Course details
Functional Verification of Digital Systems
FVS Acad. year 2025/2026 Summer semester 5 credits
Importance of functional verification. Requirements specification and verification plan. Simulation and creating testbenches. Functional verification and its methods (pseudo-random stimuli generation, coverage-driven verification, asserion-based verification, self-checking mechanisms). Verification methodologies and SystemVerilog language. Reporting and correction of errors. Emulation and FPGA prototyping. Validation.
Guarantor
Course coordinator
Language of instruction
Completion
Time span
- 26 hrs lectures
- 8 hrs laboratories
- 18 hrs projects
Assessment points
- 60 pts final exam
- 20 pts labs
- 20 pts projects
- 5 pts homework
Department
Lecturer
Learning objectives
Overview about functional verification of digital systems. The attention is paid to creating testbenches and functional verification environments according to widely used verification methodologies (UVM) and to emulation. The aim is to understand how to detect and localize errors in digital systems and how to handle them properly.
A student will understand the main techniques of functional verification of digital systems: simulation, functional verification and its methods, emulation and prototyping. He/she will be able to analyze source codes and outputs of verification tools, to localize errors and to handle their correction. He/she will master creating basic verification environments in SystemVerilog language according to UVM verification methodology.
Prerequisite knowledge and skills
Digital system design, basic programming skills.
Study literature
- Přednáškové materiály v elektronické formě.
- Myer, A.: Principles of Functional Verification, Newnes, USA, 2003. ISBN: 0750676175.
- Spear, Ch., Tumbush, G., SystemVerilog for Verification: A Guide to Learning the Testbench Language Features, Springer, USA, 2012. ISBN: 1461407141.
- Haque, F., Michelson, J., Khan, K.: The Art of Verification with SystemVerilog Assertions, Verification Central, USA, 2006. ISBN: 0971199418.
- Amos, D., Lesea, A., Richter, R.: FPGA-Based Prototyping Methodology Manual: Best Practices in Design-For-Prototyping, Synopsys Press, USA,2011. ISBN: 1617300047.
Fundamental literature
- * Myer, A.: Principles of Functional Verification, Newnes, USA, 2003. ISBN: 0750676175. * Bergeron, J.: Writing Testbenches using SystemVerilog, Springer, USA, 2006. ISBN: 0387292217 * Spear, Ch., Tumbush, G., SystemVerilog for Verification: A Guide to Learning the Testbench Language Features, Springer, USA, 2012. ISBN: 1461407141. * Haque, F., Michelson, J., Khan, K.: The Art of Verification with SystemVerilog Assertions, Verification Central, USA, 2006. ISBN: 0971199418.
Syllabus of lectures
- Motivation and history of verification
- Simulation-based verification
- Functional verification: introduction
- Verification methodologies
- Self-checking mechanisms + LAB 1
- SystemVerilog: data types, stimuli generation + LAB 2
- Coverage analysis + LAB 3
- Assertions
- Assertions-based verification + LAB 4
- Register Abstraction Layer
- Invited lecture
- Validation
- Verification trends
Syllabus of laboratory exercises
- Reference model implementation.
- Verification tests implementation.
- Coverage-driven verification.
- Assertions-based verification.
Syllabus - others, projects and individual work of students
Design and implementation of verification environment for a selected digital systém.
Progress assessment
Labs and project in due dates.
Course inclusion in study plans