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AMCAD Engineering has announced the release version 2.4.2 of VISION, introducing the next evolution in electronic circuit modeling and RF system simulation tools.

Unveiling new possibilities, VISION version 2.4.2 empowers engineers with unparalleled capabilities to enable the future of their system design. From intricate circuit designs to cutting-edge RF systems, VISION transcends boundaries, delivering a seamless bottom-up realistic simulation capability of microwave circuit architectures.

This release includes new modules and features to address the industry’s additional modeling and simulation requirements. It also showcases enhancements of the capabilities of the existing modules to improve user experience.

VISION 2.4.2 Main New Features and Software options

Load Pull Simulation enhancement

Load-pull simulation allows designers to evaluate and optimize key performance metrics, such as:

  • Power Output (Pout): Identify the load impedance that maximizes power delivery.
  • Power-Added Efficiency (PAE): Determine the impedance conditions for optimal efficiency, reducing power loss and improving thermal management.
  • Linearity and Distortion: Balance efficiency and linearity by analyzing performance trade-offs under different impedance conditions.

Explore Design Space Efficiently. Manually testing multiple impedance conditions in hardware is time-consuming and resource-intensive. Load-pull simulation provides:

  • Rapid Exploration: Simulate a wide range of impedance points without the need for physical prototypes.
  • Visualization of Impedance Regions: Graphically identify regions of high performance, enabling faster and more informed design decisions.

Enable Real-World Design Integration. Real-world RF systems rarely operate in ideal conditions. Load-pull simulation accounts for:

  • Source and Load Mismatches: Analyze the impact of mismatched impedances on device performance.
  • System Compatibility: Ensure the designed component integrates seamlessly with the surrounding circuitry.

Enhance Robustness and Reliability. By understanding how a device performs under varying conditions, load-pull simulation helps to:

  • Avoid Design Failures: Identify and mitigate potential performance degradation early in the design process.
  • Ensure Operating Margin: Design for optimal performance across a range of practical operating conditions.

The new Load-Pull Simulation Template in VISION 2.4.2 streamlines the process of configuring and performing load-pull simulations:

  • Ideal Tuner Block: Simplifies the design of impedance patterns and enables efficient configuration of impedance sweeps.
  • Improved Usability: The template reduces setup complexity, making it easier to extract valuable insights and optimize designs.

New Mixer Model: MIX-U-HF-S2P

In the design and simulation of RF systems, accurate modeling of mixers is essential for achieving reliable and optimized performance. Mixers play a critical role in frequency translation, and their behavior significantly impacts the overall system performance. This technical note highlights the importance of behavioral modeling for RF mixers, with a focus on input/output matching and nonlinear characteristics.

Proper input and output matching in an RF mixer ensures efficient signal transfer and minimizes reflection losses. Behavioral models that incorporate S-parameter-based data accurately represent the frequency-dependent impedance characteristics of the mixer.

Key benefits of matching-aware modeling include:

  • Improved System-Level Design: Precise modeling of matching enables better integration with other system components, such as amplifiers and filters, reducing mismatches and signal degradation.
  • Accurate Power Transfer Predictions: Matching-aware models help predict power delivery and loss under realistic operating conditions.
  • Reflection Analysis: Behavioral models allow for detailed reflection and return loss analysis, ensuring robust performance in complex RF environments.

Mixers are inherently nonlinear devices, with behaviors such as conversion gain and intermodulation distortion playing a critical role in their performance. Behavioral models capturing nonlinear characteristics are crucial for:

  • Conversion Gain Prediction: Ensures accurate representation of signal strength post-frequency translation under varying load conditions.
  • Intermodulation Response Analysis: Nonlinear models help predict and mitigate intermodulation products that can degrade system performance.
  • Dynamic Range Estimation: Comprehensive modeling of nonlinearities allows accurate determination of the mixer’s operating range, avoiding compression or saturation issues.

The new MIX-U-HF-S2P bilateral mixer model in VISION 2.4.2 incorporates both S-parameter data for input/output matching and conversion gain characterization to represent nonlinear behaviors accurately. This enhancement enables:

  • Improved Simulation Fidelity: Realistic simulations of RF mixer behavior in diverse operating conditions.
  • Seamless System Integration: Reliable compatibility with surrounding components in multi-block RF designs.
  • Enhanced Design Validation: Greater confidence in performance predictions through detailed and accurate modeling.

Linear parameterized models

Versatility in Addressing Tunable Components. Tunable components, such as filters, require models that can handle dynamic changes in their operating characteristics. Parameterized models built on S-parameter data excel in this area by:

  • Supporting Parameter Variations: Adapt to changes in tunable parameters like capacitance or inductance.
  • Interpolation Across Data Points: Accurately interpolate performance for conditions not explicitly provided in the original S-parameter dataset.

Enhanced Simulation Efficiency. Manual modeling or using static S-parameter files for multiple conditions can be cumbersome. Parameterized models streamline this process by:

  • Reducing File Complexity: Consolidate large datasets into a single model with tunable parameters.
  • Improving Workflow: Enable rapid adjustments and simulations without the need to switch between multiple files.

Compatibility with Industry Standards. CitiFile and Touchstone formats are widely adopted for storing and sharing S-parameter data. Linear parameterized models leverage these standardized formats, ensuring:

  • Seamless Integration: Compatibility with simulation tools and design workflows.
  • Broad Accessibility: Simplifies collaboration and data exchange across teams and platforms.

VISION 2.4.2 introduces enhanced support for linear parameterized models, enabling precise and efficient modeling of tunable filters and similar components:

  • MFC Model (CitiFile Format): Implements tunable filter modeling with parameterized S-parameters.
  • Parameterized SNP Block (Touchstone Format): Offers robust interpolation capabilities for highly accurate simulations.

These advancements provide designers with the tools to model tunable components with unprecedented flexibility and accuracy, supporting innovative RF design solutions.

VISION 2.4.2 Main Improvements and bug fixes

Numerous improvements and bug fixes have been made to enhance the user experience:

  • Antenna block model file is now loaded properly
  • Fixed an issue with import of 3-tones measurement data
  • Removed IQ Vizualisation in AWG_IWF Source causing memory issues
  • Post simulation calculation does not freeze GUI anymore
  • IQ Waveform Source: file path is relative to the project data director
  • IQ Waveform Source: fixed issue where sample rate was not properly initialized
  • DLL API block: only file path accepted in GUI
  • Matlab API block: default empty value added to String character to avoid null error
  • Fixed Rename function in schematic tree
  • Schematic editor: management of nodes when moving links, connectors and blocks
  • MIX-U-HF model: correction in computation of number of power points

We would like to thank our growing number of customers for their feedback, which helps us to improve VISION with each new release. A more detailed list of all new modules, features, enhancements, drivers and bug fixes can be found in the VISION product manual, available with the software installation program.

Download last version of VISION