Cadence Design Systems, Inc.

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As the functionality previously provided by discrete ICs migrates onto a single chip, design teams face greater challenges across all domains: analog, custom digital, RF, and mixed signal. And as designs move to 0.18 micron, 0.13 micron, or even nanometer-scale processes, a greater number of physical effects can surface in all components of the IC: package, power grid, interconnect, devices, and substrate.

To overcome this complex matrix of design challenges, Cadence provides expertise in design automation technology—such as the Cadence Virtuoso® custom design platform. But the solution requires more than advanced technology. Cadence Engineering Services helps you achieve business and design goals by working as an integral part of your team, extending your capabilities in design application and infrastructure, flows and methodology, and implementation.

We provide expert assistance to help you integrate the Virtuoso platform into your design infrastructure, ensuring that the process technology data is set up in a format that is understood by the platform technology. This typically entails device model services that provide device characterization and modeling capabilities for a wide range of process types, as well as process design kit (PDK) services. Cadence can create PDKs for you, or help you set up your own automated PDK development system. We also offer access to Cadence automation technology to help you improve efficiency and reliability.

The following table lists some of the services we provide in response to certain challenges.

		Challenge:				Cadence Engineering Services solution:
		RF application flow				Agilent ADS integration in Virtuoso platform
		Data management				Third-party tool setup and support
		Verification performance				High-performance P-cell programming
		Design migration				Integration service, building specific migration flows
		Yield optimization				Design centering service, yield optimization flows
		Stress analysis				Building of Virtuoso Spectre® stress analysis applications
		Design environment inconsistencies				Building of design environment configuration manager applications

Cadence Engineering Services also supports a wide range of migration-related concerns, including assistance with risk mitigation on first design projects, changes to customized design environment elements, methodology ramp-up and proliferation, and redesign issues.

Virtuoso custom design platform