A self-reproducing circuit on a dynamically reconfigurable asynchronous LSI

摘要

In this paper, we report on a self-reproducing circuit configured on PCA-1, which is the first VLSI chip realizing the Plastic Cell Architecture (PCA). PCA is a hardware architecture that enables dynamic and autonomous reconfiguration of logic circuits. From a structural point of view, PCA is a dual layered cell array, which cell is composed of a plastic part and a built-in part. We designed PCA-1 as a fully asynchronous LSI. Thus, the circuits on the plastic part are configured as self-timed circuits. The self-reproduction is performed as a cooperative task of built-in parts and a circuit on the plastic part. We confirmed that the on-chip self-reproducing circuit behaved correctly as simulated.