ECE/Mosis User Documentation

ECE/MOSIS Chip Submission System

User Documentation

What is MOSIS?
What is the ECE/MOSIS System?
What do I do first?
How do I "fab a chip?"
Do I have to use this system to fab a chip?
What is the Report and why do I keep getting email about it?
When and where do I get my chips?

1. What is MOSIS?

MOSIS is an acronym for MOS Implementation System. It is physically located at the Information Sciences Institute of the University of Southern California. The MOSIS service is a service initially funded through DARPA and NSF. Often, only a few chips from a single design are desired. Normally, this would be extremely expensive which would eliminate any chance of producing a prototype of a design. Through the MOSIS service, small numbers of a design are possible at a fraction of the standard cost. There are a number of technologies available.

2. What is the ECE/MOSIS System?

The ECE/MOSIS Chip Submission System is the WWW-based system that allows people at Georgia Tech to communicate with MOSIS using a standard, easy to use interface. It consists of the Web pages, user database, and several programs running in the background to connect all of this information. While reading any of the documentation, "MOSIS" refers to the MOSIS service in California, and "ECE/MOSIS" refers to the Georgia Tech ECE/MOSIS Chip Submission System.

3. What do I do first?

In order to fabricate any chips, you must be a registered user. This is a painless process that requires you to enter some information which will be used to keep track of the projects you create and fabricate. If you are a grad student and wish to fabricate chips, you must be enrolled in the VLSI Prototyping seminar. If you are an undergraduate, you must contact Steve Deweerth. To register to use the system, go to the system WWW page at http://www.ece.gatech.edu/users/mosis and select 'Request and ECE/Mosis account'. You will receive email notifying you that your account is active.

4. How do I "fab a chip?"

The term "fab a chip" means to have MOSIS fabricate a chip using a design you send them. In order to fab a chip. you must have an account on the ECE/MOSIS system and be approved for fabrication. If you are not sure if you are approved for fabrication, send email to the administrator.

A brief description of the steps required to fab a chip is provided here. For more detailed instructions, see the MOSIS manual.

Request a new project: You must first get a project ID from MOSIS. This tells MOSIS that you are going to be submitting a design for fabrication sometime in the future. The ID is an accounting number that allows MOSIS to keep track of all the projects it fabricates. To request a project, log into the ECE/Mosis WWW user program, select 'New project request', and fill out the form provided. Detailed documentation about project requests is available. Once you request a new project, the system administrators must approve it. Once this happens, the request goes to Mosis, which then returns a project ID, usually within a few hours.
Submit a project: After your chip design is complete and you are ready to have it fabricated, you must submit that design to MOSIS. MOSIS can accept designs in three formats: CIF (the most common, and the format you should use), GDSII, and MEBES.
In the WWW user program, select 'Work with an existing project'. The system will provide you with a list of your projects. Choose the project for which you want to submit a design file and select 'Submit CIF'. You must know the bytecount and checksum of your CIF file before submitting, as the ECE/Mosis system will verify these for you. On the submission page, select which local file to send and enter the bytecount and checksum info. The ECE/Mosis system allows you to submit CIF before Mosis returns a project ID. Once the ID arrives in response to a project request, the system will automatically forward any CIFs that have been submitted.
Fabricate: Once the design has been submitted and approved by MOSIS, it is ready to be fabricated. Until the fabricate request is sent, your project will just sit and never be fabricated. Once the fabricate command has been sent, your design will be fabricated on the next available run. Then, you just have to wait for the chips to be fabricated (8 to 12 weeks).
Requesting fabrication in the ECE/Mosis system is much like submitting CIF. Select the project to be fabricated and choose 'Request FAB'. Once again, you may do this before Mosis returns the project ID. The system also gives the option of submitting CIF and requesting fab in a single operation; in this case, both actions are placed into the pending queue and sent when the project ID is returned.
Report: After you receive the chips, you MUST test them and you MUST send a report back to MOSIS (50-100 words) describing the results of your test, problems with the chip, abnormalities due to fabrication, etc. If MOSIS accepts your report, then you are done with your project as far as MOSIS is concerned.
To submit a report, choose the proper project and select 'Submit report'. The system will prompt for a local text file containing the report. This MUST be a pure text file, not the default output of most commercial word processing software.
Canceling: You can cancel a fabrication request or a project before the project is In Fab (you will receive a message saying your project is In Fab when it is). Cancel Project will eliminate the project entirely, requiring you to Request a new project (Step 1) again. Cancel Fabricate (which must be done before you can Cancel Project) will remove your project from the fabrication queue. This means it will not be fabricated until you send another Fabricate command.

5. Do I have to use this system to fab a chip?

Yes. The system generates and maintains all project and account passwords, so there is no way around it.

6. What is the Report and why do I keep getting email about it?

The Report is the last communication you have with MOSIS about a particular project. Once you've sent your report and it has been approved by MOSIS, then you can close the book on that project. MOSIS requires reports to be sent on every project. These reports help MOSIS document what they fabricate, justify their existence to funding sources, and track fabrication problems. MOSIS provides the service, all they ask is some information in return. The report is very important to everyone who fabricates at Georgia Tech. If you do not submit a report, funding for the next fiscal year is shut off. It is in your best interest to submit your reports in a timely fashion. Your fellow students will appreciate it. It also eliminates the need to send someone after you. You will continue to get reminders to send in your report some time after you have received your project. Once the report is submitted, the reminders will stop.

7. When and where do I get my chips?

Approximately 8 to 12 weeks after the run deadline, you will receive your chips. They are delivered to Dr. Deweerth's lab in CoC 337. You can pick them up almost any time during business hours. You may send someone else to pick up your chips, but everyone getting chips must sign a receipt list.