Spectre Simulator Fundamentals

Course Description

This course is a Spectre Simulator Fundamentals series. You explore the Spectre command-line options for specifying output formats and encrypting a netlist to protect its proprietary information. You also explore the compatibility of the Virtuoso Spectre simulator with popular SPICE simulation languages and use SPICE-based netlists to simulate in the Virtuoso Spectre environment.

You learn to control the transient output data using data reduction and data compression techniques, and perform small-signal analysis during a transient analysis and plot all the simulation results using the Virtuoso Visualization and Analysis tool.

And You use the Spectre Circuit Simulator and its corresponding options to analyze results from AC, transfer function (XF), Noise, Stability (STB), Pole-Zero (PZ), S-Parameter (SP), DCmatch, ACmatch, Fourier, Sensitivity and Sweep analyses. You use the command-line environment to set up and run simulations on circuit examples.

Lastly, You examine how MDL acts as a controller interacting with a variety of inputs, outputs, and tools. You learn to create MDL measurements and re-use them. You run Spectre MDL in stand-alone and batch mode and observe the measured values in the *.measure output file.

Learning Objectives

After completing this course, you will be able to:

• Use Virtuoso Spectre^® Circuit Simulator from the command line in a standalone environment
• Set the Spectre Simulator settings identifying its language syntax
• Run Spectre simulations on analog circuits and netlists
• Perform Spectre simulation on SPICE netlists
• Run DC and Transient simulations on analog circuits and netlists
• Examine the use of Nodesets and Initial Conditions
• Determine the bias conditions using Spectre DC analysis
• Examine the circuit behavior by performing Spectre Transient analysis
• Use the diagnose output option to identify convergence problems
• Set up and run a family of small-signal and its associated analyses
• Measure the Fourier coefficients by performing fourier analysis
• Determine the sensitivity of output variables to input design parameters by performing sensitivity analysis
• Process multiple analyses for each value of the parameter using sweep analysis
• Perform mismatch analysis using dcmatch, acmatch analyses
• Use Virtuoso® Simulator Measurement Description Language (MDL) to create measurement alias
• Interact with a variety of inputs, outputs, and tools using MDL
• Identify the contents of a Spectre MDL file
• Define and use a Measurement Alias for common measurements in Spectre
• Construct Spectre MDL expressions using its data types, operators and built-in functions
• Evaluate MDL expressions using looping and control statements
• Set up and run Spectre MDL in stand-alone and batch mode
• Use the wild card (\*) in the MDL control file for all signals mapping
• Post-process MDL measurements

Software Used in This Course

• Virtuoso Spectre Circuit Simulator
• Virtuoso Multimode Simulation
• Cadence Design Framework II
• Virtuoso Visualization and Analysis XL

Software Release(s)

MMSIM15.1 and IC6.1.7

Course Agenda

Day 1

• Introduction to the Spectre Simulator
• Spectre Netlist Language
• Spectre Command-Line Interface
• Appendix-A: Spectre Command-Line Options
• DC Analysis
• Transient Analysis
• Appendix A: Spectre Command-Line Options

Day 2

• AC and Other Analyses in Spectre
• Appendix A: Spectre Command-Line Options
• Measurement Description Language
• Appendix A: Spectre Command-Line Options

Audience

• Analog Designers
• Chip Designers
• RF Designers
• IC Designers
• Design Engineers
• Analog and Mixed-Signal IC Designers

Prerequisites

• A basic knowledge of analog circuit design
• The ability to read and understand analog circuit netlists
• An understanding of DC, Transient and AC analysis and its measurements

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