I am a recent user of the KiCad tool for schematics and I am wondering if it is possible to utilize the gui provided by kiCad to generate the netlist, plus the simulator that is integrated would speed up my work perfectly.
I delved a bit more into the designs and based on the suggestions made by ngspice website, I downloaded the Skywater PDK and I already installed the whole PDK. Instead of running simulations just by passing netlist, I wanted to see if I can follow the same flow in youtube videos of @holger for ngspice in kicad simulations. However, I am a bit confused how to perform some simple simulations using the KiCad tool by assigning the transistor models that are used in this PDK. Also, it is notable that there are not so many documentation available for the merging of this tool and the PDK
Is there any tutorial available to address this issue?
PS: I moved this message from ngspice forum to here so it might be more adequate!
Thanks @holger !
KiCad is a PCB design tool. not an IC design tool. However, simple circuits might well be entered by Eeschema, and simulated with ngspice.
Starting point to create such a setup will be the typical call to a transistor from the PDK, as done in a simple ngspice netlist. Do you have an example circuit, e.g. an inverter, as an ngspice netlist to check this out?
Now, I don’t have any, but I can provide you something. I was trying to change the transistor model in the Astable circuit example that you put in youtube video.
With the current setup of KiCad for the astable it is not straightforwardly possible to use the Skywater PDK. In my view this is the wrong way to start using the PDK.
There are questions you have to answer before starting with KiCad:
What is a PDK?
What does the Skywater PDK offer?
What transistors are offered?
How does a transistor look like which is offered by the PDK?
How do you call such a transistor (in the netlist)?
Which parameters does the user have to set (per instance, i.e. per transistor)?
What is a basic, simple circuit to check out (not an astable!)?
Now to KiCad:
What symbols to use for the transistors?
How to attach the suitable transistor model to the symbol?
How to set the user definable instance parameters (parameters per device)?
How to run a simulation?
If you really want to use the Skywater PDK: that’s CMOS IC design.
Grab a book on CMOS, e.g. R. Jacob Baker: "CMOS - Circuit Design, Layout, and Simulation, IEEE Wiley Interscience.
Thank you for your questions.
Actually, I am looking for mixed-signal circuit (ADCs,…) simulations. Thus, I am looking for some open source libraries and first do some simple simulations. I will check the links you mentioned.
