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VLSIMentor

TCL

TCL for synthesis, P&R, and verification tool scripting across the EDA toolchain.

Intermediate 3h 0m readEDATooling

Every major EDA tool — Design Compiler, ICC2, PrimeTime, Innovus, Genus, VCS — is driven by TCL. Mastery of TCL is non-negotiable for backend and CAD roles.

Syllabus

  • TCL basics — substitution rules (the tricky part)
  • Lists, dictionaries, arrays
  • Control flow and procedures
  • Writing tool scripts: constraint files, synthesis recipes, timing reports
  • Building reusable script libraries