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Berkeley Design
Automation's PLL Noise AnalyzerTM
Accelerates Time-To-Volume
Precision
Circuit AnalysisTM
Technology Enables Japan's Leading DRAM Supplier To Deliver High-Speed
Memory Devices On Time
SANTA CLARA, Calif. —[May 8, 2006] —
Berkeley Design Automation Inc., a provider of innovative silicon
analysis tools for analog/RF and mixed-signal applications, today
announced the adoption and successful deployment of PLL Noise Analyzer.
Elpida Memory, Inc. was able to meet the high performance, low noise,
and low power specifications for the phase-locked loops (PLLs) in their
advanced memory chips by using the fast and accurate noise analysis and
diagnostic capabilities provided by Berkeley Design’s Precision Circuit
Analysis technology.
“Elpida’s advanced memory devices run at very high clock rates and must
meet very tight noise specifications,” said Yoshitaka Kinoshita,
product development officer at Elpida. “The ability of PLL Noise
Analyzer to provide fast and accurate transistor-level jitter analysis
for the PLLs in our designs before tape-out enabled us to reduce the
number of silicon prototype cycles and thereby accelerate our time to
volume.”
DRAM products must meet high performance and low power specifications,
while also providing high capacity. With traditional analog/RF analysis
methodologies and tools, there is a gap between what the designers
observe in simulation compared to the actual silicon measurements –
this is called the analysis gap. This gap makes it necessary to produce
multiple silicon prototypes to accurately characterize these designs,
resulting in delayed time to volume and increased product development
costs.
Berkeley Design Automation has developed next generation circuit
analysis technologies, called Precision Circuit Analysis (PCA), to
close the analysis gap by allowing designers to accurately characterize
their designs before tape-out. PLL Noise Analyzer, the company’s first
product, is the industry’s only tool that accurately characterizes the
noise and jitter performance of nonlinear circuits, such as PLLs and
VCOs, at the transistor level. Berkeley Design’s proprietary Stochastic
Nonlinear Engine™, a key component of the PCA technology and the
foundation of PLL Noise Analyzer, provides fast and accurate analysis
of the nonlinear, time-varying behavior of full PLL circuits at the
transistor level. By supporting standard HSPICE and Spectre netlist and
model formats, PLL Noise Analyzer can be easily adopted into existing
verification flows.
“We are excited that Elpida has chosen PLL Noise Analyzer to verify the
noise performance of the PLLs in its most advanced memory devices,”
said Ravi Subramanian, president and CEO of Berkeley Design Automation.
“Our Precision Circuit Analysis technology provides incredible speed
and accuracy that allows companies such as Elpida to reduce silicon
re-spins and get their chips to volume production on time.”
About Berkeley Design Automation
Berkeley Design Automation Inc. was founded in 2003 to address the
verification challenges in the design of next-generation
high-performance analog/RF integrated circuits (ICs). Berkeley Design
Automation is a venture-backed, private company funded by Woodside Fund
and Bessemer Venture Partners. The company’s technology characterizes
the nonlinear, time-varying behavior of complex analog and RF circuits,
providing extremely accurate predictions that dramatically reduce the
need for silicon re-spins. The company’s first product, PLL Noise
Analyzer, the industry's first noise analysis tool for phase-locked
loops (PLLs), has already been adopted by semiconductor industry
leaders. For more information, see http://www.berkeley-da.com.
PLL Noise Analyzer, Stochastic
Nonlinear Engine, and Precision Circuit Analysis are trademarks of
Berkeley Design Automation, Inc.
Berkeley Design is a registered trademark of Berkeley Design
Automation, Inc.
HSPICE is a registered trademark of Synopsys Inc. (NASDAQ:SNPS).
Spectre is a registered trademark of Cadence Design Systems Inc.
(NASDAQ:CDNS).
Editorial Contact:
Berkeley Design Automation
Tom Ferry, 408-496-6600, x225, thomas.ferry@berkeley-da.com
PR for Berkeley Design Automation – Cayenne Communication LLC
Michelle Clancy, 252-940-0981, michelle.clancy@cayennecom.com
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