Lab 8: Introduction to Sequential Logic

Rebecca Sontheimer
ECEN 248-511
TA: Mehnaz Rahman
Date: November 5, 2014

Objective
The objective of this lab is to understand more about sequential logic. This
includes learning about latches and flip-flops. This lab also involves the concept of time
delays, which are a large part of designing intricate circuits. The concept of a
synchronous circuit has been talked about in previous labs, but we have not really cared
about time delay up until this point and now we will account for timing with a clock
signal.

Design
Attached are the six different source codes that were used during the lab with
comments notating what is occurring in each part of the code. Each source code is written
using behavior Verilog and is run using a given test bench code that is used to check
that the behavior of the circuit is correct and to create a diagram that displays the
waveforms of the described circuit. For the test bench code that I had to partially write
myself, I created a truth table in order aid me in my design.

Results
The waveforms that resulted from each source code are shown below. These
waveforms are created by running the given test bench code with the source code in order
to generate a visual representation of the timing within a certain circuit.
SR _Latch (2 ns)

SR_Latch (4ns)

D_Latch

D_Flip_Flop

D_Flip_Flop_Behavioral

D_Latch_Behavioral

2-Bit Adder

Synchronous Adder

Conclusion
In conclusion, this lab was successful. I learned a lot about sequential logic and
how to implement it using various Verilog techniques (dataflow, structural, behavioral). I
also learned about the importance of time delays. If a circuit is not designed to account
for time delays, serious issues could arise and affect the outcome of the circuit.

Post-Lab Deliverables
1. All code is listed in the design section of this lab.
2. Screenshots are provided in the results section of this lab.
3. Questions throughout lab:
a. Now, change the 2 unit delays in your code to 4 units and run the test
bench again. Explain the results of the simulation.
Using the 4 ns delay caused the Q and notQ results to be delayed by 4ns
instead of 2 ns and the R, S, and En bits stayed the same as they were from
the 2 ns simulation. This makes sense because the inputs do not have the
time delay applied to them, the time delay comes through the circuit and
the outputs are the ones affected.
b. Simulate your D ip-op using the d ip op tb.v le in the course
directory. Add the internal nets within your D ip-op to the
waveform and examine the waveform after restarting the simulation.
Do the latches behave as expected? Why or why not?
The latches behave as expected when the internal nets have been added.
c. Compare the waveforms you captured from the behavioral Verilog
(d_latch_behavioral.v and d_flip_flop_behavioral.v) to those captured

from the structural Verilog. Are they different? If so, how?

The main difference is the time it took to start receiving data for Q and
notQ. The behavioral Verilog was faster than the structural Verilog. Also,
the D Latch had no time delay in the behavioral, but a significant delay in
the structural.
4. The advantage to using the behavioral description is that it is concise and uses one
statement that then decides the output rather than having to go through each
specific answer and check it. In structural and dataflow Verilog, efficiency is lost
because it has to read for each specific output rather than just paying attention to
the output behavior as a whole. I prefer behavioral Verilog when it comes to this
because it works more efficiently.
5. The timescale that the circuit can be reduced to and still work is 20 ns and works
at a 50MHz clock rate. Increasing the width of the adder would cause the clock
rate to drop because it has to work with more inputs than previously, resulting in a
longer time delay and causing a drop in the clock rate. To improve the clock rate
of the design, you could reduce the time delay in the circuit by reducing the
circuit to fewer gates or by using gates with less time delay.

Feedback
1. I liked this lab because it was very informative and useful. I liked that the lab
manual was like a tutorial with step-by-step instructions. There was nothing that I
disliked.
2. All parts were very clear and informative.
3. No need to improve this lab.