SPICE Simulator Differences
Subtle differences in syntax, behavior, error handling and calculation of data between the simulators must be considered when creating a circuit description.
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SPICE2 simulations will fail if an underscore is used in the Model name. An error message will appear in the output text file generated by the Simulation Debugger: |
- 0*ERROR*: MODEL TYPE IS MISSING
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SPICE2 simulations will fail if an underscore is used in a test circuit and DUT name because the simulation input deck uses the DUT name as a model name. An error message will appear in the output text file: |
- 0*ERROR*: SUBCIRCUIT NODES MISSING
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When attempting a SPICE2 or SPICE3 simulation in the BJT model, if the ideal maximum forward beta parameter BF=0 or the transport saturation current parameter IS=0, the simulation will fail without an error message. (Other parameters may yield similar results when set to zero.) |
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SPICE3 is the only simulator that supports the UCB GaAs model. Refer to "Simulators" in the Nonlinear Device Models, Volume 1 manual for details on the syntax required to simulate this model. |
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HPSPICE is the only simulator that supports the Curtice GaAs model. Refer to "Simulators" in the Nonlinear Device Models, Volume 1 manual for details on the syntax required to simulate this model. |
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When using HPSPICE to simulate a UC Berkeley MOSFET model, specify the ucb option in the .OPTIONS statement of the circuit description: |
- .OPTIONS ucb
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When using SPICE3 with the Simulation Debugger to perform an IC-CAP simulation (as opposed to a manual simulation), an output text file with the following message results: print card ignored since rawfile was produced. To generate a more informative output text file, perform a manual simulation. The manual simulation results in an output text file that includes the requested output data values. |
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