Crossroads for mixed-signal chips

Shrinking circuit features and rising transistor density have spawned the astonishing system on a chip (SoC), in which most or all of the circuitry are required for. Currently, these SoCs often contain analog, RF, and mixed-signal components to satisfy the growing demands of communication applications. Evidently, SoC designers need input from the intellectual property (IP) providers that design circuit modules for use with other SoC elements. In addition, design tools that can rapidly integrate IP libraries with the mundane sizing, placing, and routing of circuits is needed.