• Nonvolatile devices, which can remain stored data without power supply, are generally used for ROM (Read-Only Memory) to store boot programs (the information to start up the computer and the basic instructions that operate it) in computers. One attractive feature is that it does not consume any static power while it remains stored data. ‘Nonvolatile logic' is a novel logic style that a nonvolatile device is used for not only a nonvolatile storage element such as ROM but also a logic-circuit element which is the basic component of a CPU and an entire system. By using the nonvolatile devices as storage elements of circuit-configuration information, we can realize a process-variation- aware logic circuit with small hardware overhead.

The proposed technique is effective for implementing high-performance and highly-reliable LSI fabricated with cutting-edge process technology. We expect we can conduct effective collaborative research in highly reliable VLSI-systems fields.

• Nonvolatile logic
• parameter-variation compensation
• reconfigurable circuit