Agilent releases transient-convolution simulator

Venice, Florida — Agilent Technologies Inc. has introduced a signal integrity circuit simulator for multigigabit, high-speed data link design. The Transient-Convolution Simulator -- part of Agilent's Advanced Design System (ADS) EDA software platform -- achieves a significant simulation speed improvement for signal integrity simulations, according to the company.

The Transient-Convolution Simulator combines the ADS High Frequency SPICE, Convolution Simulator and related modules. Multicore processor support and a new, high-capacity sparse matrix solver allow signal integrity designers to perform fast "what-if" analyses.

The most common applications for the ADS Transient-Convolution Simulator are design and verification of chip-to-chip multigigabit/s serial links. These are found in almost all consumer and enterprise digital products produced today -- from laptop computers to data center servers to telecommunication switching centers to internet routers. At the very high data rates at which these links operate, signal integrity engineers must take into account physical phenomena such as impedance mismatch, reflections, electromagnetic coupling, crosstalk and microwave frequency attenuation due to the skin effect and dielectric loss tangent.

The ADS Transient-Convolution Simulator allows signal integrity engineers to address these challenges by performing "what-if" design space exploration. This process uses a circuit-level model that can be verified against measured data and electromagnetic artwork to arrive at an optimum design while avoiding costly and time consuming prototype iterations.

The ADS Transient-Convolution Simulator is part of the new Agilent Advanced Design System 2008 Update 2. ADS is an electronic design automation platform, offering complete integration to designers of multigigabit/s serial links, as well as consumer and commercial wireless electronic products such as mobile phones, wireless networking and GPS, as well as radar and satellite communications systems.

The ADS Transient-Convolution Simulator is available now, with prices starting at approximately $26,000. More information about the Transient Convolution Simulator is available at this address.