P.A. Semi Successfully Develops 65nm, 2.5 GHz PLLs For PWRficient(TM) Processor Using Berkeley Design Automation's Noise Analyzer.

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- PLL Noise Analyzer(TM)'s Fast and Silicon-Accurate Analysis Enables Processor Start-Up To Meet Stringent Jitter and Power Specifications

Berkeley Design Automation Inc., a provider of innovative silicon analysis tools for analog/RF and mixed-signal applications, today announced that P.A. Semi, a Silicon Valley startup developing the high-performance, low-power PWRficient processor family, has successfully deployed PLL Noise Analyzer on its 65nm processor chip. P.A. Semi was able to meet extremely demanding noise and jitter specifications on the processor's PLLs that run up to 2.5GHz, while optimizing for power and area using Berkeley Design's advanced circuit analysis technology.

"At P.A. Semi, we are designing high performance, power-efficient, multi-core processors that offer up to a ten-fold increase in performance per watt," said Sribalan Santhanam, vice president of engineering, Design Group, at P.A. Semi. "Our applications demand ultra-low noise and jitter for clocking and I/O, and Berkeley Design Automation's PLL Noise Analyzer enabled us to quickly and accurately analyze the noise and jitter of our 65nm PLLs."

"Noise analysis of circuits at 65nm is very complex," said Vincent von Kaenel, Director of Analog Engineering, P.A. Semi. "PLLs pose one of the biggest challenges due to the highly nonlinear nature of the circuit, coupled with the variability of the process. PLL Noise Analyzer enabled us to accurately analyze PLL noise and jitter and characterize the top noise contributors quickly before we taped out our 65nm PLLs. We successfully met our noise and jitter targets."

Berkeley Design Automation's PLL Noise Analyzer is based on next-generation circuit analysis technologies that allow designers to accurately characterize the noise and jitter performance of their designs before tape-out. Berkeley Design's proprietary Stochastic Nonlinear Engine(TM) is the foundation of PLL Noise Analyzer and it provides unprecedented analysis speed and accuracy. With the fast and accurate noise analysis provided by PLL Noise Analyzer, designers are free to confidently optimize their PLLs for area and power.

"We are very pleased that Berkeley Design's accurate noise analysis technology has enabled P.A. Semi to meet their very aggressive noise and power targets in their first tape-out," said Ravi Subramanian, President and CEO of Berkeley Design Automation. "Our advanced silicon analysis technology was designed to address exactly these types of challenges. By providing speed and accuracy in these new analyses, we can accelerate the time-to-volume production of complex designs such as PA Semi's PWRficient processor."

About Berkeley Design Automation

Berkeley Design Automation Inc. was founded in 2003 to address the verification challenges in the design of next-generation high-performance analog/RF integrated circuits (ICs). Berkeley Design Automation is a venture-backed, private company funded by Woodside Fund and Bessemer Venture Partners. The company's technology characterizes the nonlinear, time-varying behavior of complex analog and RF circuits, providing extremely accurate predictions that dramatically reduce the need for silicon re-spins. The company's first product, PLL Noise Analyzer, the industry's only noise analysis tool for phase-locked loops (PLLs), has been adopted by semiconductor industry leaders. For more information, see http://www.berkeley-da.com.

About PLL Noise Analyzer

PLL Noise Analyzer fits easily into existing analog/RF verification flows. It reads HSPICE and Spectre format netlists and standard device models. PLL Noise Analyzer is available for Sun and Linux operating systems.

PLL Noise Analyzer and Stochastic Nonlinear Engine are trademarks of Berkeley Design Automation, Inc.

Berkeley Design is a registered trademark of Berkeley Design Automation, Inc. PWRficient(TM) is a trademark of P.A. Semi Inc.

HSPICE is a registered trademark of Synopsys Inc. Spectre is a registered trademark of Cadence Design Systems Inc.