Electronic Circuit Simulation Research Articles

Measurement and Simulation of the Magnetic Fields from a 555 Timer Integrated Circuit Using a Quantum Diamond Microscope and Finite-Element Analysis

Quantum Diamond Microscope (QDM) magnetic field imaging is an emerging interrogation and diagnostic technique for integrated circuits (ICs). To date, the ICs measured with a QDM were either too complex for us to predict the expected magnetic fields and benchmark the QDM performance, or were too simple to be relevant to the IC community. In this paper, we establish a 555 timer IC as a "model system" to optimize QDM measurement implementation, benchmark performance, and assess IC device functionality. To validate the magnetic field images taken with a QDM, we used a SPICE electronic circuit simulator and Finite Element Analysis (FEA) to model the magnetic fields from the 555 die for two functional states. We compare the advantages and the results of three IC-diamond measurement methods, confirm that the measured and simulated magnetic images are consistent, identify the magnetic signatures of current paths within the device, and discuss using this model system to advance QDM magnetic imaging as an IC diagnostic tool.

Study on Multidegree-of-Freedom Ultrasonic Motor Using Vibration Mode Rotation of Metal Spherical Stator

Most of the multidegree-of-freedom ultrasonic motors (MDOF-USMs) use a spherical rotor, and the design of the stator is restricted due to the use of the resonance mode. (1) Therefore, there is almost impossible to freely design the overall shape, resulting in a complicated structure. (2) To solve such an inconvenience, an MDOF-USM using a metal spherical stator was proposed. The vibration mode rotation on the stator was designed by theoretical analysis of spherical vibration and finite element method analysis. Multilayer piezoelectric actuators (MPAs) were embedded in the sphere to excite the vibration mode. Cylindrical projections were attached to the surface of the stator to magnify the vibration displacement and worked as the driving part. Their effects were evaluated using an electronic circuit simulator method of performance analysis. (3) As a result, two types of vibration mode rotation methods for the 3-DOF rotation were confirmed. It was also confirmed that the rotor covering the outside stator rotates around three axes. However, tiny torque, low power factor, and slow speed were obtained. (4) An MDOF-USM using a spherical stator was realized according to the operating principle. However, since the cause of such a low performance is the excitation method of the sphere and the rotor structure, research for improvement is required in the future.

The Effects of Filter Capacitors on Cable Ripple at Different Sections of the Wind Farm Based Multi-Terminal DC System

In most DC power systems, power electronic devices can introduce ripple content into the DC grid, where large input ripple currents on the DC link can have a negative influence. Under these circumstances, DC side filters play an important role in the reduction of ripple content. In this paper, based on a full detailed closed loop model of the entire offshore wind farm multi-terminal DC network, the effect of filter capacitors connected at different sections of the system on the limitation of the AC ripple content, particularly in the DC cables, is studied. In contrast to other work on HVDC for offshore wind, where simplified or equivalent circuits are mainly used while concentrating on the power and control system, this study can be regarded as the specific study of filter capacitors operating within a detailed system model. Utilising the advantages of PLECS, which is a highly effective tool in the simulation of power electronic circuits, no small-signal or simplified equivalent models are used in the system, and the entire study is based on detailed and accurate models of the semiconductor elements and transformers, which help to provide more realistic simulation results and a better understanding of the system. Another novel point in this paper is a new concept, relative losses, which is proposed to simplify extensively the calculation of losses in this research. Finally, the size of the filter capacitors at different sections of the system under different situations is suggested.

Ringed Electrode Configuration Enhances the Sensitivity of QCM Humidity Sensor Based on Lignin Through Fringing Field Effect

This paper presents a new, effective, and facile method to enhance the humidity sensitivity of lignin-based QCM sensor through fringing field effect. The biodegradable and renewable lignin was deposited on the surface of metal electrode as humidity-sensitive material. The microscopic morphology, hydrophilic groups, and water contact angle of the lignin sample were characterized. Then, the humidity-sensing performances of the lignin-based QCM sensors with symmetric and ringed electrode configurations were investigated through the oscillating circuit method. The experimental results showed that the humidity sensitivity of the ringed electrode QCM (61 Hz/%RH) is higher than that of the symmetric electrode QCM in the range of 11.3%-97.3% RH. Moreover, the ringed electrode QCM based on lignin exhibited low humidity hysteresis (~6.2% RH), good logarithmic relationship, rapid response/recovery time (28/5 s), excellent repeatability, and long-term stability. In addition, the Langmuir adsorption isotherm model and the Gibbs free energy were used to analyze the adsorption of water molecules on the surface of the lignin film. Finally, the finite element method (FEM) was used to analyze the fringing field distributions of the QCMs with symmetric and ringed electrode. The sensitivity enhancement mechanism of the lignin-based QCM humidity sensor with ringed electrode configuration was discussed through the equivalent electronic circuit analysis and simulation methods. This work demonstrates that the lignin is a potential candidate material for humidity detection, and it is an excellent method to improve the humidity sensitivity of QCM sensors through optimizing the electrode structure configuration using fringing field effect.

Characterization of dynamics and information processing of integrate-and-fire neuron models

The integrate-and-fire (IF) model is the most widely used simple spiking neuron model in neuromorphic computing as well as in artificial neural network algorithms. Here, we characterize the dynamics and information processing of IF models using computer simulations and information-theoretic approaches. Neural dynamics is analysed by means of the time evolution of axonal spikes and the phase-plane portrait, and the coding efficiency of a neuron is estimated by the ratio of mutual information of input and output spikes for the binary hidden neural state. The exponential IF model exhibits higher similarity to the biophysical model in both neural dynamics and coding, compared to other IF type models. Electronic circuit simulations based on the simulation programme with integrated circuit emphasis reveal the nonlinear current–voltage characteristics of the IF neuron models and criticalities in the neural networks. Relevant information-theoretic measures indicate that the computational capabilities of neuromorphic devices largely depend on the neuron models. Such an approach combined with the analysis of neural dynamics provides a useful tool to investigate underlying dynamics of mathematical neuron models; it is applicable to the design and evaluation of neuromorphic models.

Comparison and Discussion of the Functions of Logisim and Multisim

Nowadays, microelectronics and integrated circuit technology are developing rapidly, this situation can not be separated from the support of electronic circuit simulation software. Circuit simulation software is widely used in research and work, such as Matlab, which is widely used in digital signal processing, Protues, which is used in making PCB board, and AltiumDesigner, which is related to CAD technology. This paper first introduces Logisim and Multisim simulation software for circuit related experiments, which are used to assist students in courses and experiments. Then, two experiments are designed to evaluate these two software and analyze their advantages in the process of using them. According to the process and results of the experiment, Logisim is suitable for college students who have just come into contact with professional knowledge to learn circuit and computer related theories, and complete most of the homework assigned by teachers; While Multisim is more suitable for students with a certain knowledge base to expand the understanding of theory and simplify the experimental process. Experienced students can also choose this software after participating in the competition to improve the efficiency and level of their entries.

The quantum sine-Gordon model with quantum circuits

Analog quantum simulation has the potential to be an indispensable technique in the investigation of complex quantum systems. In this work, we numerically investigate a one-dimensional, faithful, analog, quantum electronic circuit simulator built out of Josephson junctions for one of the paradigmatic models of an integrable quantum field theory: the quantum sine-Gordon (qSG) model in 1+1 space-time dimensions. We analyze the lattice model using the density matrix renormalization group technique and benchmark our numerical results with existing Bethe ansatz computations. Furthermore, we perform analytical form-factor calculations for the two-point correlation function of vertex operators, which closely agree with our numerical computations. Finally, we compute the entanglement spectrum of the qSG model. We compare our results with those obtained using the integrable lattice-regularization based on the quantum XYZ chain and show that the quantum circuit model is less susceptible to corrections to scaling compared to the XYZ chain. We provide numerical evidence that the parameters required to realize the qSG model are accessible with modern-day superconducting circuit technology, thus providing additional credence towards the viability of the latter platform for simulating strongly interacting quantum field theories.

Solving the circuit equations using tensor decompositions

Tensor decomposition methods are widely used for solving high-dimensional and multi-dimensional problems. These approaches have a huge potential for reducing computational costs in the simulation of electronic circuits and in the CAD systems for electronics. Simulation of modern radio-frequency (RF) circuits, especially for RF integrated circuits, is one of the areas of extensive scientific research and development. The main problem of analysis methods for circuit design of RF electronics is the significant computational costs associated with the high dimensions to be solved. This paper shows that the computational costs of circuit design are largely determined by the costs of solving a system of linear algebraic equations (SLAE). The problems of the solving of SLAE are indicated in the paper. Further development of methods for solving and reducing computational costs requires the use of new approaches, one of which is proposed in this paper. The article presents the developed algorithm for converting a second-order matrix into a higher-order tensor. In this paper algorithms and software tools for tensor decompositions, as well as methods for solving SLAE in the representation of equations in tensor format are investigated. The results of numerical experiments and the results of comparison with traditional methods are presented.

Accurate time-domain simulation of power electronic circuits✰

Modern power electronic circuits contain numerous switches driven by high frequency controllers and can cause discontinuities in time-domain simulation methods. This paper presents numerical problems resulting from discontinuities when simulating power electronic circuits. Limitations in existing methods are analyzed. Three new methods are proposed to improve accuracy and computational performance.

Harmonics elimination for DC/DC power supply based on piezoelectric filters

This research presents a study, modelling and simulation of the piezoelectric material work as filters (piezoelectric filter) used to eliminate the harmonics in power electronic circuits, high order harmonics are generating due to the high switching frequencies and circuit equipment, detailed simulation is achieved for the piezoelectric filter tested in full-bridge DC/DC converter circuit with resistive load works as dc power supply (12 to 48 volt). As a result, the uses of piezoelectric filters have a great impact on harmonics elimination, which leads to reduce the overall total harmonic distortion leads to increase the efficiency, as well as the output voltage from the dc power supply remain constant by varying the load resistance over a wide range. The dc power supply circuit including the piezoelectric filter has been simulated using PSIM (V9.1) power electronic circuit simulation software.

Improved Modeling of a Multi-Level Inverter for TACS to Reduce Computational Time and Improve Accuracy

A modeling of a turbo air compressor system (TACS), with a multi-level inverter for driving variable speed, combining an electrical model of an electric motor drive system (EMDS) and a mechanical model of a turbo air compressor, is essential to accurately analyze dynamics characteristics. Compared to the mechanical model, the electrical model has a short sampling time due to the high frequency switching operation of the numerous power semiconductors inside the multi-level inverter. This causes the problem of increased computational time for dynamic characteristics analysis of TACS. To solve this problem, the conventional model of the multi-level inverter has been proposed to simplify the switching operation of the power semiconductors, however it has low accuracy because it does not consider pulse width modulation (PWM) operation. Therefore, this paper proposes an improved modeling of the multi-level inverter for TACS to reduce computational time and improve the accuracy of electrical and mechanical responses. In order to verify the reduced computational time of the proposed model, the conventional model using the simplified model is compared and analyzed using an electronic circuit simulation software PSIM. Then, the improved accuracy of the proposed model is verified by comparison with the experimental results.

Development and Analysis of Electronic and Electrical Experiment Simulation Technology

The development of electronic and electrical technology is based on the tedious experiment of electronic and electrical engineering, which is operated by electronic working platform. EWB (electronic workbench) is a kind of electronic circuit simulation software developed by Canadian interactive image technology company in 1988. The software design function is perfect, the operation interface is friendly, the image is very easy to master. The software core of EWB is Spice3f5, which enhances its simulation ability in digital and analog mixed signals. The development of EWB not only solves the problem of time-consuming, laborious and expensive in electronic circuit design, but also brings great convenience and benefits to electronic product designers. They can use computer-aided design to carry out circuit simulation, which can effectively save development time and cost. Only through continuous experiments can we verify the reliability of the circuit and improve the circuit design, but in the specific experimental operation, some factors often lead to the failure of the experiment, which not only increases the cost of the electronic and electrical experiment, but also destroys the original equipment, and also has certain risks. Therefore, to solve this problem, the simulation technology has been widely used in the electronic and electrical experiment. Moreover, the convenient operation mode of EWB, the intuitive circuit diagram and the display form of simulation analysis results are also very suitable for the auxiliary teaching of electronic course, which is conducive to improving students' understanding and mastery of theoretical knowledge and cultivating students' innovation ability. Therefore, many universities in the world have brought EWB into the teaching of electronic courses. This paper mainly describes the application value and specific application mode of simulation technology in electronic and electrical experiment, in order to further expand the application scope of simulation technology in electronic and electrical experiment. The component library of EWB provides thousands of circuit components, including passive components and active components, analog components and digital components, discrete components and integrated components, as well as new or expanded existing component libraries. EWB also provides a complete set of virtual instruments, such as oscilloscope, signal generator, multimeter, baud chart instrument, spectrum analyzer and logic analyzer. Using these components and instruments to simulate electronic circuits is just like doing experiments in a laboratory. It is very real. Moreover, it is not necessary to worry about damaging the instruments and components, or to be at a loss for outdated instruments and insufficient measurement accuracy. This paper first analyzes the advantages of simulation technology in the application of electronic and electrical experiment teaching, and then analyzes the experimental means and application practice of simulation technology in detail[1].

Electrothermal Modeling of the Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT) Using PSpice: Application to DC–DC Converter

In this paper, an improved electrothermal model of power IGBT was developed. The main local physical effects were taken into consideration. The suggested model is able to address the electrical and thermal effects. The model was confirmed through a comparison with other models having close characteristics for different circuits (DC–DC converter, turn-on and turn-off) and different temperatures. The IGBT model was implemented in the PSpice circuit simulation platform using PSpice standard components and analog behavior modeling (ABM) blocks. The IGBT switching performance was investigated under influence of different circuit elements (such as stray inductance, gate resistance and temperature) in order to study and estimate the on-state and switching losses pre-requisite for the design of various converter and inverter topologies. The comparison shows that these models are simple, tunable with the electric circuit software simulator. They are more capable of predicting the main circuit parameters needed for power electronic design. The transient thermal responses were demonstrated for the single pulse and repeat modes. The achieved results show that our model is suitable for full electrothermal simulations of power electronic circuits.

A new multistable jerk system with Hopf bifurcations, its electronic circuit simulation and an application to image encryption

In this work, we announce a new 3-D jerk system and show that it is chaotic and dissipative with the calculation of the Lyapunov exponents of the system. By performing a detailed bifurcation analysis, we observe that the new jerk system exhibits Hopf bifurcations. It is also shown that the new jerk system exhibits multistability behaviour with two coexisting chaotic attractors. An electronic circuit simulation of the jerk system is built using Multisim. Finally, we design a new approach to image encryption as a cryptographic application of our chaotic jerk system. The simulation outcomes prove the efficiency of the proposed encryption scheme with high security.

A new multistable jerk system with Hopf bifurcations, its electronic circuit simulation and an application to image encryption

A new multistable jerk system with Hopf bifurcations, its electronic circuit simulation and an application to image encryption

Design and implementation of electronic circuit virtual laboratory based on virtual reality technology

Virtual reality technology has been applied in virtual labs and remote experiment teaching. This paper designs an electronic circuit virtual laboratory based on virtual reality technology, and relevant experimental teaching content. The system uses Unity 3D and 3ds max tools to build a three-dimensional model of general instrumentation, electronic components, and laboratory scenes in electronic circuit experiments. The C# is used to develop general virtual instrumentation functions and electronic circuit simulation, the electronic circuit virtual reality laboratory based on VR equipment was realized. We have developed VR electronic circuit virtual laboratory on PC and web. Students can use VR electronic circuit virtual laboratory to learn basic electronic circuit knowledge and carry out electronic circuit virtual experiment immersively.

Design, simulation and experimentation of an electro-dynamic system for semi-active control of vibrations

Previous work regarding the vibration transmissibility control, using electrodynamic actuators, based on semi-active solutions, proved the efficiency of this strategy. The studied system is a simple, one degree of freedom system. The system integrates mechanical components for passive isolation and an electrodynamic actuator for active and semi-active control of vibrations. The most efficient solution is to design an accurate model and simulate strategies on it. Two strategies are involved: feed-forward control with an accelerometer placed on the mobile mass for acceleration detection and the second one is based on movement detection using the self-induced current due to the actuator's coil movement in a magnetic field. A detailed simulation model, using a software designed for electronic circuit simulation and experimental testing are performed in both cases. The model should be improved for considering the complex impedance of the actuator (mechanically but also electrically), this being the subject of future works.

A hybrid circuits-cloud: Development of a low-cost secure cloud-based collaborative platform for A/D circuits in virtual hardware E-lab

The development and use of cloud based tools in virtual learning has been increasing in recent years. Electronic Design Automation (EDA) or Electronic Computer-Aided Design (ECAD) is one of the most important tools that are used for electronic circuit design and simulation. There is a number of available cloud based EDA tools that are used in industry and educational institutions. This paper introduces a hybrid-circuits cloud-based platform that enables students to design, simulate, and model both analog and digital electronic systems. Circuits-cloud became one of the top best electronic circuit cloud tools, it is ranked as number one in Google search for the “top list of electronic circuit cloud tools”. It integrates the Internet of Things (IoT) and cloud based tools by adding sensors, actuators, and interact with the physical design in the laboratory in the real time. This platform acts as a comprehensive laboratory device to capture components, draw circuits, integrate different components, apply different inputs, simulate, measure, and detect any defect or heated elements. This cloud-based platform introduces an integrated environment for digital, analog and IoT modeling. The platform has a laboratory device that can be integrated into circuits level with the cloud system to test the physical circuits in real-time remotely. This enables in-browser cloud platform for schematic capture, circuit simulation, and emulation. As a testimony of the platform of the modeling and simulation discipline, a list of about 100 types of equipment?s were included and tested. The cloud service is provided by Amazon Web Services (AWS) with high data protection service, AWS also provides encryption, key management, and threat detection that continuously monitors and protects user accounts and workloads. It is estimated to be able to serve approximately 2000 active students and tutors on a monthly average. This platform can be used in distance and blended learning as well.

GPU Accelerated Nonlinear Electronic Circuits Solver for Transient Simulation of Systems with Large Number of Components

GPU cards have been used for scientific calculations for many years. Despite their ever-increasing performance, there are cases where they may still have problems. This article addresses possible performance and memory issues and their solutions that may occur during GPU calculations of iterative algorithms. Specifically, the article focuses on the optimization of transient simulation of extra-large highly nonlinear time-dependent circuits in SPICE-like electronic circuit simulator core enhanced with NVIDIA/CUDA (Compute Unified Device Architecture) interface and iterative Krylov Subspace methods with emphasis on improved accuracy. The article presents procedures for solving problems that may occur during this integration and negatively affect either the simulation speed or the accuracy of the calculation. Finally, a comparison of the implementation of an iterative calculation procedure with the use of GPU cards, calculation by the direct method and calculation on the CPU only is presented.

Analog Electronic Circuits to Model Cooperativity in Hill Process

In the field of computational biology, electronic modeling of bio-cellular processes is in vogue for about a couple of decades. Fast, efficient and scalable electronic mimetics of recurrently found bio-chemical reactions are expected to provide better electronic circuit simulators that can also be used as bio-sensors or implantable biodevices at cellular levels. This paper presents some possible electronic circuit equivalents to model dynamics of one such bio-chemical reaction commonly involved in many bio-cellular processes, specifically pathways in living cells, known as the Hill process. The distinguishing feature of this process is cooperativity which has been modeled in silicon substrate using a pair of transistors, one transistor driving current in the other the same way ligand binding to one receptor site controls the binding affinity of the other receptor sites. Two possible circuits have been proposed and compared to electronically model cooperativity of a Hill reaction. The main idea is to exploit the natural analogies found between structures and processes of a bio-cell and electronic transistor mechanics, to efficiently model fundamental bio-chemical reactions found recurring in bio-processes. These circuits can then be combined and rearranged quickly to form larger, more complex bio-networks, thus mitigating the intricacies involved in modeling of such systems.