Intel® Quartus® Prime Standard Edition User Guide: Timing Analyzer

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ID 683068
Date 2/21/2024
Public
Document Table of Contents
Document Table of Contents x
1. Timing Analysis Introduction 2. Using the Intel® Quartus® Prime Timing Analyzer A. Intel® Quartus® Prime Standard Edition User Guides
1. Timing Analysis Introduction x
1.1. Timing Analysis Basic Concepts 1.2. Document Revision History
1.1. Timing Analysis Basic Concepts x
1.1.1. Timing Path and Clock Analysis 1.1.2. Clock Setup Analysis 1.1.3. Clock Hold Analysis 1.1.4. Recovery and Removal Analysis 1.1.5. Multicycle Path Analysis 1.1.6. Metastability Analysis 1.1.7. Timing Pessimism 1.1.8. Clock-As-Data Analysis 1.1.9. Multicorner Analysis
1.1.1. Timing Path and Clock Analysis x
1.1.1.1. The Timing Netlist 1.1.1.2. Timing Paths 1.1.1.3. Data and Clock Arrival Times 1.1.1.4. Launch and Latch Edges
1.1.5. Multicycle Path Analysis x
1.1.5.1. Multicycle Clock Hold 1.1.5.2. Multicycle Clock Setup
2. Using the Intel® Quartus® Prime Timing Analyzer x
2.1. Enhanced Timing Analysis for Intel® Arria® 10 Devices 2.2. Basic Timing Analysis Flow 2.3. Using Timing Constraints 2.4. Timing Analyzer Tcl Commands 2.5. Timing Analysis of Imported Compilation Results 2.6. Using the Intel® Quartus® Prime Timing Analyzer Document Revision History
2.2. Basic Timing Analysis Flow x
2.2.1. Step 1: Open a Project and Run the Fitter 2.2.2. Step 2: Specify Timing Constraints 2.2.3. Step 3: Specify General Timing Analyzer Settings 2.2.4. Step 4: Run Timing Analysis 2.2.5. Step 5: Analyze Timing Analysis Results
2.2.5. Step 5: Analyze Timing Analysis Results x
2.2.5.1. Timing Report Commands 2.2.5.2. Set Operating Conditions 2.2.5.3. Fmax Summary Report 2.2.5.4. Report Timing Command 2.2.5.5. Correlating Constraints to the Timing Report 2.2.5.6. Locating Timing Paths in Other Tools
2.3. Using Timing Constraints x
2.3.1. Recommended Initial SDC Constraints 2.3.2. SDC File Precedence 2.3.3. Iterative Constraint Modification 2.3.4. Creating Clocks and Clock Constraints 2.3.5. Creating I/O Constraints 2.3.6. Creating Delay and Skew Constraints 2.3.7. Creating Timing Exceptions 2.3.8. Example Circuit and SDC File
2.3.1. Recommended Initial SDC Constraints x
2.3.1.1. Create Clock (create_clock) 2.3.1.2. Derive PLL Clocks (derive_pll_clocks) 2.3.1.3. Derive Clock Uncertainty (derive_clock_uncertainty) 2.3.1.4. Set Clock Groups (set_clock_groups)
2.3.4. Creating Clocks and Clock Constraints x
2.3.4.1. Creating Base Clocks 2.3.4.2. Creating Virtual Clocks 2.3.4.3. Creating Generated Clocks (create_generated_clock) 2.3.4.4. Deriving PLL Clocks 2.3.4.5. Creating Clock Groups (set_clock_groups) 2.3.4.6. Accounting for Clock Effect Characteristics
2.3.4.1. Creating Base Clocks x
2.3.4.1.1. Automatic Clock Detection and Constraint Creation
2.3.4.2. Creating Virtual Clocks x
2.3.4.2.1. Specifying I/O Interface Uncertainty 2.3.4.2.2. I/O Interface Clock Uncertainty Example
2.3.4.3. Creating Generated Clocks (create_generated_clock) x
2.3.4.3.1. Clock Divider Example (-divide_by) 2.3.4.3.2. Clock Multiplexor Example
2.3.4.5. Creating Clock Groups (set_clock_groups) x
2.3.4.5.1. Exclusive Clock Groups (-exclusive) 2.3.4.5.2. Asynchronous Clock Groups (-asynchronous) 2.3.4.5.3. set_clock_groups Constraint Tips
2.3.4.6. Accounting for Clock Effect Characteristics x
2.3.4.6.1. Set Clock Latency (set_clock_latency) 2.3.4.6.2. Clock Uncertainty
2.3.5. Creating I/O Constraints x
2.3.5.1. Input Constraints (set_input_delay) 2.3.5.2. Output Constraints (set_output_delay)
2.3.6. Creating Delay and Skew Constraints x
2.3.6.1. Advanced I/O Timing and Board Trace Model Delay 2.3.6.2. Maximum Skew (set_max_skew) 2.3.6.3. Net Delay (set_net_delay) 2.3.6.4. Create Timing Netlist
2.3.7. Creating Timing Exceptions x
2.3.7.1. Timing Constraint Precedence 2.3.7.2. False Paths (set_false_path) 2.3.7.3. Minimum and Maximum Delays 2.3.7.4. Multicycle Paths 2.3.7.5. Multicycle Exception Examples 2.3.7.6. Delay Annotation
2.3.7.4. Multicycle Paths x
2.3.7.4.1. Common Multicycle Applications 2.3.7.4.2. Relaxing Setup with Multicycle (set_multicyle_path) 2.3.7.4.3. Accounting for a Phase Shift (-phase)
2.3.7.5. Multicycle Exception Examples x
2.3.7.5.1. Default Multicycle Analysis 2.3.7.5.2. End Multicycle Setup = 2 and End Multicycle Hold = 0 2.3.7.5.3. End Multicycle Setup = 2 and End Multicycle Hold = 1 2.3.7.5.4. Same Frequency Clocks with Destination Clock Offset 2.3.7.5.5. Destination Clock Frequency is a Multiple of the Source Clock Frequency 2.3.7.5.6. Destination Clock Frequency is a Multiple of the Source Clock Frequency with an Offset 2.3.7.5.7. Source Clock Frequency is a Multiple of the Destination Clock Frequency 2.3.7.5.8. Source Clock Frequency is a Multiple of the Destination Clock Frequency with an Offset
2.4. Timing Analyzer Tcl Commands x
2.4.1. The quartus_sta Executable 2.4.2. Collection Commands 2.4.3. Identifying the Intel® Quartus® Prime Software Executable from the SDC File
2.4.2. Collection Commands x
2.4.2.1. Wildcard Characters 2.4.2.2. Adding and Removing Collection Items 2.4.2.3. Query of Collections 2.4.2.4. Using the get_pins Command
1. Timing Analysis Introduction
2. Using the Intel® Quartus® Prime Timing Analyzer
A. Intel® Quartus® Prime Standard Edition User Guides

1.1. Timing Analysis Basic Concepts

This user guide introduces the following concepts to describe timing analysis:

Table 1.  Timing Analyzer Terminology
Term Definition
Arrival time The Timing Analyzer calculates the data and clock arrival time versus the required time at register pins.
Cell Device resource that contains look-up tables (LUT), registers, digital signal processing (DSP) blocks, memory blocks, or input/output elements. In Intel Stratix® series devices, the LUTs and registers are contained in logic elements (LE) modeled as cells.
Clock Named signal representing clock domains inside or outside of your design.
Clock-as-data analysis More accurate timing analysis for complex paths that includes any phase shift associated with a PLL for the clock path, and considers any related phase shift for the data path.
Clock hold time Minimum time interval that a signal must be stable on the input pin that feeds a data input or clock enable, after an active transition on the clock input.
Clock launch and latch edge The launch edge is the clock edge that sends data out of a register or other sequential element, and acts as a source for the data transfer. The latch edge is the active clock edge that captures data at the data port of a register or other sequential element, acting as a destination for the data transfer.
Clock pessimism Clock pessimism refers to use of the maximum (rather than minimum) delay variation associated with common clock paths during static timing analysis.
Clock setup Minimum time interval between the assertion of a signal at a data input, and the assertion of a low-to-high transition on the clock input.
Net A collection of two or more interconnected components.
Node Represents a wire carrying a signal that travels between different logical components in the design. Most basic timing netlist unit. Used to represent ports, pins, and registers.
Pin Inputs or outputs of cells.
Port Top-level module inputs or outputs; for example, a device pin.
Metastability Metastability problems can occur when a signal transfers between circuitry in unrelated or asynchronous clock domains. The Timing Analyzer analyzes the potential for metastability in your design and can calculate the MTBF for synchronization register chains.
Multicorner analysis Timing analysis of slow and fast timing corners to verify your design under a variety of voltage, process, and temperature operating conditions.
Multicycle paths A data path that requires a non-default setup or hold relationship for proper analysis.
Recovery and removal time Recovery time is the minimum length of time for the deassertion of an asynchronous control signal relative to the next clock edge. Removal time is the minimum length of time the deassertion of an asynchronous control signal must be stable after the active clock edge.
Timing netlist A Compiler-generated list of your design's synthesized nodes and connections. The Timing Analyzer requires this netlist to perform timing analysis.
Timing path The wire connection (net) between any two design nodes, such as the output of a register to the input of another register.

Section Content
Timing Path and Clock Analysis
Clock Setup Analysis
Clock Hold Analysis
Recovery and Removal Analysis
Multicycle Path Analysis
Metastability Analysis
Timing Pessimism
Clock-As-Data Analysis
Multicorner Analysis

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