THine Electronics Adopts Berkeley Design Automation's PLL Noise Analyzer(TM) For Design of Digital Consumer Multimedia ICs.

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Accurate Noise and Jitter Analysis Enables Mixed-Signal IC Supplier To Accelerate Design and Volume Production of Mixed-Signal LSIs

Berkeley Design Automation Inc., a provider of innovative silicon analysis tools for analog/RF and mixed-signal applications, today announced that THine Electronics, Inc., a leading developer of mixed-signal integrated circuits for digital consumer television and computing applications, has adopted and successfully deployed PLL Noise Analyzer. THine Electronics has used PLL Noise Analyzer to perform extensive noise analysis on its 0.18u CMOS SerDes interface devices, which are based on THine's V-by-One(TM) technology. Berkeley Design's advanced circuit analysis technology enabled THine to meet demanding noise specifications before tape-out, removing the need for multiple silicon spins.

"At THine, we design a variety of LSIs with high speed interfaces that must meet very tight noise specifications under stringent cost constraints," said Jun-ichi Okamura, Director Business Unit I, THine Electronics, Inc. "The ability of PLL Noise Analyzer to provide accurate analysis enabled us to dramatically reduce our verification turn around time. This capability allows us to deploy a robust analysis methodology for all of our designs."

Digital consumer products consist of a wide variety of mixed-signal ICs. With traditional analog/RF analysis methodologies and tools, it is necessary to characterize some aspects of these designs by producing silicon prototypes and taking extensive measurement data. Such approaches are used because designers cannot accurately characterize circuits for key specifications with existing tools. The result is delayed time to volume and increased product development costs.

Berkeley Design has developed next generation circuit analysis technologies that allow designers to accurately characterize their designs before tape-out. PLL Noise Analyzer, the company's first product, is the industry's only tool that can accurately characterize the noise and jitter performance of nonlinear circuits, such as PLLs and VCOs, at the transistor level. Berkeley Design's proprietary Stochastic Nonlinear Engine(TM) is the foundation of PLL Noise Analyzer, and it provides unprecedented analysis speed and accuracy.

"We are very pleased that Berkeley Design's next generation circuit analysis technology has enabled THine to continue building their leadership in innovative mixed-signal ICs for the PC and LCD markets," said Ravi Subramanian, president and CEO of Berkeley Design Automation. "By providing breakthrough silicon analysis technologies, we are able to deliver on our mission to accelerate customers' time-to-volume production on their most complex mixed-signal designs."

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 THine Electronics

THine Electronics Incorporated is a fabless maker that provides innovative mixed signal LSI and analog technologies such as LVDS, other high speed data signaling, timing controller, ADC, RF and power management in growing niche markets for our customers' solutions, targeting its strategic markets in flat TVs (PDP and LCD televisions), LCD monitors, projectors, projection televisions, mobile phones and automotive markets.

THine is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, and has design centers in Kyoto and Kyushu, Japan, as well as a marketing subsidiary in Taipei, Taiwan.

THine Electronics is traded on the JASDAQ under the security code of 6769. More information is located on the World Wide Web at http://www.thine.co.jp.

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.

V-by-One is a trademark of THine Electronics, Inc.

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