What is SystemVerilog? #
SystemVerilog is a Hardware Description and Verification Language (HDVL) that extends the capabilities of Verilog-2001 (IEEE 1364). It combines powerful design modeling constructs with advanced verification features, making it suitable for both RTL design and functional verification of digital systems.
Why SystemVerilog? #
While Verilog was mainly focused on RTL modeling and synthesis, SystemVerilog extends its usability by introducing powerful constructs for:
- Complex testbench creation
- Constrained-random testing
- Assertions and functional coverage
- Reusable and scalable verification environments (e.g., UVM)
Key Highlights of SystemVerilog: #
- Superset of Verilog – All Verilog-2001 features are supported, along with many new enhancements.
- HDVL – It serves both as a Hardware Description Language (HDL) and a Hardware Verification Language (HVL).
- Influenced by multiple languages – Inherits concepts from Verilog, VHDL, C, and C++.
- Enhanced for Verification – Adds support for object-oriented programming, randomization, constraints, assertions, and advanced testbench capabilities.
- Standardized as IEEE 1800 – SystemVerilog was standardized as IEEE 1800-2005, combining Verilog and enhancements contributed by OpenVera (originally from Synopsys).
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