (a0..a7, b0..b7)
  all ANDed with `operand_iso_en` register.
  operand_iso_en=0 at reset (tile idle); set on first LOAD_A packet.
  dot4 mode: 8 × 16 = 128 AND2 cells; dot8 mode: 16 × 16 = 256 AND2 cells.

- src/trinity_mesh_2x2.v: L-Z02 comment block documenting mesh-level impact.
  (Isolation implemented inside tiles; mesh fabric unchanged.)

- src/tt_um_ghtag_trinity_gf16.v: operand_iso_buf on alu9_decoder inputs
  (8-bit isolator, enable=post_done). Prevents hwrng toggle into decoder
  during reset/POST phase.

- sim/tb_l_z02_operand_iso.v (NEW): 6-test toggle-count verification:
  T1: enable=0 → out=0 for any input
  T2: enable=1 → out=in (transparent)
  T3: enable=0 → 0 toggles across 100 LFSR vectors
  T4: enable=1 → >0 toggles across same vectors
  ALL 6 TESTS PASS (iverilog verified)

- info.yaml: Added operand_iso_buf.v to source_files list.

## Cell Budget
- 4 tiles × 16 isolators × 16 bits = 1024 AND2 (dot8 mode)
- 1 alu9 isolator × 8 bits = 8 AND2
- Total: ~1032 AND2 cells (~1032 sky130_fd_sc_hd__and2_1)
- Acceptable within tile budget; isolators are minimal cells.

## Constitutional Compliance
- R-SI-1: zero `*` operators in new/modified code.
- Pure Verilog-2005: no SystemVerilog constructs.

## Projected Gain
~8% dynamic power reduction per tile → ~+8 TOPS/W system-wide.
Anchor: φ² + φ⁻² = 3 · DOI 10.5281/zenodo.19227877
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