Synopsys Adds Powerful New PIC/Silicon Photonics Design Tools
Synopsys, Inc. today announced the release of version 2018.03 of the Synopsys RSoft™ product portfolio, the newest version of the company's industry-leading family of software tools for photonic component and optical communication system design. RSoft 2018.03 expands the products' support for the design of photonic integrated circuits (PICs) used in applications ranging from data communications to sensors and biomedical devices, as well as silicon photonic components used in high-performance telecommunication systems that include waveguides, grating fiber couplers, and silicon lasers.
"Rapid growth in data usage worldwide drives the need for photonic integrated circuits and silicon photonics in data centers, fiber networks and wireless networks," said George Bayz, vice president of Synopsys' Optical Solutions Group. "With our recent acquisition of the PhoeniX Software technology, combined with ongoing enhancements to the RSoft products, we're enabling engineers to design photonic components and systems that will help manage increased data traffic, higher signal quality requirements and more efficient power consumption."
Learn more about these exciting enhancements at OFC 2018 in San Diego, California (USA) through 15th March. Synopsys is also conducting an in-depth, 2-day training workshop focused on its latest software advances for PICs and silicon photonic components at the PIC International Conference, 10-11 April 2018 at the Sheraton Brussels Airport Hotel (Belgium). For more information or to register, please paste the following address into a web browser of your choice: http://training.picinternational.net/
The Synopsys RSoft Photonic Component Design Suite includes these new features:
Enhancements to the S-Matrix/PDK Generation Utility, which automates the interface between RSoft component tools, the RSoft OptSim Circuit tool, and mask layout tools. The utility creates the S-Matrix of a photonic component using the RSoft FullWAVE, BeamPROP, and ModePROP tools and exports it to OptSim Circuit to verify its performance in a PIC system. The final design can then be easily exported to mask layout tools to create an optical process design kit (PDK), augment an existing PDK, or generate IP. The interface allows designers to efficiently create PICs from basic building elements and accurately test PIC performance prior to fabrication.
Version 2018.03 adds:
Support for parameterization of S-matrices, allowing multiple variants of a component to be studied within a circuit in OptSim Circuit or foundry-independent layout in Synopsys PhoeniX OptoDesigner tools.
Automatic icons and improved port placement for custom PDK models.
Expanded support for all silicon photonics applications, including:
Improved modeling of incomplete ionization and free-carrier-dependent index/absorption of silicon in LaserMOD.
Incorporating doping in the silicon material model in the FullWAVE, BeamPROP, ModePROP, and FemSIM™ passive tools.
Direct calculation of carrier-dependent index from carrier densities in the Synopsys Sentaurus™ TCAD product interface for consistent material modeling in all contexts.
New 3D wide-angle Beam Propagation Method (BPM) algorithms, further extending BeamPROP's capabilities to simulate structures in silicon or other high-index contrast materials.
Improvements to FullWAVE modeling of dispersive materials, including automatic optimized fitting of materials and a 30% speed improvement in the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) algorithm.
The Synopsys RSoft Photonic System Design Suite includes these new features:
In the OptSim Circuit tool, support for parametric custom PDK components created with the S-Matrix/PDK Generation Utility. The enhancement supports multiple PDK variants through parameterization of S-matrices for PIC simulation and generation of netlists. Custom PDK components can be used as multi-stage PIC elements or as hierarchical circuit schematics, providing engineers with significant design flexibility and rapid prototyping capabilities.
Support for hierarchical components in the interface between OptSim Circuit and PhoeniX OptoDesigner tools. Scalability is the key to supporting increasing component count and PIC design complexity. Hierarchical topologies enable design re-use and support parametric scans over subsections of the design.
Support for the American Institute for Manufacturing Integrated Photonics (AIM Photonics) PDK version 2.0b. The PDK helps reduce PIC design costs and brings designers a step closer to fabrication through SUNY Polytechnic Institute silicon photonics processes.
In OptSim, support for m-QAM and arbitrary constellation in the DSP Library for MATLAB to assist coherent system designers in developing custom digital signal processing algorithms for long-haul and metro data center interconnects.
In OptSim, OptSim Circuit, and ModeSYS™ advanced tools, NxM Electrical S-matrix block supporting the Touchstone file format to model passive, linear electrical networks.
