1. Purpose of the gate
The circuit or design code, the floorplan and the test approach are reviewed against the specification, and the choices that shape the layout are agreed.
Once layout starts, a change to a circuit costs layout time and often moves the floorplan. This review is the last cheap point to change the circuit architecture, the partition between analog and digital parts, the test modes and the floorplan outline.
The review checks that every function in the specification is designed, that each circuit has been simulated at the main corners with enough margin, that crossings between analog and digital parts and between supplies are listed and handled, and that the floorplan, pin placement and power plan outline agree with the pin definition.
It also approves the verification plan and the test strategy. A macro that cannot be tested in an integrating SoC causes problems long after release, so test modes, loopback and self-test are reviewed here as design items, not as later additions.
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