Degree Project: Co-optimization of Risc-V and Micro-kernels

About the job
MASTER'S DEGREE PROJECT FOR SPRING 2020
It's time for degree projects! ÅF will offer several degree projects and will present them at ICES Degree Project Fair on Wednesday 2nd October and KTH's Degree Project Fair on Wednesday 9th of October. Sounds interersing? Apply by sending in an application through the ad. You can easily apply with your LinkedIn profile. As a part of the selection process there might be a test and you will be invited to ÅF's head office in Solna to get to know us better and the degree projects.

This project is carried out at ÅF with a supervisor from ÅF and in collaboration with KTH.

Degree Project: Co-optimization of Risc-V and Micro-kernels
Micro-kernels are being increasingly used to improve security in products. For example, Google is in the process of developing Fuchsia, which some speculate will replace Android.

Experience from monolithic kernels, like Linux in Android, is that they are too error-prone and easy to hack. They are just too large to guarantee that there are no bugs hidden within. However, the increased security of micro-kernels comes with a large cost in performance, which is rather unfortunate as it is one of the largest buying decisions in consumer products.

Thesis work
Historically, CPUs have been optimized for running large kernels. This project aims to find HW/SW co-optimizations that can be done to improve performance and reduce the drawbacks of micro-kernels. We plan to do this on an open source processor as the Risc-V architecture.

The work will be done at ÅF:s office in Solna. To be able to deliver a successful final product it is recommended that the work is shared among two persons.

Who are you?
The thesis is at master's level (30HP) scheduled to be started by Q1 (P3-P4) 2020, suitable for two  persons and will be performed mainly at ÅF's head office in Solna.

This degree project will require that you have knowledge within:

Experience with VHDL/ Verilog and FPGA
C/ C++ within embedded systems
Good knowledge in english, both oral and written. Knowledge in swedish is a plus!
Extra bonus if you have Assember experience

Latest day to apply is monday 14/10-2019. The selection process is ongoing, so submit your application today since the degree project can be filled before last application day. 

We offer
The ÅF Group is ranked as one of Sweden’s most popular employer among engineers. At ÅF you will be involved in developing innovative and sustainable solutions within infrastructure, energy and industry. We are always looking for the sharpest skills that can create a future society together with us. We hope you will learn as much from us as we will learn from you.

When doing your master thesis at ÅF you will be a part of our business, participate in internal activities, get to know other ÅF consultants and see what we do for our customers.

About the company
ÅF Pöyry is an international leader within engineering, design and advisory services. We create solutions to support our customers worldwide to act on sustainability as well as the global trends of urbanisation and digitalisation. We are more than 16,000 devoted experts within the fields of infrastructure, industry and energy operating across the world to create sustainable solutions for the next generation.

Making Future.