We’re pleased to announce the Sonnet Suites Release 11. Many new features and enhancements have been added to this release, making Sonnet faster, easier to use and more tightly integrated with your high frequency design flow.  This new release introduces ground-breaking features such as Co-calibrated™ Ports and Sonnet Components. For the first time, Release 11 is available for 64-bit computing platforms which breaks all barriers to the traditional memory limits to the problem size.  Please click here for a complete list of the new features.

Still wondering if you should upgrade your old version of Sonnet?  Then you may wish to download and review "Nine Good Reasons to Upgrade to Release 11."

Please contact us for more information.

Perfectly Calibrated Ports and New Design Methodologies

We first started developing planar EM software, nearly 25 years ago. Back then designers would use EM only for individual discontinuities and other very small structures. Later, as computers became faster and designer sophistication grew, entire circuits might be analyzed. The problem that now arose was what to do if the final EM analysis indicates the design will fail? Which component do I make bigger, which do I make smaller? Fast answers were needed, but none were available.

Eventually, some EM tools allowed inclusion of ideal internal components, or perhaps even measured data. This was called “co-simulation” and was introduced with great fanfare. Unfortunately, it never amounted to much more than a bullet on a sales flyer. It did work at low frequency for simple simulations. However, when the co-simulation complexity increased, especially at high frequency, it failed, and sometimes dramatically. It failed because the internal ports (used to insert ideal components and S-parameters) were not perfectly calibrated, if they were even calibrated at all. When there were a lot of internal ports (i.e., a lot of co-simulation complexity), then even small port calibration error forced failure. (Note: Internal ports, or their equivalent, must be used for EM co-simulation, even if hidden behind big fancy equations.)

Now, the port calibration problem is solved. Sonnet Suites Release 11 has an industry first: perfectly calibrated internal ports, possible only in a shielded FFT based EM analysis like Sonnet. We call them “Co-calibrated™” Ports. The problem that some EM researchers vehemently insist can not be solved…is now solved and available to everyone. This changes everything.

Now, we can take any planar circuit and remove all the transistors, resistors and capacitors (and maybe even inductors) and substitute perfectly calibrated ports. Do an EM analysis of the remaining interconnect. After it is complete, populate the circuit with your first guess for the best resistors, capacitors, etc. This can be done completely within your favorite framework, or completely within Sonnet, your choice. The remaining analysis is nearly instantaneous. Change a resistor, and the new results are again nearly instantaneous. Change a capacitor. Change a transistor. Evaluate a hundred designs in a single morning!

How about tuning a transmission line length, say, in a filter or in a matching network? Simply add a pair of Co-calibrated Ports in series with the line (or four Co-calibrated Ports in series with a coupled line, etc.). Now, using your favorite framework (or Sonnet by itself), add a short length of transmission line and optimize or tune the length. You will get circuit theory speed with EM accuracy.

Until now, this kind of power has never been available to the microwave designer. Learn about our new Co-calibrated Ports and let us guide you through the new, incredibly powerful design techniques, and leap light-years ahead of everyone else. It’s actually stupendously easy. Whatever you do, don’t wait!

Dr. James C. Rautio
Founder and President
Sonnet Software, Inc.

Did you know that you can use Sonnet to perform simple Netlist circuit simulations?  This means you can create and simulate, cascaded networks made up of Sonnet projects, S-parameter files and/or simple lumped RLC components.

Literally, thousands of people around the world know Sonnet as one of the most accurate EM simulation software in the market but not many users are even aware that Sonnet (including the free Sonnet Lite™) allows you to create simple netlist projects to run linear circuit theory simulations. This engine simply performs nodal analysis on any netlist created by the user within Sonnet's Netlist user interface.

The true power of this is revealed as you cascade various types of components (Sonnet projects, S-parameter files, RLC elements) to create the network.  You can cascade Sonnet EM projects with other vendor S-parameter files or cascade multiple S-parameter files with multiple Sonnet projects or even include lumped element resistors, capacitors and inductors to the netlist project without ever leaving the Sonnet environment.

To create a Netlist using Sonnet Project Editor, do the following:
1: Click the Edit Project icon from the Sonnet Task Bar. (Drop down menu appears)
2: Select New Netlist from the drop down menu. (New netlist project window appears on your display.)
3: Create the netlist using the user interface.
4: Setup analysis and run the simulation.

To learn more about Netlist and its proper application, please refer to Chapter 13 of Sonnet User's Guide.   Click here to view the User's Guide.

For more on this subject, please contact us at Sonnet Support.

Conventional internal ports in most EM analysis software tools always introduce at least some tiny stray capacitances and inductances which are electromagnetic artifacts of the way internal ports must be created. These tiny port discontinuities cause large errors in certain situations, for example, at the inputs and outputs of power FETs, where they operate with impedances of only a couple of ohms. Most EM analyses make no attempt at all to calibrate internal ports. Now, with Co-calibrated™ Ports, perfectly calibrated groups of internal ports are easily realized. The internal ports for the power FET are analyzed with absolutely all of the port discontinuities exactly removed.   This article describes the potentially limitless applications where these (truly the industry's first) Co-calibrated ports can be used.

This article first appeared in the Microwave Journal.   To view the article, click here.

The current version of the Sonnet Users' Forum is now over two years old and has seen a steady increase in the number of members and threads discussed on the forum.   We have now over 230 members and over 200 topics covering a wide range of questions from Transmission Lines, Coplanar to Microstrip Transitions, Spiral Inductors, Defected Ground Structures, and more...   The Forum is a great place to exchange technical ideas with other users, ask questions and get advice on using Sonnet.   In addition, Sonnet support staff monitors the forum to ensure that you get an answer that is timely and accurate.  Forum membership is open to present Sonnet users and anyone interested in learning more about Sonnet products.  To join the forum, please click here.

Sonnet's all new interface to Agilent EEsof Advanced Design System (ADS) provides a tight integration between Sonnet's EM solver engine and the ADS design environment.  Sonnet's EM analysis engine can run directly from the ADS design environment. Designed from ground-up, this new interface offers a comprehensive user interface to allow full control over the Sonnet's EM analysis engine without ever leaving the ADS design environment.

Import design information from schematics, layouts or existing Momentum designs with a single menu selection.  To work more efficiently, a powerful 3D Viewer is offered and the interface automatically generates Layout Look-alike schematic symbols.  This interface truly allows co-simulation of circuit theory and the best-in-class planar EM solver.  Learn More...

Sonnet Software holds training seminars across America.   Seminars have been held from the Boston area to the Silicon Valley and places in between like Baltimore, Dallas and Phoenix.   We offer on-site training upon request.

Two levels of training seminars are offered.   A hands-on Introductory level course and the Advanced Topics course.   Each session lasts about 3.5 hours each.   The Introductory course takes you through an introduction to the Sonnet 3D Planar electromagnetic (EM) analysis suite using Sonnet Lite. You will also have the opportunity to work through examples of real microwave circuit designs, and in the process understand how to get more out of your Sonnet software than you might have thought possible. Sonnet Lite is available for free download at http://www.sonnetsoftware.com/lite/ . Registration of Sonnet Lite is highly recommended and it is very important since it increases the size of the model you can run during training. Also, the Introductory level attendees will receive a complimentary copy of Sonnet Lite PLUS -- A $495 VALUE!

The Advanced Topics course is aimed at current users of Sonnet Professional, and will highlight advanced features and how they are best employed. The attendees will learn how to use Sonnet's thick metal technology, create 3D planar structures like spiral inductors, utilize Sonnet's powerful Conformal Mesh for efficient analysis of curved and diagonal structures, and learn a variety of tips for reducing simulation model requirements and analysis time. The attendees are not required to complete the introductory Sonnet training course prior to attending this advanced topic course. The attendees should however, have a good understanding of the Sonnet Professional user interface, planar circuit construction and Sonnet ports. Familiarity with basic electromagnetic terms is strongly recommended.

For more information about the dates and location of the training seminars and to register on-line, please visit:
www.sonnetsoftware.com/support/training.asp

Sonnet has totally updated the on-line knowledge base.   It not only sports a fresh new look, but it has the most comprehensive library of topics that are essential to using Sonnet Suite's tools. 

Want to know how to get started in Sonnet?

Want to know what's new in the current release?

Have a question on importing a DXF file?

Want to learn about the Broadband Spice Extractor?

Take the new Knowledge Base for a test drive.   
Click here to go directly to the Online Knowledge Base, now.

Sonnet Software, Inc. will be exhibiting at this year's European Microwave Week 2007 in Munich, Germany.   The Exhibition will be held from 9th - 11th of October, 2007.   Come and see all of the new features included in our new major release of SONNET Suites Professional™, Version 11. We look forward to seeing you at Booth #507!
View Complete Sonnet Tradeshow Schedule