METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CRITICAL AND FALSE PATH VERIFICATION

A method and apparatus for critical and false path verification takes all the potential false paths and captures the conditions that would make them true paths (or false paths) as a Boolean expression (net list), for the combinational logic only. The net list does not have to be at the gate level, but can be a simplified gate level representation because the verification process is only concerned with the logical behavior, not the actual structure. This allows the simulation to execute more quickly. Since the conditions are only captured between register elements, it can be formally proved whether or not the path can be exercised. If no register value can activate the path, then the analysis is done. Otherwise, a simulation is performed to determine whether the register values required to active the condition actually occur. If the Boolean condition can be satisfied, the simulation is performed on the sequential logic to justify those values. If the satisfiability engine fails to finish, then the simulation is run on the combinatinal logic, and an attempt is made to justify the values sequentially as well.