Modeling TSV, IBIS-AMI and SERDES with HSPICE

Modeling TSV, IBIS-AMI and SERDES with HSPICE
by Daniel Payne on 02-21-2013 at 8:10 pm

The HSPICE circuit simulator has been around for decades and is widely used by IC designers worldwide, so I watched the HSPICE SIG by video today and summarize what happened. Engineers from Micron, Altera and AMD presented on how they are using HSPICE to model TSVs, IBiS-AMI models and SERDES, respectively.… Read More


SPICE Circuit Simulation at STMicroelectronics

SPICE Circuit Simulation at STMicroelectronics
by Daniel Payne on 02-20-2013 at 11:18 am

At the 2010 DACI moderated a panel session on SPICE and Fast SPICE circuit simulation, and one of the panelists was PierLuigi Dagliofrom STMicroelectronics. To get an update on SPICE circuit simulation at ST I read a PDF document at Mentor titled: Improving the Quality of SPICE Simulation Results with Eldo Premier at ST.


ST does … Read More


SoC Implementation, Sometimes You Need a Plan B

SoC Implementation, Sometimes You Need a Plan B
by Daniel Payne on 02-13-2013 at 11:14 am

I read two blogs this week that got me to thinking about contingencies in SoC implementation. By contingency I mean using an EDA tool flow from the leading vendor for logic synthesis and then discovering that you cannot route the design without expanding the die size after a few weeks of concerted effort, then having to come up with… Read More


An Affordable AMS Tool Flow gets Integrated

An Affordable AMS Tool Flow gets Integrated
by Daniel Payne on 02-13-2013 at 11:10 am

EDA tools come in all sizes and price ranges, so I was pleased to readthat Tanner EDAhas completed an integration with Incentia. A few months ago Tanner announced their integration with Aldec for digital simulation, and today’s announcement extends their tool suite to include digital synthesis and static timing. Here’s… Read More


Another Winner at DesignCon

Another Winner at DesignCon
by Daniel Payne on 02-08-2013 at 5:44 pm

After a show like DesignConwraps up we get a chance to ask ourself what it all meant, and how was this year different than last year. Reading through many posts about DesignCon I came to discover that the Awards at DesignCon are less contentious than at CES, and also that ANSYSreceived a DesignVision awardfor the 2nd year running. … Read More


Using Soft IP and Not Getting Burned

Using Soft IP and Not Getting Burned
by Daniel Payne on 02-07-2013 at 10:11 am

The most exciting EDA + Semi IP company that I ever worked at was Silicon Compilers in the 1980’s because it allowed you to start with a concept then implement to physical layout using a library of parameterized IP, the big problem was verifying that all of the IP combinations were in fact correct. Speed forward to today and our… Read More


A Brief History of ClioSoft

A Brief History of ClioSoft
by Daniel Payne on 02-03-2013 at 8:05 pm

In the 1990s, software developers were established users of software configuration management (SCM) tools such as open source RCS/CVS or of commercial systems such as Clearcase. Hardware designers, however, managed design data in ad hoc home-grown ways. ClioSoft’s founder, Srinath Anantharaman, recognized that hardware… Read More


Building Energy-Efficient ICs from the Ground Up

Building Energy-Efficient ICs from the Ground Up
by Daniel Payne on 01-31-2013 at 6:02 pm

My oldest son just upgraded Smart Phones from a 3″ display to a 4.5″ display and was shocked to discover that his battery barely lasted 8 hours, so I welcomed him to the reality of limited battery life in modern SoC-based mobile devices. There is some hope in increasing battery life for our consumer-oriented devices … Read More


High Performance or Cycle Accuracy? You can have both

High Performance or Cycle Accuracy? You can have both
by Daniel Payne on 01-26-2013 at 10:55 pm

SoC designers have always wanted to simulate hardware and software together during new product development, so one practical question has been how to trade off performance versus accuracy when creating an early model of the hardware. The creative minds at Carbon Design Systems and ARM have combined to offer us some hope and relief… Read More