✅ Basic-Level Questions and Answers
1. What is an SoC (System on Chip)?
Answer:
An SoC is an integrated circuit that consolidates all components of a computer or electronic
system into a single chip. It typically includes a CPU, memory, input/output ports, and
secondary storage — all on one substrate.
2. How is SoC different from a microcontroller or microprocessor?
Answer:
A microprocessor focuses mainly on computation (CPU only), while a microcontroller
includes CPU, memory, and basic peripherals. An SoC goes further, integrating high-speed
memory, GPUs, DSPs, wireless modules, and more onto a single chip for complete system
functionality.
3. What are the major components of an SoC?
Answer:
CPU core(s)
Memory blocks (ROM, RAM, Cache)
Peripherals (UART, SPI, I2C, etc.)
DSP, GPU, or AI accelerator
Clock & Power Management
Interconnect (bus or NoC)
I/O Interfaces
Security Modules
4. What are the advantages of an SoC?
Answer:
Smaller size and lower weight
Lower power consumption
Higher performance
Reduced cost and improved reliability
Better integration and faster communication between components
✅ Intermediate-Level Questions and Answers
5. What is RTL in SoC design?
Answer:
Answer: RTL (Register Transfer Level) is a design abstraction used to describe the flow of
digital signals between hardware registers and the logic operations performed on those
signals. It is usually written in hardware description languages like Verilog or VHDL.
6. What is an IP core in SoC design?
Answer:
An IP (Intellectual Property) core is a pre-designed and verified module that performs a
specific function (e.g., USB controller, processor core) and can be integrated into SoCs to
save design time.
7. What are AXI, AHB, and APB?
Answer:
These are AMBA (Advanced Microcontroller Bus Architecture) bus protocols:
AXI (Advanced eXtensible Interface): High-speed, burst-based, pipelined, and
supports multiple masters and out-of-order transactions.
AHB (Advanced High-performance Bus): Simplified version for high-performance
designs.
APB (Advanced Peripheral Bus): Low-speed and low-power peripheral interface.
8. What is the function of an interconnect in SoC?
Answer:
The interconnect (bus or NoC - Network on Chip) handles data communication between the
CPU, memory, peripherals, and other IP blocks inside the SoC.
9. What is SoC verification?
Answer:
It is the process of checking that the SoC design works as intended, including functional
verification (correctness of logic), formal verification (mathematical correctness), and
physical verification (layout, timing, etc.).
10. What is the purpose of DMA in SoC?
Answer:
DMA (Direct Memory Access) allows peripherals to access memory directly without
involving the CPU, improving data throughput and reducing CPU load.
11. What are PPA metrics in SoC design?
Answer:
PPA stands for Power, Performance, and Area. These are key metrics to evaluate SoC
designs:
Power: How much energy the chip consumes.
Performance: Speed or throughput (e.g., GHz, MIPS).
Area: Physical silicon space used on the die.
12. What is hardware/software co-design?
Answer:
It’s a design approach where hardware and software are developed together to optimize
system performance, especially important in SoCs where certain tasks can be accelerated in
hardware.
13. What is clock gating?
Answer:
Clock gating is a power-saving technique where the clock signal to idle modules is turned off
to reduce dynamic power consumption.
14. How is secure boot implemented in SoC?
Answer:
Secure boot ensures that the system only executes trusted software by verifying digital
signatures using embedded keys before allowing code execution.
15. What are common security features in SoC?
Answer:
Secure boot
Hardware Root of Trust
Cryptographic engines (AES, RSA, SHA)
Secure key storage
Trusted Execution Environment (TEE)
16. What are the challenges of SoC integration?
Answer:
Managing clock domains and synchronization
Power domain separation and control
Inter-IP communication compatibility
Timing closure and physical integration
Verification complexity
17. Scenario: Your SoC is overheating. What do you check?
Answer:
Check power consumption and dynamic activity
Analyze thermal maps and hotspots
Investigate clock gating and voltage scaling
Review software for inefficient loops or CPU usage
Check if the cooling system (heat sink/fan) is functioning properly
18. How do you verify a third-party IP core?
Answer:
Run functional simulations with testbenches
Apply directed and constrained-random test cases
Check compliance with standard protocols
Perform formal verification if needed
Integrate and test in isolation before full SoC integration
✅ Tools Commonly Used in SoC Design
Task Tools
RTL Design Synopsys Design Compiler, Cadence Genus
Simulation ModelSim, VCS, XSIM
Formal Verification JasperGold, OneSpin
Physical Design Innovus, ICC2
SoC Integration CoreAssembler, Platform Architect
Verification SystemVerilog, UVM, VMM
