Real world SOC experience for the classroom

System-on-chip design is an important new trend in the design of complex integrated circuits. The integration of a microprocessor, memory and peripherals onto a single die opens new possibilities, but also presents new design challenges. Teaching system-on-chip design techniques to students requires not only CAD software but also design libraries and HDL code blocks. This paper presents a reference system-on-chip design as well as a set of training materials. The design is a dual-processor SOC with several peripheral blocks. It is based on a generic 180 nm process design kit and cell library. All materials are available at no charge to students and universities.