Great presentation. How many metal layers can be used in this projetc? Thanks

Did you place dummy transistors in the layout ? Active devices might cause leakage without them. Also does it allow to do EM simulations ?

Your presentation is wonderful. The amount of work involved in your compiler… and making it avaliable as open source… definitely helping to enable the next generation of developers. A life time of learning is not enough to learn everything in analog/digital ic design.

Any video of Magic Layout with higher metal layers and vias, I am facing some issues in dealing with vias and higher metals??

I am not able to see the option of adding Devices in Magic 8.3. Can i add this freatures

Most designers are not coders , pretty divergent discipline

1:07:31 Hello Sir, Is the Barkhausen criterion applicable to this type of oscillator to guarantee oscillation, if yes how to apply the criteria here? Thanks for the lecture.

*Abstract* This lecture explores various energy harvesting techniques and their applications in powering electronic circuits. It delves into the principles, advantages, and limitations of thermoelectric, photovoltaic, piezoelectric, electromagnetic, and triboelectric energy generation. The lecture emphasizes the importance of understanding the specific use case and energy source to design efficient harvesting circuits. It concludes by highlighting the need to minimize the average current consumption of electronic devices to enable a future of batteryless IoT sensors powered by harvested energy. *Summary* *Introduction (**0:01**)* - Electronic circuits require energy sources to function, traditionally batteries or AC adapters. - Energy harvesting offers an alternative for long-term operation without battery replacements. - The choice of energy harvesting technique depends on the application and desired power consumption. *Energy Harvesting Techniques* *Thermoelectric (**7:47**)* - Principle: Utilizes temperature differences to generate voltage using the Seebeck effect and materials with different Seebeck coefficients. - Example: Voyager probes use radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs) to convert heat from decaying plutonium into electricity. - Challenges: Low voltage output, requiring boosting circuits for practical use. - Create an oscillator that runs with 50 or 100mV input voltage. *Photovoltaic (**18:15**)* - Principle: Employs the photovoltaic effect in PN junctions to convert photons into electron-hole pairs, generating current and voltage. - Key Considerations: Optimizing power extraction by operating at the right load current and utilizing maximum power point tracking (MPPT) techniques. - Applications: Solar cells for calculators and other small devices. *Piezoelectric (**25:27**)* - Principle: Leverages the piezoelectric effect in materials like gallium nitride to convert mechanical stress and vibrations into AC voltage. - Mechanism: Alignment of polarization domains within the material creates an electric field that changes with applied stress. - Challenges: Rectifying the AC voltage into a usable DC form. *Electromagnetic (**31:45**)* - Near Field Harvesting: Utilizes the inductive near field for efficient energy transfer at close distances, as seen in NFC and Qi charging technologies. - Ambient RF Harvesting: Scavenging energy from ambient radio waves is deemed inefficient due to significant power loss over distance. *Triboelectric (**42:39**)* - Principle: Harvests energy from static electricity generated by friction or contact between materials. - Example: Temperature sensor powered by triboelectric energy harvesting from human motion. - Challenges: Low current output and the need for efficient rectification circuits. *Conclusion (**46:37**)* - No single energy harvesting circuit is universally suitable; the design must be tailored to the specific energy source and application. - Minimizing the average current consumption of electronic circuits is crucial for successful implementation of energy harvesting technologies, especially for batteryless IoT devices. i used gemini 1.5 pro to summarize the transcript

I'm really lucky that I found this channel. Mr. Wulff explains things from fundamental to advanced. It is like a pill for my curiosity on electronics :)

thanks prof

Great tutorial Thanks! To erase a selection in magic you can select an area with the cursor then press e over the layer to be erased.

Wish I could've followed along live with this? Seems like a really good course. Still excited to follow along :)

simply brilliant!

Wow, it looks really interesting. But lack of my proper education I can't able understand lot of mathematical notations there. Can you suggest any book to learn more about understand the basics of math

Thanks so much for making these videos! Super informative

Your way of talking is great

Very nice lecture.

*ELI5 Abstract* * *Imagine Invisible Flashlights:* Radios send messages using invisible light, like flashlights sending secret codes. Some flashlights go far, others not so much. * *Secret Codes:* Radios change the flashlight blinks to make different codes for messages. Some codes are simple, others are really tricky! * *Building a Radio:* It's like building a big puzzle! You need a special antenna to catch signals, parts to make the blink codes, and a part to keep the blinks steady. * *Bluetooth: A Special Radio Kind:* Bluetooth is a radio made for tiny things, like toys and mice. It uses special codes to save power so batteries last a long time. * *Radios are Tricky!* Making radios is like solving a hard puzzle. There are lots of hidden things that clever people figure out, so the radios work even if you don't see them! *Abstract* This video explores the fundamentals of radio design, with a specific emphasis on wireless mice and Bluetooth technology. Key concepts covered include: * *Design Factors:* Essential considerations such as data rate, carrier frequency, and desired range directly impact radio design choices. Higher frequencies offer greater range potential but also greater signal loss. * *Modulation:* Modulation schemes, like BPSK, QPSK, and OFDM, enable the encoding of data onto carrier signals. Each scheme offers trade-offs in bandwidth, complexity, and robustness. * *Hardware:* Radio receiver architecture typically includes components like LNAs, mixers, filters, ADCs, and PLLs. Design choices in these blocks influence sensitivity and power consumption. * *Bluetooth:* Bluetooth standards (BR/EDR and BLE) balance speed, power consumption, and ease of implementation. BLE is optimized for low-power devices and uses error correction for range enhancement. * *Design Approaches:* Academia often focuses on specific radio design aspects, while industry requires a holistic approach to create a fully functional product. * *Complexity:* Radio design involves solving complex problems in signal processing, RF circuits, and digital logic. These complexities are often hidden from the end-user. *Summary* *Understanding Radio Design: From Mice to Bluetooth* *Introduction (**0:00**)* * Understanding radios with the example of wireless mice. * Key factors for design: data rate, carrier frequency, and desired range. *Data Rate, Range, and Carrier Frequency* * *Data Rate (**1:58**):* Mice track movement and clicks, requiring fast transmission (around 1 millisecond). * *Carrier Frequency (**6:30**):* Frequency choice depends on antenna size, range, and regulations. Higher frequencies allow smaller antennas. * *Range (**10:27**):* Complex to calculate, simplified here by assuming no obstacles. Formulas provided to show higher frequencies generally increase range (in this ideal scenario). *Real-World Range Considerations* * *15:34**:* Signal loss increases dramatically with frequency (e.g., 60 GHz). * *16:47**:* Lower frequencies (e.g., 915 MHz) achieve longer ranges. * *17:35**:* 2.4 GHz offers a balance between range, antenna size, and signal loss. * *18:00**:* Real-world environments impact range. Channel models simulate these effects. * *19:20* Precise range estimation is hard, even with detailed building knowledge. * *19:55**:* Battery life is essential for wireless devices. *Modulation Schemes* * *22:03**:* Radios work by changing a carrier wave's amplitude and/or phase. * *22:54**:* Modulation types: BPSK, QPSK, GFSK (used in Bluetooth), QAM. * *23:50**:* Modulation affects bandwidth requirements and data rates. * *25:45**:* Example of BPSK: phase shifting a carrier to represent binary data. *Amplitude & Phase Modulation, Circuitry* * *32:23**:* Changing both amplitude & phase allows faster data rates. * *33:49**:* Offers greater efficiency, but requires more complex circuitry * *34:28* Constant amplitude modulation simplifies design (less linear PA needed). * *35:23**:* Amplitude & phase modulation needs Cartesian or Polar Transmitters. *Higher Order Modulation, DPSK* * *37:23**:* More bits per symbol increases complexity (e.g., 8 PSK in Bluetooth EDR). * *38:06**:* DPSK tracks phase *changes*, mitigating frequency offsets. *Single-Carrier vs. Multi-Carrier (OFDM)* * *42:53**:* Single-carrier systems have limitations in handling channel distortions. * *46:26**:* OFDM (used in Wi-Fi, LTE) splits the signal across many smaller carriers. * *48:18**:* Pilot tones in OFDM help correct distortion caused by the communication channel. *Software Defined Radio vs. Specialized Hardware* * *49:34**:* SDR offers flexibility but has high power consumption (ADCs) * *51:06**:* Not ideal for battery-powered devices like mice. *Bluetooth: Balancing Speed, Power & Cost* * *52:02**:* Bluetooth aims for ease of use, low cost, and acceptable trade-offs. * *52:29**:* BR/EDR (1 Mbps) vs. BLE (lower power, varying data rates, error correction). * *54:44**:* BLE coexists with Wi-Fi in the 2.4 GHz band (demonstrated with a spectrum analyzer). *Bluetooth Connection & Low Power Operation* * *57:31**:* BLE devices advertise and scan to connect. * *58:58**:* "Race to idle" approach conserves power. *Building Bluetooth Receivers* * *01:03:32**:* Design trends and considerations for Bluetooth receivers. * *01:05:05**:* Typical receiver block diagram (Antenna, LNA, Mixer, IF Stage, Filter, ADC, ADPLL, Baseband Processor) * *01:09:03**:* Resources needed for development (money, time, people, expertise). *PLLs, Baseband, and Design Choices* * *1:18:01* Example of student-designed PLL. * *1:18:58* Baseband processing handles timing recovery, data extraction, etc. * *1:19:41**:* Radio design involves trade-offs between system-level and component-level choices. * *1:21:02* Key equation in radio design, optimizing noise figure and digital logic. *Complexity of Radio Design (**1:22:50**)* * Radio engineers solve intricate problems often hidden from end-users. Disclaimer: I used gemini advanced 1.0 (2024.03.04) to summarize the video transcript. This method may make mistakes in recognizing words and it can't distinguish between speakers.

These lecture series are really good.

16:11 ESD

Another amazing lecture, thank you so much

amazing!

Super interesting! Lots of great info here

*ELI5 Abstract* *Project: Making a Special Computer Chip* * *What it is:* I'm working on a tiny computer chip called an ADC. It's like a translator, turning sounds and things we measure into signals the computer understands. * *Tiny Tape-out:* This project lets people like me try to put our designs onto real chips! It's usually very expensive to do this. * *My Design:* I've been working on this for a long time, and it works really well! *Building the Chip with Code* * *Like Lego, but with Code:* I write special code instead of using my hands to build the design. This code is like instructions for building with tiny Lego blocks. * *Changing Sizes:* My code is smart! I can change a few things and make the design bigger or smaller to fit different chips. * *Special Tools:* I need special computer programs to turn my code into the real chip design. It's like having machines that understand my Lego instructions and build the thing. *Testing If It Works* * *Pretend Play:* I use a computer program to pretend my chip is real. I can see how it would work! * *Trying Different Things:* It's like playing with toys on hot days, cold days, and with slow toys or fast toys. My pretend chip needs to work in all those situations. * *Checking for Mistakes:* If I make a change, I check to see if I broke anything in the design, just like making sure my Lego tower doesn't fall! *Getting My Chip Ready* * *Special Drawing:* I need to make a special drawing of my chip that the chip factory can understand. * *Almost Done:* My design is working well, but I need to fix a few small things before sending in my drawing. *I'm excited to share my chip design with everyone!* *Abstract* This video transcript describes the development of a compiled analog-to-digital converter (ADC) design and the process of porting it to the Skywater 130nm process for submission to the TinyTapeout initiative. It is based on work of the guy that made the ADC that is in the Hubble Space Telescope. *Key Points:* * *Compiler-Based Design:* The ADC design is unique in that it is compiled, meaning the layout is generated from code that captures design knowledge and rules. This approach offers flexibility and portability. * *Performance and Portability:* The compiler system began as a way to create high-performance ADCs. It has been successfully ported between multiple technologies (including 28nm, 22nm, and Skywater 130nm), demonstrating its adaptability. * *System Overview:* The compilation process involves defining the circuit in Spice netlists, describing placement, and encoding routing instructions. A Python transpiler converts this intermediate format (cic) into layout (Magic), schematics, and simulation files. * *Challenges and Advantages:* The system's strength lies in porting to different technologies once the architecture is encoded. However, the initial setup and encoding of designs can be complex. * *Verification and Tape-out:* The speaker outlines a verification plan for the SAR ADC and describes the simulation setup. They conclude by discussing the process of generating the GDS file for the TinyTapeout submission.

Nice talk on oscillator 😊😊

Thank you so much Prof!

Very nice lecture. Sub integer N means it can divide into fractional parts. So instead of halving the frequency it can do .43 or so. It is achieved by quickly switching between 2 levels of divison (/2 and /4) that are next to each other.

Great initiative Prof, congrats! It is also important to mention that you utilize open-source tools so that anyone in the world can follow and implement the designs here, like me. Please keep on publishing videos! One comment BTW, the Synthesis tool in OpenROAD, Yosys, do not support all the properties of SystemVerilog, it is %100 compatible Verilog instead.

Good to see practical aspects like active parasitic devices being included in the EE curriculum.

Thanks so much for sharing this. I love that the lecture provides both, some sound theory and also the dives into actual implementation problems encountered in practice. Keep on that awesome work.

I appreciate this

Great lecture

I just came across your channel yesterday, watched most of your videos, and visited your website since then. This is an excellent learning material for beginners. I understand the effort you must put into making this worthwhile, and I want to thank you for that. Keep up this amazing work. Looking forward to your next lecture.

Just curious , What academic degrees do you have to post these lectures please ?!....

Just a quick Q: With regards to the divider, could you use a couple of inverter gates to add delay to the feedback around the D-type FF, or would that be too much?

i really appreciate these videos

Good design, but I don't think your bias for the op-amp is very optimal for biasing of cascode devices.

Virtuoso

Hey Carsten, thanks for the great video! 2 questions though: 1) Can we also just use the regular corner.sym to setup corners (instead of including an spi file like you do) 2) When I try to back annotate the values on to the symbols on the schematic, all I get are question marks next to the tcl commands that should actually show the gm, id, vth, vdsat (I modified the symbols of the thick oxide devices to show more than the default ones). I get the same results if I try to view the op using the get_value - so so far I cant see the ops of my circuits, which is a great hinderance for debugging of course. Any idea what I might be doing wrong here?

Sir can you please make some tutorials on simulation in xschem from scratch. As there is no proper tutorials on open source tools in YT.

Great video as always. I take a look inside the capacitor's DAC and I saw there were resistors inside it. am I missing something?

Fantastic video, I am delighted to see analog getting some much love!

Congrats and thank you for showing your insights!

Thank you!

Can I suggest adding timestamps in your description so people can easily jump to each section?

Excellent work on Open Source AIC

Is there any reason to use the same Net label for the negative input of op amp and the voltage source connected to the input 100k resistors (VIN) in TB?

Thank you for the video. I really enjoyed watching your videos. I have a question and a suggestion. Why did not use wide swing current mirror for the amplifier. And also since you are using non-overlapping clocks for the amplifier, that would be great if you implement the a switched caps CMFB which is really low power.

Good to see some new features of xschem being demonstrated!

sir can you make more videos focused on deep down designing perspective of circuits rather than software tool focused