Network-on-Chip Design Guidelines for Monolithic 3-D Integration

Monolithic three-dimensional (M3D) integration is viewed as a promising improvement over through-silicon-via-based 3-D integration due to its greater inter-tier connectivity, higher circuit density, and lower parasitic capacitance. With M3D integration, network-on-chip (NoC) communication fabric can benefit from reduced link distances and improved intra-router efficiency. However, the sequential fabrication methods utilized for M3D integration impose unique interconnect requirements for each of the possible partitioning schemes at transistor, gate, and block granularities. Further, increased cell density introduces contention of available routing resources. Prior work on M3D NoCs has focused on the benefits of reduced distances, but has not considered these process-imposed circuit complications. In this article, NoC topology decisions are analyzed in conjunction with these M3D interconnect requirements to provide an equivalent architectural comparison between M3D partitioning schemes.