Substrate Thermal Netlist Extraction for Electro-thermal Simulation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current tools for electronic circuit design, particularly in EDA environments like Cadence, provide limited support for evaluating interactions between electronic devices and circuits at the chip substrate level, and lack effective thermal behavior analysis capabilities.
Innovation Solution
A method for automatic design of electronic circuits that generates a layout, applies a partition grid to the substrate, extracts a thermal netlist, and performs electro-thermal simulations using SPICE-type operations to evaluate thermal effects, incorporating Delaunay triangular grids and Voronoi points for precise and fast thermal behavior analysis.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If existing thermal simulation tools (e.g., HeatWave) are used to evaluate thermal behavior at substrate level, then thermal simulations can be carried out considering package effects, but effective information on substrate level behavior and integrated electro-thermal simulations are not provided
Solution Approach 1:
The substrate is divided into a grid of partitions with meshes and nodes, creating a discretized thermal network model. This segmentation enables precise local thermal analysis at substrate level while maintaining computational efficiency through systematic decomposition of the thermal field.
Solution Approach 2:
A thermal netlist is introduced as an intermediary representation that bridges the layout data and simulation operations. The netlist extracts thermal parameters and relationships from the partitioned substrate, enabling integration with SPICE-type electro-thermal simulators without requiring complex direct coupling between thermal and electrical domains.
2Measurement precision
If detailed thermal simulations are performed using existing tools, then thermal effects can be analyzed, but the simulations are not fast enough for integrated design workflows
Solution Approach 1:
The thermal network is pre-extracted from the layout data and represented as a netlist before simulation operations. This preliminary processing of thermal parameters and relationships enables faster simulation execution by preparing the thermal model in advance in a format optimized for SPICE-type simulators.
Solution Approach 2:
The continuous thermal field is represented by a discrete thermal network model (netlist) that copies the essential thermal characteristics. This simplified representation maintains sufficient accuracy for design analysis while enabling much faster computation compared to detailed finite element or finite difference methods.
3Loss of information
If substrate level thermal analysis is performed, then thermal interactions between devices can be evaluated, but current tools lack the capability to operate effectively at this level
Solution Approach 1:
The thermal analysis system is designed to work within existing EDA environments and interface with standard SPICE-type simulators. By using universal formats (layout data, netlists) and compatible simulation approaches, the tool achieves ease of operation while providing detailed substrate level thermal information that was previously unavailable.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for the automatic design of an electronic circuit includes operations for evaluation of the thermal effects in the electronic circuit. The method generates a layout of the electronic circuit. Abstract data at the substrate level associated to the layout of the electronic circuit is then generated. A grid of partitioning is generated with respect to a view regarding the aforesaid abstract into meshes and nodes. The grid is applied to the substrate. On the basis of the grid (TG), a list of nodes or netlist representing a thermal network that represents the thermal behavior of the substrate or of its portions or elements is extracted. The netlist is useful in simulation operations, in particular of a SPICE type, for making an evaluation of thermal effects in the electronic circuit.