What is physical design?

Physical design in integrated circuit engineering is the process of transforming a circuit description into a geometric layout which represents the physical realization of the circuit. It involves determining the exact placement of transistors, interconnects (wires), and other circuit elements on a silicon die. This process considers various constraints, such as performance, power consumption, manufacturability, and cost. Physical design is a crucial step in the IC design flow, bridging the gap between logical design and manufacturing. It is commonly used to create layouts for microprocessors, memory chips, and other complex digital and analog circuits.