Cadence Design Systems has announced that Cadence® RFIC solutions support TSMC’s N16RF Design Reference Flow and process design kit (PDK) to help accelerate the next generation of mobile, 5G and automotive applications. The continued collaboration between Cadence and TSMC allows mutual customers to design with Cadence solutions for TSMC’s N16RF mmWave semiconductor technology.
The Cadence RFIC solutions support the Cadence Intelligent System Design™ strategy, enabling system-on-chip (SoC) design excellence.
The complete RF Design Reference Flow includes passive device modeling, block-level optimization, sensitive layout routing nets EM parasitics signoff, EM-IR analysis with custom passives, and self-heating. The reference flow features several products optimized for TSMC’s N16RF mmWave process technology, including the Cadence Virtuoso® Schematic Editor, Virtuoso ADE Product Suite, and integrated Spectre® X Simulator and RF option. Additionally, the flow features high capacity electromagnetic (EM) model generation using the Cadence EMX® 3D Planar Solver for seamless back-annotation of S-parameter models into golden schematic and EM-IR analysis with self-heating with the Voltus™-Fi Custom Power Integrity Solution, allowing automatic management of EM and RCX models for RF-accurate results. The flow enables users to effectively manage corner simulations and achieve design robustness.
The EMX Planar 3D Solver and Quantus™ Parasitic Extraction are integrated into the Virtuoso platform, enabling layered extraction of coupling effects and guaranteeing full-design EM parasitic signoff. The Cadence RFIC full flow offers an efficient methodology that lets engineers achieve design goals—performance, power efficiency and reliability—in a single, tightly integrated design environment.
“Through our continued collaboration with Cadence, we’re enabling customers to improve productivity using Cadence-certified flows and our advanced N16 mmWave process technology,” said Dan Kochpatcharin, head of the Design Infrastructure Management Division at TSMC. “With the new reference flow, we’re making it easier for those creating next-generation mobile, automotive, 5G, healthcare, and aerospace designs to adopt our technologies quickly, and we’ve already seen customers leverage our technologies to advance innovation.”
“By working closely with TSMC, our customers have access to the most sophisticated capabilities to create competitive designs with TSMC’s N16 mmWave process technology and our comprehensive RF and RFIC flows,” said Tom Beckley, senior vice president and general manager in the Custom IC & PCB Group at Cadence. “Cadence strives to provide our mutual customers with the best flows, and we constantly listen to feedback to gain an understanding of their real-world design requirements. This feedback allows us to tailor our flows accordingly so customers can focus on their designs, rather than integrations.”
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