Short Course

Numerical Simulation of Electronic Circuits:
State-of-the-Art Techniques and Challenges

Sunday, October 22, 1995
Adam's Mark Hotel
Charlotte, North Carolina


Organizer

Roland W. Freund
AT&T Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill, NJ

Description

The use of numerical simulation is of paramount importance in the design and verification of VLSI circuits. Knowledge of state-of-the-art numerical techniques for circuit simulation is crucial to developers of simulation tools and to design engineers. On the other hand, the fast advancement of technology entails a need for novel approaches to more complex simulation tasks. The instructors in this course will give an overview of state-of-the-art techniques for the numerical simulation of electronic circuits, from the perspective of both the electrical engineer and the numerical analyst, and discuss what they perceive as the most important present challenges in numerical circuit simulation.

Who Should Attend

This course will be useful for people in industry who use or design simulation tools, and for people in academia and national laboratories interested in challenging and timely research topics. It will benefit electrical engineers interested in computer-aided analysis and design, and numerical analysts interested in a deeper understanding of circuit-related problems.

Recommended Background

Attendees should have a basic knowledge of elementary numerical techniques (on the level of, for example, the book "Numerical Methods and Software", by Kahaner, Moler, and Nash, Prentice Hall, 1988). Some understanding of basic electric circuit analysis (on the level of, for example, the book "Electric Circuit Analysis", by Johnson, Johnson, and Hilburn, Prentice Hall, 1992) will be helpful, but is not necessary.

Instructors

Peter Feldmann,
AT&T Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill, NJ

Roland W. Freund,
AT&T Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill, NJ

Peter Feldmann received his Ph.D. degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering in 1991 from Carnegie Mellon University. Currently, he is a member of technical staff in the Computing Systems Technology Research Department at AT&T Bell Laboratories in Murray Hill, New Jersey. His research interests include CAD for VLSI circuits, more specifically, circuit-level simulation, optimization, and statistical design. He is also an adjunct professor of Electrical Engineering at Columbia University.

Roland W. Freund received his Ph.D. degree in Mathematics from the University of Wuerzburg, Germany, in 1983. Currently, he is a member of technical staff in the Scientific Computing Research Department. His research interests are in scientific computing, numerical linear algebra, large-scale optimization, and algorithms for circuit simulation. He is also an adjunct professor of Electrical Engineering at Columbia University.

Program

Sunday, October 22, 1995
8:00 AM	        Registration

9:00-10:00 AM	I. Formulation of Circuit Equations 
                Peter Feldmann
                A.      Kirchhoff Laws and Device Equations
                B.      Sparse-Tableau Analysis
                C.      Modified Nodal Analysis
                D.      Differential Algebraic Equations

10:00-10:30 AM	Coffee

10:30-Noon  	II. DC Analysis
                Roland Freund
                A.      Solution of Nonlinear Equations
                B.      Homotophy Methods
                C.      Automatic Differentiation

12:00-1:30 PM	Lunch

1:30-2:30 PM	III. Time-Domain Analysis
                Roland Freund
                A.      Solution of Differential Algebraic Equations
                B.      Convergence and Stability
                C.      Boundary-Value Problems

2:30-3:00 PM	IV.  Frequency-Domain Analysis           		
                Peter Feldmann
                A.      The Linear Case
                B.      Techniques Based on Pade Approximation

3:00-3:30 PM	Coffee

3:30-4:00 PM	IV. Frequency-Domain Analysis (continued)
                C.      Reduced-Order Models
                D.      The Nonlinear Case:  Harmonic Balancing

4:00-5:00 PM	V. Simulation of Distributed Elements
                Peter Feldmann
                A.      Transmission Lines
                B.      Operator-Pade Techniques

5:00-5:30 PM	VI. Challenges
                Peter Feldmann
                A.      Interconnect
                B.      Integrated RF Circuits
                C.      High-Frequency Applications
                D.      Simulation of Mixed Analog-Digital Circuits

5:30-6:00 PM	Open Discussion

6:00 PM	        Short Course Adjourns


Registration Fees:

SIAM
Member	        NonMember	Student

Preregistration (before 10/9/95)   

$130	        $145	        $60

Registration (after 10/9/95)

$145	        $160 	        $75

*Registration fees for either course include course notes.  To register, 
please complete the preregistration form.

Transportation | Registration | Hotel Information | Speaker Index | Program Overview


MEM, 7/21/95