Cadence and UMC certify mmWave reference flow on 28HPC+ process
Article By : Cadence, UMC
Collaboration enables customers to utilize Cadence RF solutions to design 5G, IoT and automotive applications on UMC’s 28nm process technology...
Cadence Design Systems and United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC) announced that the Cadence millimeter wave (mmWave) reference flow has achieved certification for UMC’s 28HPC+ process technology. With this certification, mutual Cadence and UMC customers have access to an integrated RF design flow that accelerates time to market.
The complete mmWave reference flow, based on UMC’s Foundry Design Kit (FDK), includes an actual demonstration circuit with a highly automated circuit design, layout, signoff and verification flow that provides more seamless design in 28HPC+. The certified mmWave reference flow supports the Cadence Intelligent System Design™ strategy, which enables customers to achieve SoC design excellence.
High-frequency mmWave RF designs require accurate electromagnetic (EM) extraction and simulation analysis in addition to analog and mixed-signal capabilities. The mmWave reference flow, based on the Cadence Virtuoso RF solution, brings together the industry-leading schematic capture, layout implementation, parasitic extraction, EM analysis and RF circuit simulation, along with integrated layout versus schematic (LVS) and design rule checking (DRC) in a single flow. This flow also incorporates EM analysis using the Cadence EMX® Planar 3D Simulator and Cadence AWR® AXIEM® 3D Planar EM Analysis into the trusted Virtuoso and Spectre® platforms, providing a high level of automation and the ability to analyze performance of RF circuits pre- and post-silicon.
The certified mmWave reference flow includes:
- Design capture and simulationvia the Virtuoso Schematic Editor, Virtuoso ADE Explorer and Assembler, Spectre X Simulator, Spectre AMS Designer and the Spectre RF Option
- Layout implementationvia the Virtuoso Layout Suite and Physical Verification System (PVS)
- Parasitic extraction of transistor-level interconnectsvia the Quantus Extraction Solution
- Electromagnetic analysis of interconnects across transistors including passive RF structuresvia the EMX or AWR AXIEM 3D Planar simulators
With its AEC Q100 automotive grade-1 platform solution, UMC’s production-proven 28HPC+ solution is able to serve a complete range of applications, from digital to mmWave. 28HPC+ utilizes a high-performance High-k/Metal Gate stack, and UMC further extends its SPICE model coverage to 110GHz for mmWave in order to serve mobile phone, automotive/industrial radar and 5G FWA/CPE applications. Customers can leverage UMC’s mmWave FDK to design a transceiver IC, or integrate the foundry’s well-established digital and analog IP to accelerate their mmWave SoC design.