A Computer-Aided Design and Synthesis Environment for Analog Integrated Circuits

A Computer-Aided Design and Synthesis Environment for Analog Integrated Circuits addresses the design methodologies and CAD tools that are available for the systematic design and design automation of analog integrated circuits. Two complementary approaches are discussed.

In the first part the AMGIE analog synthesis system is described. AMGIE is the first analog synthesis system that automates the full design process from specifications down to verified layout. It is targeted to the design of moderate-complexity circuits. It relies on design and circuit knowledge stored in the tool's libraries and can be used by both novice and experienced analog designers as well as system-level designers. The inner workings are explained in detail, with (practical) examples to demonstrate how the implemented algorithms and techniques work. Experimental results obtained with the AMGIE system are reported, including actual fabricated and measured circuits.

The second approach, i.e. the systematic design of high-performance analog circuits, is discussed in the second part of the book. This approach is supported by tools to boost the productivity of the designer. An example of such a tool is Mondriaan, that is targeted towards the automatic layout generation of highly regular analog blocks. The proposed systematic design methodology is then applied to the design of high-accuracy current-steering digital to analog converters (DACs). The full design path is discussed in detail. By using the Mondriaan tool and other in-house developed and commercially available tools, the first 14-bit accurate current-steering DAC without tuning or trimming in CMOS technology has been fabricated and measured.

Both complementary approaches increase analog design productivity. Design times of the different design experiments undertaken are reported throughout the book to demonstrate this.