Open source design tools can make it easier for small and medium-sized companies in particular to get started in chip design - no licence agreements need to be concluded and the financial risk can be kept low. However, these software solutions are often difficult to use and are not very suitable for designing low-power chips, for example. IMMS is developing new tools to make open source chip design more widely applicable.

To this end, IMMS is developing a Python-based software package with which digital circuits can be read in and specifically modified. For example, so-called clock gates are to be inserted to switch the clock signal on and off in individual parts of the circuit and thus make the chips more economical. However, the scope of this package is broader and provides a basis for many other optimisations: Logic locking for IP protection or the targeted replacement of circuit parts with more efficient structures can be realised with this package. The aim is to open up new functions for applications and at the same time give research the opportunity to develop new methods in an application-oriented manner.

Together with X-FAB, IMMS is working on a solution with which the open source tools can be easily installed and used in a separate environment. To this end, IMMS is testing the function in its own design environment, integrating new methods for more economical chips and developing a reference design for industrial use.