Introduction to Verification and SystemVerilog for Beginners

It is essential to verify the correct operation of a digital FPGA or IC design before it is manufactured. However, making sense of the verification methodologies, languages and tools used, can be challenging when first encountered. This presentation gives a brief overview of the current verification landscape, including verification objectives, simulation and formal verification approaches, the languages used and the tools required. It then introduces the main features of SystemVerilog – the most popular language used for verification today. This overview will provide a foundation for verification novices, who subsequently wish to study UVM or Formal Verification in greater detail.

Matthew Taylor has been a key member of the Doulos technical team since 2014, specialising in Hardware Description Language-based design and verification, formal verification, and digital hardware design. As well as developing, writing, and presenting training courses, Matthew is responsible for the day-to-day running and the development of the EDA Playground website, which is owned by Doulos. He is also an Employee Trustee of Doulos, which is an employee-owned company.

Matthew has an MEng in Electrical and Electronic Engineering and holds patents for 25 inventions in digital TV demodulation across 40 countries and regions.

Before joining Doulos, Matthew worked at Sony for 16 years where he designed and managed the development of ICs (for digital TV and mobile phones) and designed algorithms for digital TV demodulation. Before that he worked at Siemens (Roke Manor) where he designed FPGA/ICs and embedded software for various radio systems. In total, he has 35 years’ experience of electronics design and verification.