( DAC 04 Item 34 ) --------------------------------------------- [ 02/09/05 ]
Subject: Mentor Calibre, Avanti Hercules, Cadence Assura/Dracula/Diva
SAME OLD, SAME OLD -- No real news here. Mentor Calibre is still the one
getting the user mindshare with Avanti Hercules a second and Cadence Assura
in a distant third place. The only supposedly new news here is that Magma
has publically said they're going to take on Calibre in the LVS/DRC space;
but since no user has done a hands-on review of this supposed Calibre
crusher, people aren't taking this Magma "challenge" seriously.
Mentor Calibre:
Mentor is working hard to keep Calibre competitive. This year their
effort is toward 90 nm issues and incremental DRC. Now they are trying
to get access to Virtuoso environment through Open Access initiative.
Calibre is still the fastest tools for LVS and DRC.
Synopsys Hercules:
The most work done recently in Hercules is in trying to win against
xCalibre. In some benchmarks they really did. No demos at DAC, but
Synopsys claims speed 2x by optimizing the rules definitions.
- Number of checks reduced by combining density min - max in one
step.
- Integration with HSPICE for cell characterization - gorgeous
integration with Cosmos.
- 2004.12 - mutual inductance.
- Flow based GUI - I wish Calibre will do something like it.
- Can use evaluation of area where "recommended" instead of
"mandatory" can be used (nice idea).
The future, they say, is Model OPC for blocks - instead of writing more
than 100 rules to generate templates that can be checked against layout
but the fabs have to cooperate or they have to work with an encrypted
model for design rules. I am curious how we will check efficiently the
65 nm rules, mandatory and recommended, DFM issues, etc.
They spend most of the time in showing improved performance on parallel
processing and improve usability of Hercules. Smart move in my opinion.
Cadence Assura:
Cadence Assura has little news. Other than some small interface
features for debugging, this is still the slowest hierarchical
verification tool. Everybody is looking forward for Cadence to come
up with a competitor to Calibre. As they start working with eTop we
may have something in a year or two.
PAS is a Process Automated Setup tool that helps Cadence to produce
all the PDK (Process Design Kits) for various foundries. This is a
tool written by users for users. Usability is the first priority so
it is extremely versatile. From a graphical user interface, the
designer can draw new rules or reuse, add conditions and texts, write
what the text on the verification errors will be displayed. So if
you receive the document with your process information you should be
able to enter all the rules the first time in a few days. Second time
only incremental changes in numbers or rules. From there with a push
of the button, the internal modules can create all potential decks
for DRC, LVS, Parasitic Extraction for Calibre, Assura, Hercules,
Diva, Dracula, etc. Not only creates the deck but with another module
generator creates the TEST STRUCTURES. Now you can use your own style
QA for the deck, you have the test structures too. Other than that,
you can create PcellS code, Schematic symbols, Compaction decks, etc.
Great interface, usability to the maximum, now you can buy it, but
there is one small issue of the BIG "price".
Cadence has to find a way to make it cheaper.
Magma Mojave:
Mojave is a new verification tool that is coming from Magma. They
bought another company that is coming up with a new idea. If the
concept works, we will be able to run our big chips 50-100x faster
than today. Unfortunately I am not at the latitude to explain it
but I can see in it a potential competitor to Calibre. Keep an eye
on Magma for physical verification.
- Dan Clein, author of "CMOS IC Layout"
With the DRC/LVS tools, I'd be hard pressed to use anything but the
tools considered golden by the foundries. This pretty much means
Calibre or Hercules. I'd go with Calibre any day.
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
All of you dinosaurs using Dracula... JUST SAY NO !! It is clunky in
setup, cryptic in output and slow as watching paint dry. My Dracula
experience is strictly with the DRC tool, and that was enough to forgo
training on the LVS tool. I'm sure it has real "expertise already in
place" value, but develop that same expertise with Calibre and I doubt
you will regret it.
I've used Calibre/Hercules/Assura LVS with the Cadence Virtuouso
Layout editor. From my Mask Designer viewpoint, Calibre was far and
away the clearest in graphic error reporting and in the file tree
format it produces for both errors and layout or schematic netlists.
The Hercules GUI seems slightly klugy (LAYOUT ERRORS, LVS ERRORS, no
way to preview the errors before highlighting a HUGE net..) and the
reports produced are less than straight forward (read a .sum file).
Although it does get me to the root of the errors eventually, I prefer
Calibre over Hercules for speed and clarity. The Hercules tool also
has a knack for reporting "ghost errors" (highlights data at a
different hierarchical level) that need to be ignored.
Lastly, the Assura tools are nicely integrated into Virtuouso. The
Extraction and XOR are nice. The downfall is the parameter and
compare settings. The amount of manipulation needed to get a
stringent LVS ran is bad enough, but the descriptions of and the
logic of these switches is again, less than easily understood.
When you push the button, read the results and troubleshoot the issue,
Mentor Calibre LVS is the cleanest, quickest, clearest way home.
Why Mentor doesn't pound on this advantage?
- Patrick Conti of National Semiconductor
We are using Diva/Dracula, and are evaluating Assura. Would very
much like to use Calibre, unfortunately due to the fact that we are
essentially a Cadence house, and our design is not really million
gate huge digital ones, Calibre would be a overkill for us. Don't
know any one that's using Hercules.
- Weikai Sun of Volterra
Dracula or Hercules has always been good enough for me.
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
Calibre and Assura I use.
- [ An Anon Engineer ]
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