Microprocessor Design Book Stack
1. Digital Design: With an Introduction to the Verilog HDL, VHDL, and SystemVerilog
Authors: M. Morris Mano & Michael D. Ciletti
Why: Crystal-clear Boolean algebra, minimisation, FSMs, plus just enough Verilog to make every truth table
come alive in simulation.
2. Advanced Digital Design with the Verilog HDL
Authors: Michael D. Ciletti
Why: A graduate-level deep dive into RTL style, timing, test-benching, synthesis pitfalls and coding for
ASIC vs FPGA flows.
3. Computer Organization and Design: The Hardware/Software Interface - RISC-V Edition
Authors: David Patterson & John L. Hennessy
Why: The definitive starter on ISA design, datapath, pipelines and memory hierarchy-using the open
RISC-V ISA you can actually build.
4. Digital Design and Computer Architecture - RISC-V Edition
Authors: David Harris & Sarah Harris
Why: Walks you from gates to a synthesizable 32-bit pipelined RISC-V core, complete with Verilog, timing
analysis and lab exercises.
5. FPGA Prototyping by SystemVerilog Examples: Xilinx MicroBlaze MCS SoC Edition
Authors: Pong P. Chu
Why: Board-ready labs that teach clock-domain crossing, on-chip buses and integrating your CPU with
memories and peripherals.
6. SystemVerilog Assertions Handbook
Authors: Ben Cohen et al.
Why: Coverage of SVA, constrained-random testing and coverage closure-the skill set that now dominates
silicon bring-up schedules.
7. CMOS VLSI Design: A Circuits and Systems Perspective
Authors: Neil Weste & David Harris
Why: Moves you from RTL to transistors: delay, power, clock-tree, floor-plan and standard-cell
libraries-essential before tape-out.
8. ASIC Design Implementation Process: A Complete Framework
Authors: Khosrow Golshan
Why: A modern, step-by-step look at synthesis, place & route, sign-off, DFT and manufacturing hand-off for
7 nm -> 2 nm nodes.
9. Computer Architecture: A Quantitative Approach
Authors: John L. Hennessy & David A. Patterson
Why: Out-of-order execution, superscalar scheduling, cache coherence, heterogenous SoCs-everything
you need once the 'toy' CPU works.
10. Microprocessor Architecture: From Simple Pipelines to Chip Multiprocessors
Authors: Jean-Loup Baer
Why: Covers all the steps of microprocessor architecture evolution with practical insight into design
trade-offs.
