Cadence Extends Spectre XPS to Support Mixed-Signal Designs

Built on the leading Cadence® Spectre simulation platform, Spectre XPS enables the easy re-use of models, stimulus, analysis and overall methodology, thereby reducing support costs while improving time to production. The unified Spectre simulation platform spans SPICE, advanced SPICE, RF and FastSPICE technologies, enabling easy transition across analysis and flows. Spectre XPS is integrated into the Cadence Liberate™ MX memory characterization tool for SRAM designs, and the Cadence Virtuoso® Analog Design Environment for mixed-signal designs.

Time-to-market pressures, as well as the increasing design size and complexity of automotive, power management and consumer and other mixed-signal designs, require solutions with greater transistor-level throughput with the same predictability of a SPICE simulator. The proprietary partitioning technology of Spectre XPS improves performance while maintaining the accuracy required. Spectre XPS automatically solves the sensitive blocks of the circuit with a higher level of accuracy while accelerating the less sensitive areas, thereby optimizing performance and accuracy. For mixed-signal circuits, Spectre XPS enables multi-core simulation, thereby providing the additional performance scalability required by today’s large complex mixed-signal designs.

“We have worked closely with our analog/mixed-signal customers to understand the complexities and verification challenges they are experiencing in order to develop a solution that meets their needs,” said Tom Beckley, senior vice president, Custom IC and PCB Group at Cadence. “Our customers will now be able to move seamlessly from our leading Spectre APS solution to Spectre XPS and achieve greater throughput while maintaining the quality and accuracy they have come to expect.”

Spectre XPS with mixed signal support is currently available in limited production and is scheduled to be in full production in Q4 2014.