I am thinking about learning how to do analog ic design at home.
I don't know what low cost software yet exists out there so this is an early question about how to learn more about how analog ic chips are designed.
I went to the local college book store and bought a few electrical engineering textbooks on cmos ic design which I am reading and where I get the concept of plls, classes of amplifiers, bandpass filters, etc but none of those college textbooks are even close to the practical use hands on SAMS and Forest Mims type which we all used to read a few decades ago for all our hardware designs.
Do you know of a hands on technician type of analog ic design book?
I am thinking about learning how to do analog ic design at home.
I don't know what low cost software yet exists out there so this is an early question about how to learn more about how analog ic chips are designed.
I went to the local college book store and bought a few electrical engineering textbooks on cmos ic design which I am reading and where I get the concept of plls, classes of amplifiers, bandpass filters, etc but none of those college textbooks are even close to the practical use hands on SAMS and Forest Mims type which we all used to read a few decades ago for all our hardware designs.
Do you know of a hands on technician type of analog ic design book?
Well, the problem with this is you need IC design software. There is a little bit of open-source software, mostly dating to the 1980's. Otherwise, you are stuck with Cadence, starting at $50K per seat, with options can run something like $250 K per YEAR.
Then, if you just want to play around with design and simulation, that can be done, but otherwise you will need serious money to fab chips. MOSIS can get you into a multi-project wafer for about $10 - 15K for a small design, but you will have to jump through amazing hoops to get the fabs NDAs signed to their satisfaction. Last time our group did this, it took SIX MONTHS to get the legal documents worked out! And, you will HAVE to be running Cadence, I think most of the fab's design kits are now for Cadence only. Mentor still exests, but I think most designers have moved away from them.
You are correct that the open source kind of software, with a book that goes with it is what I'm looking for, since I'm familiar with Composer schematic capture and HSpice simulation, and Virtuoso layout, all from the Edge and Opus days and then, more recently, Caliber for DRC & LVS.
What I want, really, is just what anyone at home would want I would think which is to have free analog design schematic capture software which just does schematics and spice and then does basic layout of something no larger than about 300 devices and then a quick basic drc and lvs if that also exists.
I'm not going to actually put the GDSII on a shuttle - I just want to do it for the fun and education and experience of designing a working small cmos PLL or OpAmp or something of that small size.
I could write the book if it doesn't exist, so the software is mostly what I need, I guess, if the book with software doesn't exist.
If the software is open source, then I could even include it maybe in a cdrom with the book if I write it.
It's not hard to design an analog ic of a small size if you have those tools but they cost too much for a home user.
I hadn't thought about the pdk problem until you mentioned it where MOSIS might be the right way to go if they'll let me use it for free.
I wonder if MOSIS would want me to write a book for them for home users?
Years ago, when I was getting into this to work with a MUCH more experienced guy who was actually going to be doing the IC design, and I was going to be doing the overall systems design, was to load Mentor through our university license, and work through a small tutorial. I think I built a 2-input CMOS gate in schematic, then implemented the several transistors and simulated it. It took me a couple days to get that far. But, once I had done that, I was a lot more able to understand the other guy's language.
If you are at a university, I think you could do this at no cost, through their university education program. Otherwise, I'm pretty sure NO WAY!
NO! "Home users" just does not make any sense. MOSIS was set up to do two things. One, get special-purpose ICs fabricated at reasonable cost, and also to offer students the opportunity to have a thesis design fabricated so they could see where they goofed. MOSIS was originally funded largely by the Defense Department's DARPA program, but has largely been downgraded to have to scratch for $ to keep open.
We get a few more chips made than the minimum, our chips are not really all that small, we use old, much cheaper processes, and our chip batch typically runs about $40K. Also, it typically now takes about six months to get our chips back from the fab. I just don't see why MOSIS would have any interest in people who can't afford to actually have the chips fabbed.
Do you have the Art of Electronics? There is 'Analysis and Design of Analog Integrated Circuits', by Gray and Meyer, but I would not call it 'hands on'.
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You can find the earlier editions for much less money. I have the 3rd ed.
Are you looking for a book on designing analog integrated circuits, or a book on using analog integrated circuits in some kind of device? Forrest Mims III wrote mostly about circuit design, not integrated circuit design.
Only one book? It would be difficult to cram all things analog into one book. Art of Electronics III is the best I can suggest for everything under one cover. Be wary of counterfeit copies.
Also see books by Jim Williams and Bob Dobkin:
Also, you might consider asking the same question in sci.electronics.design.
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Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
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