RISC-V from Software to Silicon: Programming, Linux, FPGA, and AI Applications Training Course

RISC-V Architecture Fundamentals and Ecosystem Overview

RISC-V ISA Landscape and Industry Adoption

• The open ISA philosophy and the RISC-V International standardization framework
• Understanding the RISC-V mental model: Load-Store architecture, register files, and byte ordering
• Comparing RISC-V with ARM, x86, and POWER to evaluate trade-offs in heterogeneous computing
• Assessing ecosystem maturity through contributions by SiFive, T-Head, Western Digital, and the expanding open-source silicon community
• Standardized interfaces including the RISC-V Privileged ISA and the Machine Software Abstraction Layer (MSBL)

Memory Models and ABI Compliance

• Unprivileged Architecture specifications: CSR mapping, exception handling, and memory hierarchies
• RV32I and RV64I instruction sets alongside ABI compliance for cross-platform binary portability
• Memory ordering conventions and barrier instructions for multiprocessor systems

RISC-V Assembly Programming and Compiler Toolchain

Low-Level Instruction Programming

• Extensions for Base integer instructions (I), Multiply/Divide (M), and Atomic operations (A)
• Programming strategies that account for bitness in 32-bit and 64-bit RISC-V targets
• Calling conventions and stack frame management for embedded and real-time software systems

Compiler Toolchain Proficiency

• Utilizing the LLVM-based compiler toolchain, including Clang, LLVM, and Binutils, for RISC-V cross-compilation
• Configuring linker scripts, sections, and memory layouts for bare-metal and RTOS environments
• Applying compiler intrinsics, optimization levels, and profiling-driven code tuning
• Open-source toolchain development workflows: building, testing, and packaging custom GCC/Clang toolchains

Embedded Systems Development and Real-Time Operating Systems

Bare-Metal and RTOS Programming

• Rust systems programming for RISC-V: leveraging zero-cost abstractions, unsafe memory management, and bare-metal development
• Operating in No-Std environments: implementing custom linkers, device drivers, and memory-mapped I/O
• Developing for RISC-V targets using Zephyr RTOS and Buildroot BSPs
• Programming peripheral interfaces such as GPIO, I2C, SPI, UART, and DMA controllers

Power and Performance Optimization

• Optimizing for low power through clock gating, power domain management, and low-power modes
• Conducting cycle-accurate performance analysis using simulation profilers and hardware performance counters
• Tuning real-time interrupt latency for safety-critical applications

Linux Kernel and Bootloader Development for RISC-V

Boot Firmware and Bootloader Ecosystem

• OpenSBI (implementation of the SBI specification): Developing bootloader firmware
• Implementing UEFI/EDK II on RISC-V for modern firmware boot stacks
• Porting Coreboot and U-Boot to RISC-V single-board computers

Linux Kernel Integration

• Contributing to the RISC-V mainline kernel: working on device tree overlays, CPU topology, and AIA interrupt controller drivers
• Developing vendor BSPs and configuring the kernel for custom SoC platforms
• Enabling file system support, networking stacks, and containerization (Docker, Kubernetes) on RISC-V host systems

RISC-V SoC Design and FPGA Prototyping

Multicore SoC Architecture and Integration

• Network-on-Chip (NoC) design methodologies for RISC-V multi-core processors
• Axi4/CHI cache coherence and inter-processor communication protocols
• Integrating open-source IP from OpenCores, ChIPS Framework, and vendor RTL components
• Designing bus matrices and integrating memory controllers for DDR, SRAM, eMMC, and PCIe

FPGA-Based Processor Prototyping

• Synthesizing and implementing RISC-V cores on FPGAs (e.g., BOOM, VexRiscv, PULP)
• Employing SystemVerilog Assertions (SVA) and UVM-based functional verification methodologies
• Using formal verification tools and property-based testing for RISC-V core validation

RISC-V Vector Extensions and Domain-Specific Acceleration

RVV (RISC-V Vector) Extension Deep Dive

• Accelerating vector load/store, vector-fused multiply-add (VFMA), and matrix computations
• Executing workload-optimized SIMD operations via variable-length vectors (VL, VLEN)
• Utilizing vector mask operations, segment control, and data type flexibility for DSP and ML workloads

Custom DSP and Domain-Specific Instruction Design

• Designing domain-specific accelerators through custom extensions and CBAR-based operand interfaces
• Modifying compiler frontends to generate code for custom instructions
• Implementing hardware-software partitioning strategies for accelerator integration in production SoCs

AI Acceleration and Edge Machine Learning on RISC-V

NPU Design and Integration for RISC-V Processors

• Neural Processing Unit architecture: focusing on systolic arrays, tensor cores, and weight compression for on-chip AI
• Applying model quantization techniques (INT8, INT4, FP8) for edge deployment on RISC-V
• Ensuring framework compatibility with TensorFlow Lite Micro, ONNX Runtime, and PyTorch Edge on RISC-V targets

Heterogeneous Computing for AI Workloads

• Co-designing RISC-V host CPUs with AI accelerator NPUs for real-time inference pipelines
• Optimizing memory subsystems: managing HBM/DDR bandwidth for ML model weights and activations
• Budgeting thermal and power constraints for edge AI inference systems

Hardware Security and Confidential Computing on RISC-V

Physical Memory Protection and Trusted Execution

• Implementing Physical Memory Protection (PMP) and Page Table walker security mechanisms
• Building Secure Enclave/TEE architectures for RISC-V, including OP-TEE integration and SEV-class trusted execution environments
• Securing the boot chain through roots of trust, secure boot, and measured launch attestation

Cryptographic Acceleration

• Leveraging RISC-V cryptographic extensions (Zk, Zkr, K) for SHA, AES, RSA, RSA-PSS, and ECC acceleration
• Integrating Post-quantum cryptography (PQC) into next-generation RISC-V processors
• Mitigating side-channel attacks via constant-time programming, masking, and hardware random number generators

Advanced Custom Architecture and ISA Extension Design

Domain-Specific Architecture and Custom Instruction Extensions

• ISA extension design methodology: covering encoding, tables, ABI impact analysis, and the RISC-V International specification submission process
• Designing custom register files with CBAR (Custom Base Address Registers) for operand dispatch
• Modifying instruction pipelining, hazard detection, and pipeline structures for custom extensions

Verification and Signoff of Custom Architecture Modifications

• Designing testbenches for custom extensions using directed and constraint-random stimulus generation
• Applying regression testing frameworks and coverage-driven verification to architectural changes
• Conducting interoperability testing to ensure custom instructions function within established ABI constraints

Safety-Critical and Automotive RISC-V Applications

Functional Safety and Automotive Standards Compliance

• Achieving ISO 26262 functional safety compliance for RISC-V automotive processors
• Developing safety manuals for RISC-V silicon IP based on ASIL-Q classification
• Implementing deterministic interrupt handling, lockstep core pairs, and memory protection for safety-critical RISC-V systems

Industrial Real-Time and Edge Computing Applications

• Complying with IEC 61508 SIL standards and implementing deterministic scheduling on RISC-V multicore platforms
• Developing Industrial IoT gateways with RISC-V, focusing on connectivity, edge analytics, and OTA firmware updates

Capstone Project: End-to-End RISC-V System Development

Full Lifecycle Project

• Architecture specification: Designing ISA extensions and core configurations for a defined use case
• RTL implementation in SystemVerilog, including UVM testbenches and formal verification coverage
• Integrating FPGA prototyping, boot firmware development, and bare-metal driver stacks
• Customizing Linux BSPs and toolchains for the custom RISC-V core
• Deploying AI workloads: NPU integration, model quantization, and performance benchmarking
• Validating security: Enforcing PMP, secure boot, and benchmarking cryptographic acceleration
• Preparing technical architecture documentation, IP strategy analysis, and cross-functional team presentations