Abstract
Multiple-way (N-way) asynchronous arbitration is an important issue in asynchronous system design. In this paper, novel implementation methods of N-way asynchronous arbiters are presented. We first present N-way rectangle mesh arbiters using 2-way mutual exclusion elements. Then, N-way token-ring arbiters based on the non-return-to-zero signaling is also presented. The former can issue grant signals with the same percentage for all the arriving request signals while the latency is proportional to the number of inputs. The latter can achieve low latency and low energy arbitration for a heavy workload environment and a large number of inputs. In this paper, we compare their performances using the 28nm FD-SOI process technologies qualitatively and quantitatively.
