Circuit Reliability for AI in Advanced Technologies

What it is about

You will learn which mechanisms affect the reliability of transistors and circuits in modern processor nodes, and how technology scaling and AI workloads influence failure rates. In the end you will be able to analyze failure causes from transistors to complete processors and to methodically apply design- and management techniques to increase reliability.

What you will be able to do

• Fundamental understanding of design-for-reliability in advanced technology nodes
• Impacts of AI workloads on circuit reliability
• Knowledge of key degradation mechanisms (Aging, Temperature, Self-heating, Soft Errors)
• Modeling and investigation of reliability degradation from transistors to complex circuits
• Application of reliability-aware design techniques
• System-level management to optimize reliability in multi-core processors
• Knowledge of how novel technologies may influence reliability in the future

What the module consists of

• LecturesConveying the fundamental concepts of reliability degradation; introduction of problems and state-of-the-art solutions
• Exercise/TutorialDemonstration of techniques, discussion of challenges, joint evaluation of pros and cons, practical examples

Teaching method

• Lecture with slides and blackboardExplanation of fundamental concepts and presentation of problem statements and solution approaches
• DiscussionsJoint forecasting of possible solutions with students and critical reflection on research and industry approaches
• Tutorials with practical examplesPractice of techniques, reading and discussion of scientific papers, familiarity with implementation aspects