Synopsys releases Custom Designer 2009.06, touts RF prowess at IMS
By Rick Nelson, Editor-in-Chief -- 6/15/2009 5:57:00 AM
Synopsys Inc. today announced availability of advanced analog simulation and layout capabilities in its Galaxy Custom Designer implementation tool. The new features in the 2009.06 release target analog circuit designers and layout engineers.
The Custom Designer 2009.06 release adds new capabilities, including high-capacity, high-performance schematic-driven layout (SDL) designed for today’s large analog blocks. The SDL capability features robust schematic and layout synchronization technology and a streamlined engineering change order (ECO) flow. Also included in the 2009.06 release is an easy-to-use analog simulation and analysis environment featuring high-performance waveform display and processing, mixed text/schematic integration, and TCL scripting for batch verification.
Previewing the release at the International Microwave Symposium (IMS) last week, Ed Lechner, director of product marketing for custom design at Synopsys, said the new release builds on the Custom Designer version released September 22, 2008. The overall goal, he said, is to increase productivity for custom designs in an open environment as process geometries shrink to 45 nm and below. He said Custom Designer offers time-saving analysis setup, run, save, and recall features; it provides hierarchical mixed text and schematic representations; and and it supports cross-probe and schematic annotation with simulation results. He added that it forms the basis of a complete implementation, physical verification, circuit simulation, and analysis flow, integrating with HSpice, Custom Explorer, Cadabra, IC Validator, Star-RCXT, and CustomSim.
In an interview at the microwave show, Lechner highlighted Synopsys’s RF design capabilities, which include design, analysis, modeling, and extraction tools as well as RF IP. He described an RF flow using Custom Designer for schematic capture, HSpice RF for circuit simulation, Custom WaveView for analysis, Custom Designer for layout, IC Validator for design-rule checking, Star-RCXT for parasitic extraction, and CustomSim for verification. Other relevant tools, he said, include TCAD for device modeling. He noted that HSpice RF supports harmonic balance and shooting-Newton techniques for analysis of weakly and strongly nonlinear devices, respectively. It also supports envelope analysis for complex modulated RF waveforms and S-parameter analysis for small-signal, linear components. He added that it can simulate more than 10,000 active devices and that it can be used for signal-integrity simulations of transmission lines.
Speaking of the Custom Designer 2009.06 release in a prepared statement, Anand Valavi, group head and manager for the analog mixed signal group at Wipro, said, “Designer productivity should quickly improve with Custom Designer’s new capabilities. Additionally, the open environment and support for interoperable process design kits should enhance design reuse and portability. The 2009.06 release of Custom Designer continues Synopsys’ established record of delivering differentiated capabilities with the same high quality, ease-of-use and enhanced productivity that we have come to expect.”
Introduced in September 2008, Custom Designer leverages Synopsys’ Galaxy Implementation Platform to provide a unified solution for custom and digital designs. Built natively on the OpenAccess database, it offers support for legacy designs and interoperable process design kits (PDKs).
“Our vision is to deliver the industry’s most productive and open custom implementation solution,” said Paul Lo, senior vice president and general manager of the analog/mixed-signal group at Synopsys, in a prepared statement. “We are breaking new ground and delivering innovative capabilities previously not available in existing products. This release represents a major step in our mission to deliver advanced technologies to enhance designers’ productivity through automation.”
See related article, "Design and test highlights at the microwave show."
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