New features and enhancements improve RF and microwave design engineering productivity
 El Segundo, California
– January 26, 2017 - Version 13, the first major update in 2017 to
NI AWR Design Environment, has been released.
V13 provides key new capabilities and major enhancements to better address the design challenges associated
with highly-integrated RF/microwave components commonly found in communications, phased-array radar
and other electronic systems.
NI AWR Design Environment V13 introduces numerous innovations in design flow management and simulation,
supporting monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC), RFIC, multi-chip module and printed circuit
board (PCB) technologies. Simulation capabilities have been expanded within the Microwave Office APLAC
harmonic balance (HB) and Visual System Simulator™ (VSS) system-level simulation engines and speed improvements
have been made to both its AXIEM planar 3D and Analyst™ arbitrary 3D electromagnetic (EM) solvers.
Design automation and simulation have been enhanced for multi-chip modules, with greater support
for multi-technology process design kits (PDKs) within a single project, new support for OpenAccess
(schematic) databases and APLAC co-simulation support for Spectre RFIC netlists, as well as simplified
EM layout and port creation. For PCB design, a new import wizard supports ODB++ and IPC2851 databases
to provide interoperability with mainstream third-party PCB layout tools. New layout editing capabilities
have also been added, along with simplified multi-technology management. Furthermore, the new EM Socket
II architecture within V13 offers improved third-party EM simulation flows for AWR Connected™ partner
solutions from ANSYS, CST and Sonnet, giving designers access to alternate EM simulators within NI AWR
Design Environment.
V13 addresses specific system requirements with highly accurate simulated RF front-end component
measurements provided through new communication libraries for 5G candidate modulation waveforms and
phased-array behavioral model enhancements. RF power amplifier designers can now use the system-level
load-pull analysis in VSS to generate contours for communication performance metrics such as adjacent
channel power ratio (ACPR) and error vector magnitude (EVM). RF filter designers can take advantage
of new capabilities in the iFilter™ synthesis tool to accelerate their product development and designers
of passive and control components such as transformers, couplers and mixers can benefit from the new
synthesis capabilities and powerful new optimization methods using proprietary genetic algorithms for
more robust designs.
In addition to design automation and simulation enhancements, user support has been expanded to bring
new insight to the software in terms of interactive guided help and knowledge base content.
V13 New and Expanded Features at a Glance
Design Environment and Automation
- Advanced multi-technology project support
- New optimization methods
- iFilter adds transmission zeros
- OpenAccess schematic import/export
- Graph marker improvements
- Marching waveforms for HB/transient analysis
- Additional synthesis wizards (passives and mixers)
Circuit/System Simulation and Models/Libraries
- Transient and transient-assisted HB (TAHB) improvements
- Expanded circuit envelope simulation
- Passive model enhancements
- Spectre netlist co-simulation
- New 5G candidate waveform library
- New system load pull (ACPR, EVM) and nested source/load pull
- Enhanced LTE-A, radar and phased array model libraries
EM Simulation and Modeling
- Simulation speed and solver improvements (meshing, ports and matrix solve)
- Improved AFS algorithms
- Improved EM ports
- Analyst surface roughness model
- New 3D editor commands
- Enhanced bi-directional links to HFSS, CST and Sonnet
Physical Design and Layout
- PCB layout import (ODB++ and IPC2851)
- Expanded shape preprocessor modifier
- Enhanced layout editing
User Support
- New guided help (GH) interactive documentation
- Enhanced online knowledge base (KB)
For more detail on NI AWR Design Environment V13 visit awrcorp.com/whatsnew, which provides documentation covering the hundred plus enhancements/additions
to this latest release.
Pricing and Availability
NI AWR Design Environment V13 is available immediately for current customers. Contact your local
NI AWR software representative for more information, as well as licensing and pricing details.
About NI AWR Software
The NI AWR Design Environment software
portfolio includes RF/microwave electronic design automation (EDA) tools such as Visual System Simulator™
for system design, Microwave Office/Analog Office for microwave/RF circuit design, and AXIEM and Analyst™
for electromagnetic analysis. NI AWR software tools help design engineers to dramatically reduce development
time and cost for components, circuits, systems and subsystems employed in wireless, high-speed wired,
broadband, aerospace and defense, and electro-optical applications. Readers can learn more at
ni.com/awr.
About National Instruments
Since 1976, NI has made it possible for engineers and scientists to solve the world's greatest engineering
challenges with powerful, flexible technology solutions that accelerate productivity and drive rapid
innovation. Customers from a wide variety of industries–from healthcare to automotive and from consumer
electronics to particle physics–use NI's integrated hardware and software platform to improve the world
we live in.
Contact:
Sherry Hess Vice President of Marketing AWR Group, NI (310) 726-3000
sherry.hess@ni.com
Posted January 27, 2017
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