For a long time, computer programming languages like FORTRAN, Pascal, and C were used to describe computer programs and their code execution is sequential. But there isn't any language to describe the digital circuits. This is when Hardware Description Language(HDL) came into play. HDLs are even popular for verification purposes. There are mainly two types of HDL:
Note: Verilog HDL and VHDL aren't the same. VHDL was used before Verilog came into existence.
Verilog is a hardware description language that is used to realize the digital circuits through code. Verilog HDL is commonly used for design (RTL) and verification (Testbench Development) purposes for both Field programmable gate arrays (FPGA) and Application-specific Integrated Circuits (ASIC).
There are mainly three levels of abstraction (Different perspectives or views at which a design can be viewed or analyzed) for writing in Verilog:
Note: Before diving into the abstraction levels, let us first learn what is RTL.
Register Transfer Level (RTL): Register transfer level is a low-level abstraction used in digital design to describe the behavior and functionality of a digital circuit or system. RTL is a general approach that describes digital circuits in terms of data flow at register level.
[1]GeeksforGeeks, “Getting Started with Verilog,”
GeeksforGeeks
, May 19, 2024. https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/electronics-engineering/getting-started-with-verilog/