{"ID":2835669,"CreatedAt":"2026-06-01T04:54:23.091178241Z","UpdatedAt":"2026-06-01T04:54:23.091178241Z","DeletedAt":null,"paper_url":"https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.00186","arxiv_id":"2512.00186","title":"Variable Point: A Number Format for Area- and Energy-Efficient Multiplication of High-Dynamic-Range Numbers","abstract":"Fixed-point number representation is commonly employed in digital VLSI designs that have stringent hardware efficiency constraints. However, fixed-point numbers cover a relatively small dynamic range for a given bitwidth. In contrast, floating-point numbers offer a larger dynamic range at the cost of increased hardware complexity. In this paper, we propose a novel number format called variable-point (VP). VP numbers cover a larger dynamic range than fixed-point numbers with similar bitwidth, without notably increasing hardware complexity -- this allows for a more efficient representation of signals with high dynamic range. To demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed VP number format, we consider a matrix-vector multiplication engine for spatial equalization in multi-antenna wireless communication systems involving high-dynamic-range signals. Through post-layout VLSI implementation results, we demonstrate that the proposed VP-based design achieves 20% and 10% area and power savings, respectively, compared to a fully optimized fixed-point design, without incurring any noticeable performance degradation.","short_abstract":"Fixed-point number representation is commonly employed in digital VLSI designs that have stringent hardware efficiency constraints. However, fixed-point numbers cover a relatively small dynamic range for a given bitwidth. In contrast, floating-point numbers offer a larger dynamic range at the cost of increased hardware...","url_abs":"https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.00186","url_pdf":"https://arxiv.org/pdf/2512.00186v1","authors":"[\"Seyed Hadi Mirfarshbafan\",\"Nicolas Filliol\",\"Oscar Castañeda\",\"Christoph Studer\"]","published":"2025-11-28T19:48:15Z","proceeding":"cs.AR","tasks":"[\"cs.AR\",\"eess.SP\"]","methods":"[]","has_code":false}