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Development of Analog IC Design Laboratory

Manual using HSPICE as Simulation tool
(March 2015)
Lawrrence C. Lozano, Ariel Vicente M. Pintor, Louis Joseph Q. Valera and Gene Fe P. Palencia

Abstract ECE
undergraduates
under
the
Microelectronics elective track were given insights to what to
expect in the field of Microelectronics especially with Analog
Integrated Circuit Design through the aid of the Laboratory
Manual. This manual was intended for the course ECE075,
Analog Integrated Circuit Design.
This paper showcases the importance of Analog Integrated
Circuit Design through the experiments that were included in
the laboratory manual. HSPICE was used as the simulation tool
for this course. With HSPICE, it was possible to produce the
necessary output which was confirmed through the
corresponding theories of each experiment. Eight laboratory
exercises were developed which was arranged in a progressive
manner for optimal learning and application. Students from
ECE075 took a survey to assess the laboratory manual. With the
results, it showed that the laboratory manual was
comprehensive and could now be used for the future ECE075
classes.

II. METHODOLOGY
A. Overview
The purpose of this study was to develop a studio type
Laboratory manual for Analog Integrated Circuit using
HSPICE (as a simulation tool) that would be used in the
DEEE. This aims to help students understand the process in
designing Analog IC as well as analyzing such circuits. The
implementation of this study is shown in figure 1.

Index TermsAnalog IC Design, HSPICE, Laboratory

Manual

I. INTRODUCTION
It was not then possible to microminiaturize electronic
components during the 1950s because of the materials and
the fabrication processes. In the advent of The Monolithic
Idea, circuit elements such as resistors and capacitors can all
be made of the same material and made microminiaturizing
of electronic components possible. Also, it is now possible to
include everything into a single chip [1]
With the progressing technology, the process of producing
Integrated Circuits have changed drastically. In the span of 4
decades, the production of Integrated Circuits changed from
a millimeter scale into a nanometer scale which allow
microminiaturizing of Integrated Circuits. This is now
possible with the aid of Electronic Design Automation.
This study will introduce the Analog Integrated Circuit
Design course to the students who will undergo the
Microelectronics Elective track. With this course, learning
about the processes and applications involved are tackled.
Students are introduced to Synopsys HSPICE tool which is
used for simulation of the Integrated Circuit before it is
implemented into a chip. This software is a good instrument
for this course because it is widely used in the industry. It also
provides extensive model support of industry-standard and
proprietary simulation models which are of the most accurate
and expansive set [2]. Through this study, it would boost the
understanding and the view of the students about the variety
of ways in designing Analog Integrated Circuits and its
importance in the industry of Integrated Circuits Design.

Figure 1: Work flow of laboratory activities

B. HSPICE Familiarization
Available user guides about the HSPICE software were
used and learned to know the basic functions of the HSPICE
software such as how to input the SP files into HPSPICE, how
to simulate the circuit, and how to show the output waveforms
of circuits. Amateur videos of people using HSPICE as
simulation tool were also used for additional information
about the software. During that phase of the study, note taking
of the basic functions was very important since it was used to
introduce to the users to the program through introductory
Laboratory Exercise of the manual.
Since this program uses SPICE language, it was essential
to learn the different syntax being used for HSPICE. The
book of Behzad Razavi Fundamentals of Microelectronics
has given all the necessary syntax for the experiments.

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HSPICE was used to analyze all the circuits in the
laboratory manual. The analysis done were DC analysis, AC
analysis, and Transient analysis. The HSPICE software
determined the effects of the biasing, channel length, gain of
the transistors through graphs that the software provided.
1. Simulation Procedure
The simulation was achieved by using the correct code
which defined the circuit in a language (format) where the
HSPICE understands. The appropriate commands were used
for the HSPICE to determine the said output for DC, AC or
Transient Analysis.
The simulation procedure started with labeling the nodes
in the circuit. The in and out of the circuit referred to as
the input and output nodes, respectively. The common ground
node must be called 0 in HSPICE. While arbitrary, the
labels chosen for the other nodes should carry some
information about their respective nodes so as to facilitate
reading the HSPICE description of the circuit. The elements
was also defined by starting their names with their specific
letter so that HSPICE recognizes the element. For example,
resistor labels must begin start with r, capacitors labels with
c, CMOS labels with m, and voltage sources labels with v.
HSPICE does not distinguished between lower-case and
upper-case letters. Construction of the netlist code was then
made, which consist of text lines, each describing one
element along with the nodes to which it is tied.
1.1 Types of Analysis
There are three most common analysis used in the
developed laboratory manual, namely: .DC, .AC, and
.TRAN. These analyses commands are not case sensitive
when encoded in the netlist file. This means that commands
can be encoded in uppercase or in lowercase letters (e.g. .DC
or .dc). Different set of parameters must be specified for each
analysis done in the laboratory manual.
DC analysis was used for examining the DC operation and
bias points. The command is used in transfer functions where
one source is varied. Two sources can also be varied using the
command, for example, in getting the plot for device IV
curves as what is shown in experiment 1. The .DC command
can vary voltage sources, current sources, temperatures and
model parameters. As used in the laboratory guide, the values
are swept linearly.
When a systems characteristics needs to be examined in a
frequency domain, AC analysis was used. For this study, .AC
analysis command was commonly used to obtain the
frequency response of circuits in laboratory activities 7, 8 and
9.
Transient analysis is used when examining the time domain
response of the circuit. The .TRAN command was used to
determine the oscillation/stability of the circuits under certain
conditions. In this analysis, the time window over which the
output must be exactly showed be specified. Examples can be
observed in the output/s of laboratory activity 3.
C. Identifying Laboratory Activities
The appropriate topics for the proposed laboratory manual
were selected according to the necessary analog IC building
blocks. These topics were based from the Introduction to
Analog IC Design Laboratory by Hong-Yi Huang.

The proposed laboratory manual are composed of eight

laboratory. The laboratory activities are arranged in a
progressive way so that gradual improvement of learning is
seen. Every after class session, the theories and experiments
done prepares the students for the next lessons and laboratory
activities. The objectives for each laboratory activities are
designed to understand the concepts of large-signal and
small-signal analyses of MOS transistors, analyze and design
single-stage amplifiers, emphasizing quantitative measures of
performance and circuit limitations, identify different
topologies of current mirror, which is one of the basic
building blocks of analog IC design, and determine frequency
response of amplifiers. Below are the laboratory activities and
its objectives for the laboratory component of the Analog IC
design elective course:
Laboratory Activity 1: MOSFET DC Ids-Vds
Characteristic Curve
At the end of the laboratory exercise, the student should
achieve to:
o To create netlist and simulate using the
HSPICE software
o To examine the NMOS and the PMOS
transistor V/I curves using HSPICE
o To determine the different regions of the
CMOS.
Laboratory Activity 2: Spice Extraction of Small-Signal
Model
At the end of the laboratory exercise, the student are
expected:
o To be able to determine the small signal
parameters of the MOS
o To determine the output resistance (ro),
body transconductance (gmb) and
transconductance (gm) through problem
solving and simulation
o To know the second-order effects of the
CMOS.
Laboratory Activity 3: MOS Switch & Clock Feed
Through
At the end of the laboratory exercise, the student are
expected:
o To understand the concept of Clock
Feedthrough
o To determine the method in reducing the
clock feedthrough
Laboratory Activity 4: Current Source & Current
Mirror
At the end of the laboratory exercise, the student are
expected:
o To define the effects of current source and
current mirror.
o To obtain the characteristic curve of
current mirror with varying parameters
o To relate and compare the effects of
varying the length
Laboratory Activity 5: Current References
At the end of the laboratory exercise, the student are
expected:

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o

To be able to differentiate the different

corners (FF, FS, TT, SF) of the CMOS
and obtain the output waveform of each
corners.
To determine the worst case and best case
for each process corners in Analog
Integrated Circuit.

Laboratory Activity 6: Common Source Amplifier

At the end of the laboratory exercise, the student are
expected:
o To determine the operating point (DC)
parameters, small-signal transistor
parameters of Common Source Amplifier
o To determine the gain of different
configurations of Common Source
Amplifier
Laboratory Activity 7: Common Gate Amplifier
At the end of the laboratory exercise, the student are
expected:
o To determine the operating point (DC)
parameters, small-signal transistor
parameters of Common Gate Amplifier
o To determine the gain of different
configurations of Common Gate Amplifier
Laboratory Activity 8: Common Drain Amplifier
At the end of the laboratory exercise, the student are
expected:
o To be able to know the voltage level shift
of the Common Drain Amplifier
o To determine the gain of the Common
Drain Amplifier
The first activity introduced the basic functions of the
HSPICE program. It is composed of the basic syntax for
simulations. Through this experiment, the students will be
introduced to the HSPICE program through the use of a
simple PMOS circuit which they will use to familiarize the
code structure. The students will also be able to produce
NMOS circuit and simulate in this exercise.
The second laboratory activity introduced the students with
the small signal parameters of the MOSFET. The activity
aims to teach the students on how to get the output resistance,
body transconductance and the transconductance. The main
focus of the experiment is for the student to understand the
importance of these parameters in the Analog IC design.
The third laboratory activity covers the concept of clock
feedthrough. This activity would teach the student the
importance of the values of the parameters in terms of circuit
clocking. With this, it can be observed that varying some of
the parameters may cause changes in internal capacitances
which would affect the clock speed.
The fourth laboratory activity deals with current sources
and current mirrors. The activity leads the students to the
circuits which is of great importance in the world of Analog
IC Design. It would also showcase circuits in which could be
manipulated to be used as current sources. In this activity,
different configurations of the current source and current
mirror circuits were simulated to observe its output responses.
The fifth laboratory activity focuses on having current
references through setting up constant parameters to ensure
that the system would be immune to changes due to

temperature and its voltage supply. The students would start

to understand the importance in having circuits giving out
great key performances.
The sixth, seventh, and eighth features different kinds of
single stage amplifiers. The laboratory activities aim to let the
students understand the importance of having different
topologies of amplifiers for different purposes. The
characteristics of each amplifier would be studied to further
understand on how and when to use the different single stage
amplifiers.
In all the laboratory experiments, the students are expected
to have had observations about the circuits and outputs of
each experiment. These observations must reflect the students
understanding on the circuits operations, as well as the
circuits characteristics.
D. Circuit Theory
Theories and discussions for all the circuits used in the
laboratory manual have been researched and applied to what
is needed in the experiments. Circuits to be included in each
laboratory activity were selected carefully and re-drawn using
Microsoft Visio. The main reference book for the circuits
theories of each laboratory activity is the book of Behzad
Razavi entitled Design of Analog CMOS Integrated
Circuits International edition (2001) [3]. All circuits used in
the laboratory activities were simulated using HSPICE and in
0.18m CMOS technology.
E. Construction and testing the Procedure
During the familiarization of HSPICE and coding of analog
circuits, which is used in every laboratory activity, the
processes and details in performing the laboratory activities
are noted down. The circuits for every laboratory activity was
designed and provided by the adviser. Coding of the netlists
of the circuits was done, output waveforms and the coding are
noted down as this will be included in the Instructors Guide.
Debugging the codes was done when there were errors found
in the netlist during simulation. After everything was done
and working, construction of the procedure proceeded after.
Proof reading was done after constructing the procedure to
ensure the readability of the manual. When errors were found
revisions were done accordingly. Then the revised procedure
was used to re-simulate the circuit. If same results were
achieved, this proved that the procedure is correct. However,
if the results were not the same, netlists were re-visited and
debugged to find what went wrong. The procedures could be
seen in Appendix A (Laboratory Manual). This was the
flowchart that was followed in constructing and testing the
procedure:

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G. Evaluation of Laboratory Manual
After developing the laboratory manual and the instructors
manual guide, a survey was conducted to verify the manuals
comprehensibility. There were survey questions that were
formulated that would identify the strengths and weaknesses
of the laboratory manual. This survey questions will were
distributed to the Microelectronics track. The laboratory
manual will be rated from 1 to 5 (in which five will be the
highest) according to the manuals comprehensibility. The
respondents were given the privileges to give comments,
recommendations, suggestions and improvement to the
manual.
The survey questions focused on the procedure and
objectives of each exercise. The survey verifies the aptitude
of the procedure to aid the students through the exercises and
would the objectives be met at the end of each exercise. There
were 18 respondents for the survey whom are students under
the Microelectronics track elective in the University of San
Carlos.
III. DATA INTERPRETATION, RESULTS, AND DISCUSSIONS

Figure 2: Shows the flowchart in constructing and testing

the procedure for each Laboratory activity developed for
this manual.
F. Construction of the Laboratory Manual and
Instructors Manual
After everything have been studied and executed, the
laboratory manual was then constructed, making analog
integrated circuit using HSPICE. The guide would produce
that would help students be familiar in analog design as well
as to be familiar of the HSPICE software, for students to
comprehend the concepts of many theories in analog circuits.
In the experiments, the students will be able to analyze and
design different configuration of analog circuits at the same
time learn the different concepts and theoretical aspects in the
experiments.
During the construction of the laboratory manual, many
experiments were conducted in designing analog integrated
circuits basic building blocks using the Synopsys HSPICE
software until there will be constant output for those
conducted experiments. These outputs will then be noted as
answer keys and thus will be used in constructing the
instructors guide that will help monitor the students in their
laboratory class. The instructors laboratory manual will
serve as a guide that will help them in using the Synopsys
HSPICE software. It can also serve as a syllabus to the
instructors that will help them prepare the lessons to be
discussed and explained on how to achieve the objectives of
each laboratory experiments.

A. Circuits
The circuits based on the laboratory manual by Hong-Yi
Huang Introduction to Analog IC Design Laboratory which
were using the 0.35m CMOS technology. However in this
project all circuits in the laboratory manual were simulated
using 0.18m CMOS technology through the HSPICE tool
that is commonly used in the industry of Analog IC Design.
With the difference in the technology, most of the parameters
of the circuits were changed to recreate the expected outputs
of each laboratory activity. In the process of changing
parameters, errors were encountered. To fix these errors
alterations to parameters such as W/L ratio of the devise were
done. Further, the parameters in each circuit were changed
based on the ratio between 0.35m CMOS technology and
the 0.18m CMOS technology in changing these parameter.
Theories behind each circuit were also considered to generate
the expected outputs in 0.18m CMOS technology. All
circuits simulation out puts were interpreted accordingly and
based on the concepts/theories of each circuit presented in
each reference book. Simulation results were presented in the
instructors manual.
Comparing all the simulation results to the given
references such as Analog IC Design Laboratory manual
implemented/simulated using 0.35m CMOS technology, it
can be observed that circuits were operating on the desired
region. This observation implies that the simulated circuits
were operating properly.
B. Laboratory Activities
After producing all the laboratory activities, the exercises
were tested by using all the procedures starting from the first
experiment up to the last one. The process and the outputs
were observed that if it would be repeatable and showing up
the same outputs at the same time. The results of each
experiment were compiled and are found in Appendix B
(Instructors manual).
The theories of each laboratory activity were used as
reference for the confirmation of the results of the simulation.
An example of how the simulations were confirmed is the
gain of the Common Gate Amplifier. The first thing that was
considered were the supply parameters. For a Common Gate

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Amplifier to operate in saturation
. After achieving the supply
parameters, the circuit was then simulated. If the simulated
output doesnt coincide with the theoretical output, the W/L
ratio or/and the transconductance of the MOSFETS were
adjusted until the output is correct. Another thing that was
made sure for each analysis done to the circuit were defining
the specific requirements and the syntaxes are correct.
C. Survey
A survey was conducted to evaluate the comprehensibility of
the manual. Questions can be seen in Appendix C (Survey
questions). The respondents were 5th year Electronics and
Communications Engineering students who are taking the
microelectronics elective course Analog IC Design. Eighteen
of these students were taken as subjects of the survey since 2
out of the 20 were part of the researchers. Before the
evaluation, the students have already prior knowledge to the
basics of HSPICE since it is also the software used in their
elective. Since the students already know the software, the
survey of 15 questions focused on the technicalities of the
laboratory manual such as the comprehensibility of the
processes and instructions. The survey also includes
questions that address the rate of learning garnered by the
students through the experiments. The range that was chosen
to conclude if the question got a satisfactory result of the
average was between 3 and 5.

exercise 3 since it only garnered 3.78 which is still

satisfactory.
These were recommendations that were used to
improve the laboratory manual:
To add a Conclusion part in the laboratory
activities
Adding numbers beside equations
Adding an appendix containing syntax for SPICE
simulation
Adding an empty box for netlists in the exercises

IV. SUMMARY
With the new elective tracks that the DEEE has made, there
was a need for laboratory manuals to assist in the electives.
The elective course Analog IC Design in the microelectronics
track still doesnt have a laboratory manual. This problem
was addressed by making a laboratory manual for the said
elective course.
A study about Analog IC Design and HSPICE software
was done. HSPICE was chosen as the simulation tool to be
used for the said subject. The list of topics to be tackled in the
laboratory manual were based from the Introduction to
Analog IC Design Laboratory by Hong-Yi Huang. Circuits
were also given to be used for laboratory activities. The
circuits given were using the 0.35m CMOS technology. The
laboratory manual used 0.18m CMOS technology for all
given experiments. Changes in the circuits parameters for it
to produce the expected outputs was done while it is applied
in a 0.18m technology.
After achieving the outputs, the procedures and exercises
for each laboratory exercise were made. The answers to the
exercise were compiled in the Instructors manual. After
completing the Laboratory manual and the Instructors
manual a survey was conducted to 18 students under the
Microelectronics Elective track.

V. CONCLUSION
Figure 3: Survey Results
The first three questions of the survey addressed the clarity
of the laboratory manual. The first question Are the
instructions clear enough to be understood? garnered an
average of 4.44. It is clear that the students agreed that the
instructions are satisfactory. This also goes the same with the
2nd and 3rd question. The questions gave a result of 4.55 and
4.5 respectively. It also shows that most of the students rated
excellent on both the questions. While the 4th, 5th, and 6th
question it tackled helpfulness of different components in
learning Analog Integrated Circuit Design. The questions
gave a result of 4.33, 4.38 and 4.22 respectively. It shows that
the circuits, figures, theories, and laboratory activities are
vital for learning of the students. The 7th to 13th question were
directed to the learning of the students per laboratory activity.
The questions gave a result of 4.27, 4.55, 4.05, 3.78, 4.33, 4,
4.33, 4.38 and 4.72 respectively. With the results, it shows
that the laboratory activities showed a satisfactory remark.
Given that most of the students rated the questions very good
also shows that in these parts of the laboratory manual still
has a room for improvement especially for laboratory

According to the evaluation, the laboratory manual is

comprehensible to the users. With this, it will be possible to
implement for the DEEE. The manual could be used for
future classes of the microelectronics elective course
Introduction to Analog IC.
The topics discussed were essential lessons needed for
Analog IC Design. MOSFET characteristics and small signal
parameters such as the Transconductance were discussed for
the basics. These topics were then used for the rest of the
laboratory manual. By learning the basics, it would be
possible to apply this for other uses. Current mirrors were also
discussed since this is very common in the industry. This can
be used for production of constant and efficient current
sources. Different single stage amplifiers were also discussed.
Having different kinds of single stage amplifiers allows the
users and designers to have amplifiers that would be
compatible with the characteristics of their circuits. Like for
a Common-Gate Amplifier, this is used for systems with low
input impedance and high output impedance.
The laboratory manual was designed that the learning of
the user is progressive; starting from the basics up to higher
applications. This enabled students to develop their
understanding in this field of engineering.

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VI. RECOMMENDATIONS
For the future instructors, we recommend these following
things for optimal comprehensibility of the laboratory
manual:
1. The students should be advised to read the books written
by Behzad Razavi Design of Analog CMOS Integrated
Circuits [3] and Fundamentals of Microelectronics[4]
for further knowledge about the theories being discussed
in the laboratory manual.
2. The instructor could create other exercises that would be
based on the theories and the exercises. One example
would be is to give them a project that would create a
circuit consisting the different laboratory activities.
For the future researchers, we recommend these
following things for the betterment of the laboratory manual:
1. The manual have dealt with the basic functions of
HSPICE, it is recommended that exercises that would
use the advance features and functions of HSPICE.
REFERENCES
[1] R. F. Pierret, Semiconductor Device Fundamentals, United States of
America: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, 1996.
[2] "HSPICE," Synopsis, Inc., 2014. [Online]. Available:
http://www.synopsys.com/tools/Verification/AMSVerification/CircuitSimu
lation/ HSPICE/Pages/default.aspx. [Accessed 2014 July 11].
[3] B. Razavi, Design of Analog CMOS Integrated Circuits, Singapore:
McGraw-Hill
International, 2001.
[4] B. Razavi, Fundamentals of Microelectronics, Singapore: McGrawhill
Publisher,
2007.