Analog Explore

analog-explore

Design space exploration through hand calculations. No EDA required. Rapidly evaluate architectures, sweep parameters, and map tradeoff surfaces before committing simulation time.

When to Use

• Choosing between architectures before detailed design
• Understanding theoretical limits of a topology
• Quick parameter sensitivity analysis
• Generating initial sizing for multiple candidates
• Estimating feasibility of a spec before starting design

Capabilities

Architecture Comparison

Compare 2-4 candidate topologies for a given spec:

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/analog-explore compare --spec spec.yml --topologies "folded-cascode, telescopic, two-stage-miller"

For each topology, estimate from hand calculations:

• Achievable gain (intrinsic gain × number of gain stages)
• Bandwidth (gm/CL for single-stage, GBW for multi-stage)
• Power (minimum current for gm requirement × VDD)
• Output swing (VDD minus Vdsat stack)
• Noise (input-referred: 8kT/(3gm) × noise factor)
• Area (rough: proportional to total W×L)

Output: comparison table + recommendation with reasoning.

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## Architecture Comparison — OTA for 60dB gain, 500MHz UGBW

| Metric | Folded Cascode | Telescopic | Two-Stage Miller |
|--------|---------------|------------|-----------------|
| Gain   | ~55-70 dB     | ~60-80 dB  | ~70-90 dB       |
| UGBW   | gm1/CL        | gm1/CL     | gm1/Cc          |
| Power  | 2× (folded)   | 1× (base)  | 2× (two stages) |
| Swing  | VDD - 4Vdsat  | VDD - 4Vdsat| VDD - 2Vdsat   |
| Noise  | moderate      | best       | moderate         |
| Risk   | CMFB needed   | limited Vcm| compensation     |

Recommendation: Folded cascode. 60dB is achievable in single stage with cascode,
avoids compensation complexity of two-stage, and handles flexible Vcm.
Telescopic has better noise but Vcm range is too restrictive for this application.

Parameter Sweep (Hand-Calc)

Sweep a design parameter and estimate its effect on all specs:

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/analog-explore sweep --param "W_input:1u,2u,4u,8u,16u" --spec spec.yml --topology folded-cascode

For each value, calculate: gm, gm/Id, gain contribution, bandwidth impact, noise contribution, power, headroom.

Output: sweep table showing tradeoff surface.

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## Parameter Sweep — W_input (folded cascode, Id_tail=200uA)

| W_input | gm/Id | gm (mS) | Gain (dB) | UGBW (MHz) | Noise (nV/rtHz) | Headroom |
|---------|-------|---------|-----------|------------|-----------------|----------|
| 1u      | 8     | 0.8     | 48        | 127        | 5.6             | OK       |
| 2u      | 11    | 1.1     | 52        | 175        | 4.8             | OK       |
| 4u      | 15    | 1.5     | 55        | 239        | 4.1             | OK       |
| 8u      | 19    | 1.9     | 57        | 302        | 3.6             | tight    |
| 16u     | 23    | 2.3     | 58        | 366        | 3.3             | FAIL     |

Observation: W=4u-8u is the sweet spot. Beyond 8u, gm/Id enters weak inversion
(>20), headroom collapses, and gain improvement diminishes.

Feasibility Check

Quick spec feasibility without full design:

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/analog-explore feasibility --spec spec.yml

For each spec, estimate the minimum resource (current, area, bandwidth) needed:

• Gain: how many gain stages? What intrinsic gain per stage?
• Bandwidth: minimum gm for target UGBW? Minimum current for that gm?
• Noise: minimum gm (and thus current) for noise floor?
• Power: sum of minimum currents × VDD
• Settling: minimum UGBW for settling spec?

Flag impossible specs: "60dB gain AND 2GHz UGBW in 180nm with 0.5mW — NOT FEASIBLE. Gain requires cascode (limits speed), UGBW requires high gm (requires high current)."

Output: feasibility report with go/no-go per spec and minimum resource estimates.

Sensitivity Analysis

Which parameter has the biggest impact on which spec?

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/analog-explore sensitivity --netlist circuit/ota.scs --spec spec.yml

Perturb each .param by ±20%, re-derive all specs from hand calculations. Output: sensitivity matrix.

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| Param  | dc_gain | ugbw  | phase_margin | noise | power |
|--------|---------|-------|-------------|-------|-------|
| W1     | +0.3    | +0.5  | -0.1        | -0.4  | 0     |
| L1     | +0.8    | -0.6  | +0.2        | +0.1  | 0     |
| Ibias  | +0.1    | +0.5  | +0.3        | -0.5  | +1.0  |
| Cc     | 0       | -0.3  | +0.9        | 0     | 0     |

(Normalized elasticity: +1.0 means +20% param → +20% spec)

Wiki Interaction

• Calls /analog-wiki consult for topology reference data
• Writes strategy entries when a sweep reveals non-obvious tradeoffs
• Writes corner-lesson entries when feasibility check reveals process-dependent limits

Effort Interaction

Not effort-gated. Exploration is always available.

Output

All outputs go to explore/ directory:

• explore/comparison-<date>.md — architecture comparison
• explore/sweep-<param>-<date>.md — parameter sweep
• explore/feasibility-<date>.md — spec feasibility report
• explore/sensitivity-<date>.md — sensitivity matrix