Exploring Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA)-Based Emulation Technologies for Accelerating Computer Architecture Development and Evaluation

摘要

This study compares the commercially available emulation hardware platforms with respect to user productivity, accuracy in multi-core processor architectures, and emulation performance. We also study the emerging FPGA-based emulation acceleration strategies and their effect on target system capacity, simulation performance, and the resource requirements for achieving an acceptable application software runtime. This report evaluates the hardware, software, and user support resource requirements for achieving the optimal balance in user design productivity and model accuracy of the target design, and makes recommendations for emulation strategies and platforms for future consumer and military multi-core processor architecture designers.