Photonic Solutions Enewsletter

Tip: Using the OptSim Circuit Interface with PhoeniX Software’s OptoDesigner

The OptSim™ Circuit interface with PhoeniX Software’s OptoDesigner using the PDAFlow API is one of a number of exciting new features added to the 2016.06 release of the RSoft™ System Tools. The interface helps create masks from OptSim Circuit schematics and brings photonic integrated circuit (PIC) designers one step closer to fabrication. This article demonstrates how to use the interface.

To get started, you must first load the PDAFlow libraries. In OptSim Circuit, go to the Utilities menu and choose Load PDAFlow Libraries as shown in Figure 1.

Load PDAFlow Libraries

Figure 1: Loading PDAFlow libraries in OptSim Circuit

Once OptSim Circuit is done loading the libraries, they are listed in the User Libraries branch of the OptSim Circuit model tree.

Next, create a compound component for the PIC for which a mask needs to be generated in OptoDesigner. The compound component should have all models as PDKs chosen from the PDAFlow library. A “foundryName” parameter will be added to the compound component via Symbol Table when a PDAFlow building block (BB) is inserted.

By default, each BB added to the compound component will have a “foundryName” parameter that inherits its value from the corresponding value set at the compound-component level. This allows global control of the “foundryName” setting during simulation and netlist generation. The value of the “foundryName” parameter can be selected from a predefined list of available foundry names. The foundry names are derived from the PDAFlow libraries. Please see the OptoDesigner documentation for details about how to configure the list of foundries that will be loaded from the PDAFlow API.

Figure 2 shows an OptSim Circuit schematic using two PICs, each of which are implemented as a compound component using the demofab PDKs.

OptSim Circuit schematic

Figure 2: OptSim Circuit schematic using two PICs (inset), each implemented as a compound component using the demofab PDKs

Next, generate a PDAFlow netlist using the OptSim Circuit utility option found in the Utilities menu.

Generating PDAFlow netlist

Figure 3: Generating PDAFlow netlist in OptSim Circuit

Once you have the PDAFlow netlist from OptSim Circuit, you can launch OptoDesigner, edit the layout, and create a mask file. As an example, Figure 4 shows an edited mask layout based on the OptSim Circuit schematic shown in Figure 2.

Mask layout in OptoDesigner

Figure 4: Mask layout in OptoDesigner for the OptSim Circuit schematic 
shown in Figure 2.

For more information, please contact rsoft_support@synopsys.com.

New RSoft Product Resources Available on the Customer Support Portal

RSoft Application Case Studies

The following RSoft application case studies and supporting project files are now available on the Customer Support Portal.

  • RSoft photonic component application case studies:
    • Arrayed Waveguide Grating
    • Graphene-Based Electro-Optic Nano-Modulator
    • Nano-Patterned Photonic Structure
    • OLED-Based Display
    • OLED with Moth-Eye Coating
    • Spot Size Converter
    • Silicon-Based Optical Interconnect
  • RSoft system tools application case studies:  
    • Advanced Driver Assist Systems
    • Estimation of Silicon Photonics Foundry Yield
    • Parameter Extraction of Laser Diodes from Datasheets

RSoft Products Short Course: Design and Simulation of Photonic Integrated Devices and Circuits

Presented by Rob Scarmozzino and Jigesh Patel, Synopsys
Originally presented at the American Institute for Manufacturing (AIM) Integrated Photonics in December 2015, and at the AIM Photonics Academy in April 2016.

The presentations (slides with narration) introduce approaches for designing photonic integrated devices and circuits using photonic design automation tools:

  • Part 1: Design of essential building blocks of photonic integrated circuits (PICs)
  • Part 2: How photonic device building blocks are combined to form PICs