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Agilent RF Design Environment (RFDE) |  |
 Agilent RF Design Environment (RFDE) is a software design platform for large-scale RF/mixed-signal IC designs in the Cadence environment. It integrates Agilent's leading RF simulation technologies into the Cadence industry-standard analog/mixed signal design flow framework. All embedded in Cadence Affirma Analog Design Environment, RFDE consists of five combined parts:
RF Design Environment makes available important frequency-domain and mixed-domain simulation technologies; optimization and statistical design tools; additional device, system, and behavioral models; and powerful data display and post-processing. All of these features provide valuable benefits to the large-scale RF and mixed signal IC designers. These benefits are provided within the Cadence design flow and Cadence simulation user interface - and side by side with established Cadence tools such as Spectre and Spectre RF. RFDE is embedded in the Cadence Affirma Analog Design Environment and is accessible to designers the same way as Cadence Composer schematic editor, Assura/Diva layout verification, and Spectre/SpectreRF. Simulations are set up using Affirma, in the same way that simulations are set up for Spectre RF and other simulators. Simulation states can be saved and other features in the Cadence design environment are also available. RF Design Environment: Simulation TechnologiesThe simulator technologies in RF Design Environment use a mature and robust frequency domain simulator and mixed-domain solutions that take advantage of the strengths of both time-domain and frequency-domain simulation. Harmonic Balance Simulator provides frequency-domain, steady-state, large signal analysis of non-linear circuits excited with multi-tone sources. Harmonic Balance (HB) is used to simulate noise, gain compression, harmonic distortion, oscillator spurs, phase noise, and intermodulation products in non-linear circuits much faster than SPICE-based simulators. Harmonic Balance is best applied to circuits with two or more large signal tones (multiple tones, frequency translation, mixers, detectors, and multipliers) with frequencies that do not need to be co-periodic. It can handle frequency domain models including transmission lines, microstrip lines and N-ports. It is very useful on oscillator and VCO design and analysis. Amplifier compression, harmonic distortion, oscillator spurious, phase noise, and mixer inter-modulation products are other types of analysis that HB performs extremely well. Circuit Envelope simulation uses an advanced time-swept harmonic balance simulation technique. It enables analysis of time-varying carriers such as PLL, AGC, VCO, VCA, modulators, and the like. It is especially well suited to simulating circuits that have a high-frequency carrier and a slower, time-varying modulation. Among these are digitally modulated carriers for communication and pulsed carriers for power-conserving circuits. As a result, Circuit Envelope performs the simulations and analysis of such circuits at a fraction of the time that SPICE would take. Circuit Envelope simulation is extremely useful for time-varying circuits such as PLLs, AGCs, modulators, and VCOs. Because it is actually a hybrid frequency/time domain technology, Circuit Envelope can co-simulate with Agilent Ptolemy for RF/baseband verification. Transient Convolution is a time-domain simulation technique that can handle dispersive transmission line models and S-parameters. It uses waveform convolution to include dispersive models such as transmission lines and S-parameter data. Simulations are done in the frequency domain, with the result that high-frequency components can be modeled directly rather than by means of lumped-element approximations. Convolution is best applied to baseband transient signals in the presence of distributed elements or frequency-domain models (dispersive circuits, transmission lines, microstrip lines, and N-ports). Optimization and Statistical Design ToolsRF Design Environment Premier includes all of the RF Design Environment simulators and adds to them all of the advanced optimization methods, including sensitivity analysis and Monte Carlo yield analysis. These tools make design-for-manufacturing realistic and practical. Device, System, and Behavioral ModelsRF Design Environment makes available microstrip and other models, including sources and behavioral models, of the kinds that are increasingly being called for in RF/mixed-signal RFIC design. These can be used in schematics created using Cadence Virtuoso Composer. Data Display and Post-ProcessingFor large-scale custom RF/mixed-signal IC design, the data display and post-processing of simulation results in RF Design Environment makes it easy to look at complex data in exactly those ways that offer the greatest insight and practical relevance. The software is the same as the data display and post-processing in Agilent Advanced Design System (ADS) but it runs entirely within the Cadence design flow, and without the need to have or run ADS. Integration with the Cadence Design FlowRF Design Environment is integrated into the Cadence design flow and simulation user interface. Simulations are set up and run using the familiar Cadence simulation user interface. Data displays and post-processing of the results of RF Design Simulations are also set up within the Cadence simulation control environment. Spectre PDK Capability. Starting with release 2005A, RFDE is multi-lingual: it understands both the ADS-style netlist and models and Spectre-style netlist and models. This means that RFDE can use the standard foundry created Spectre PDK with no modifications . There is no need for extra effort to support RFDE. Additionally, RFDE continues to be fully compatible with existing 2003C / 2004A RFDE-enabled PDKs. Interactivity with Cadence Virtuoso ComposerImportant features of Cadence Virtuoso Composer are fully supported. Among these are snapshots - in which results can be viewed before the whole data display is available; node probing - in which desired nets on the Cadence schematic can be selected interactively so that the corresponding data will be saved to the dataset; and back-annotation of detailed device operating-point information onto the Cadence schematic. For More Information ...
Ordering and ConfigurationTo request immediate sales assistance - for help choosing the best system; for product configuration and integration details; to request telephone assistance or an on-site demo of the software; or to request a price quotation - click on the following link: RF Design Environment ConfigurationsRF Design Environment is available in configurations specifically for wireless design (RF Design Environment Wireless Pro), wireline design (Wireline Pro), and complete frequency- and mixed-domain simulation including circuit envelope simulation, additional device libraries, and Agilent EEsof optimization and statistical design tools (RF Design Environment Premier). RF Design Environment can be combined with Advanced Design System and RFIC Dynamic Link for Cadence to permit simulation and co-simulation with Agilent Ptolemy and to use the Agilent Momentum planar EM simulator. Click on the following link for a summary of available configurations:
All configurations of RF Design Environment include:
Depending on the configuration, RF Design Environment also includes some or all of the following:
Cadence Versions and Operating SystemsRF Design Environment is used with Cadence Virtuoso Composer, Analog Design Environment, and Spectre RF. For complete information on Cadence version support and workstation and operating system requirements, click on the following link: Product Literature
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