Friday, September 12, 2014

FMAX delivers 32GHz sample-and-hold IC using Silvaco's custom design flow

SANTA CLARA, USA: FMAX Technologies, a provider of mixed-signal integrated circuit (IC) solutions, recently developed and tested a 32GHz bandwidth sample-and-hold integrated circuit FX331A, using Silvaco's custom design flow.

Designed for use in sub-sampled digital oscilloscopes, the IC is targeted at 25Gb/s test instrumentation for 100G Ethernet systems testing. It operates with low noise and distortion making it suitable for production testing and verification.

The FX331A uses a 200GHz SiGe process, operates from 0C to 85C and uses a -5VDC power supply with 0.5W power dissipation. Its class-leading bandwidth, performance, power dissipation and feature set makes it ideal for critical systems applications.

A bandwidth control pin provides front end optimization for high speed Optical Component test applications. The FX331A is packaged in a 3mm 16 pin QFN for simplicity in board design and assembly. Samples and production volumes are shipping now.

"This product was designed and simulated using an entire Silvaco Custom Design Flow," said Dr. Mactaggart, president of FMAX. Silvaco's Gateway was used for schematic capture, multi-core SmartSpice for spice simulation and Expert/Guardian for chip layout and verification. The Process Design Kit (PDK) was provided and supported by Silvaco.

Dr. Mactaggart added, "Our measurements show a very good correlation between the SmartSpice simulation data and the final product behavior leading to first pass design success and lead customer acceptance."

No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.