Summary

  • Analog integrated circuit simulator Semisim by Brandon L Destefano runs in the browser, and helps design semiconductor devices such as transistors and diodes on an IC die.
  • The tools work on the principle that initially a user can select the tool and what they wish to draw, to create an interactive diagram on the circuit that can then be simulate.
  • While resistors are often thought of as being sloppy in terms of component precision in a real world circuit, in an IC they are actually the more sloppy component, while capacitors have a tightly controlled plate-size, allowing very precise ratios between two capacitors.
  • The simulator shows these principles in action and also provides examples such as a ring oscillator or a DRAM cell users can build upon.

By Al Williams

Original Article