Electrostatic (analytical) placement
Beginner
A way of spreading parts out by having them push each other away, like magnets, while wires pull connected parts together.
Novice
Global placement that treats cells as electric charges that push each other apart, balanced against a smooth wirelength score that pulls connected cells together. All cells move a little at a time in the direction that improves the combined score.
Expert
ePlace’s eDensity: charge = cell area, density penalty = potential energy, field from Poisson’s equation solved by FFT, objective minimized with Nesterov’s method. Used in RePlAce, OpenROAD gpl and DREAMPlace.
Explained in Placement (Design Flow).
See also: Global placement, HPWL (half-perimeter wirelength).