Automatic Stability Checking for Large Analog Circuits

Small signal stability has always been an important concern for analog designers. Recent advances such as the Loop Finder algorithm allows designers to detect and identify local, potentially unstable return loops without the need to identify and add breakpoints. However, this method suffers from extremely high time and memory complexity and thus cannot be scaled to very large analog circuits. In this research work, we first take an in-depth look at the loop finder algorithm so as to identify certain key enhancements that can be made to overcome these shortcomings. We next propose pole discovery and impedance computation methods that address these shortcomings by exploring only a certain region of interest in the s-plane. The reduced time and memory complexity obtained via the new methodology allows us to extend automatic stability checking to much larger circuits than was previously possible.