Computer-aided design tools for data converters-overview

An overview is presented of the state of the art in the field of modeling, simulation and synthesis of data converters. The different approaches towards the modeling of data converter circuits and the simulation of their performance are discussed and compared, from the use of purely electrical simulators to the recent introduction of purely behavioral analog-digital simulators. Behavioral models are presented for data converters considered as a block on their own. The key steps in the automatic synthesis of data converters are discussed and the different synthesis systems presented in the literature are compared and illustrated with some practical design examples.<>