SystemVerilog in VLSI – A Quick Guide

SystemVerilog (SV) is a hardware description and verification language (HDVL) used widely in VLSI for designing and verifying digital circuits. It extends Verilog with advanced features.

1. Where SystemVerilog Is Used in VLSI

RTL Design

• Writing synthesizable RTL

• Interfaces, structs, enums improve design readability

• Assertions for design correctness (SVA)

Functional Verification

• Constrained random testing

• Coverage-driven verification

• Object-oriented programming (OOP)

• Basis of UVM (Universal Verification Methodology)

Testbench Development

• Transactions, mailboxes, queues

• Classes, inheritance, polymorphism

• Virtual interfaces for connecting TB ↔ RTL

2. SystemVerilog Key Features

Design Constructs

• logic (replaces reg and wire)

• always_ff, always_comb, always_latch

• Interfaces

• Enumerations, structures, unions

Verification Constructs

• OOP (class, inheritance, polymorphism)

• Randomization (rand, randc, constraints)

• Functional coverage (covergroup, coverpoint)

• Assertions (SystemVerilog Assertions – SVA)

• Mailboxes, semaphores, processes

3. Quick Syntax Examples

RTL: Flip-Flop Using always_ff

Interface Example

Class + Randomization

Assertion Example

4. SystemVerilog in UVM

UVM uses SystemVerilog classes to build advanced verification environments:

• sequences, sequencers

• drivers, monitors

• agents

• scoreboard

• environment & test classes

If you’re doing Verification, UVM + SystemVerilog is essential.