Investigating modern layout representations for improved 3d design automation

The current trend towards 3D integration requires new layout representations specifically designed to take 3D-specific constraints into account and to facilitate efficient design algorithms. We observe that it is difficult to compare and evaluate these layout-specific data structures. In this paper, we first present a detailed investigation of modern layout representations while analyzing their solution space and their characteristics, such as redundancy and reachability. Our investigation reveals their potential for 3D applications but also shows open challenges to be considered for (future) representations. Thus, we also provide guidelines for designing efficient layout representations. Finally, we release our investigation methodology as open-source tool, thus providing interested researchers with the opportunity to conduct reasonable evaluations on their own.

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