Adaptive Integrated Microsystems Introduction ECE 418 Algorithms of Circuit Design (Fall 2005)

Adaptive Integrated Microsystems Algorithms of circuit design – What is the purpose of a circuit ? – How many classes of circuits exist ? ( Digital, Analog, Mixed-signal) – Algorithms of Digital Circuit Design ? ( ECE 230, 331, 302, 410, 411) – Algorithms of Analog Circuit Design ?

Adaptive Integrated Microsystems Why Analog ? – Our environment is predominantly analog. – Biomedical applications, audio applications etc. Image/Acoustics/sensory signal

Adaptive Integrated Microsystems Communication and storage systems – Our environment is predominantly analog. – Whenever a signal interacts with noise and physical environment analog processing play an important role. Digital communication systems High density storage systems

Adaptive Integrated Microsystems Ubiquitous Electronics Fingerprint sensors Nanotechnology DNA sensors and Gene Chips Implantable Devices

Adaptive Integrated Microsystems Why not focus on just A/D ? – Take a look at this picture taken using a traditional digital camera. – Can you locate a person in the picture ? – Once the picture is quantized with an A/D information can not be retrieved. – Analog signal processing could dynamically adjust the pixel resolution and dynamic range.

Adaptive Integrated Microsystems Masterpieces of Nature - Information processing in nature is analog. - Till date no man-made sonar can match the performance of a bat. - Parasitoid fly (O.Ochracea) can localize sound of crickets with an accuracy less than 2 degrees. Nature, vol.429, 2004 Nature, vol.410, 2001

Adaptive Integrated Microsystems Analog Circuit design and Industry – Amplifiers, A/D converters, Regulators, DC-DC converters, radio-frequency circuits. – Analog circuit design is 60% art and 40% science. Possibility of implementing a function in several different ways. – Several big players in the market: Intel, Analog Devices, Maxim, Texas Instruments,…..

Adaptive Integrated Microsystems Challenge of Analog Circuit Design - Digital circuits deal primarily with speed power tradeoff. - Analog circuits deal with multi-dimensional tradeoff of speed, power, gain, precision, supply, … - Due to speed and precision requirements, analog circuits are much more sensitive to noise, crosstalk, and other interferers. Precision Speed Power

Adaptive Integrated Microsystems Challenge of Analog Circuit Design - Analog circuits are much more sensitive to second-order device effects - High performance analog circuit design can rarely be automated - typically require hand-crafted design and layout - Modeling and simulation of analog circuits is still problematic, requiring experience and intution

Adaptive Integrated Microsystems Challenge of Analog Circuit Design - Economic forces require the development of analog circuits in mainstream digital processes - Economic forces pushing the integration of analog and digital functions onto a single substrate - Many levels of abstraction are required