Linear networks, or certain types of non-linear networks such as those operating with sufficiently small signals, can be characterized by parameters measured at network terminals (ports). Parameters that are often used in circuit design to characterized a network are Scattering Parameters (or “s-parameters”).
S-parameters are the reflection and transmission coefficients between the incident and reflection waves. They describe completely the behavior of a device under linear conditions at microwave frequency range. Each parameter is typically characterized by magnitude, decibel and phase.
During the signal integrity analysis of electrical systems, e.g., digital PCB systems, it is often necessary to solve the s-parameter description of the circuit (i.e., interconnect and discrete elements). Some reasons to solve for the s-parameter description is to correlate with lab measurements, to have a condensed/simpler representation of a large structure to share among design teams and simulations, to achieve faster simulation in both TD and FD because the interconnect is largely pre-solved, and to generate the data to place into the s-parameter black box models for TD and/or FD simulation
It is often difficult to define the correct parameters for generating S parameters, and then to include them back into an appropriate topology format. In conventional approaches, this is a manual, difficult, and very labor-intensive process. The process is also very time-consuming and prone to errors.
One approach to address this handles parts of the problem as either point tools or provided functionality that cannot be directly used to solve the above defined problem in one single flow. None of the tools currently available in the digital PCB design and analysis industry provide any such functionality in any solution of their solutions.