January 30, 2012 — At the IEEE MEMS 2012 Conference, Coventor Inc., supplier of software for developing micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS), released the 2012 CoventorWare for MEMS design verification and optimization. CoventorWare 2012 offers full 64-bit support, a new hex-dominant extrude meshing capability, a new Python scripting interface for its enhanced suite of MEMS field solvers, and a new intuitive user interface.
New levels of verification performance are needed for the complexity of MEMS devices going into consumer, automotive and industrial applications, said Mike Jamiolkowski, CEO of Coventor. The 2012 update targets shorter MEMS product development cycles, with ease-of-use for MEMS designers and complex modeling capabilities with high processing throughput.
Full 64-bit support has been implemented across the entire Coventor software suite, including the solid modeler, preprocessor and meshing, visualizer and all MEMS solvers. A single installation provides both 32- and 64-bit support that automatically runs in 64-bit mode on 64-bit operating systems.
The CoventorWare 2012 hex-dominant extrusion meshing option suits MEMS structure simulation with high aspect ratio, stacked layers of materials perforated with release etch hole patterns. It automatically generates meshes that have uniform density and quality, reducing the number of mesh elements required for typical MEMS devices by as much as 40%, making it possible to simulate entire multi-axis inertial MEMS sensors with 100s of electrostatic comb fingers.
The Python scripting interface for the CoventorWare 2012 field solvers enables users to automate repetitive tasks and perform more sophisticated types of analysis, such as multi-dimensional parametric studies. Users can set up simulations via the graphical user interface then automatically generate Python scripts, or combine automatically generated scripts to automate series of simulations and post-processing tasks. Python scripts can be executed from the new CoventorWare console, which is a unified graphical interface for accessing all CoventorWare functionality.
CoventorWare performs verification and optimization of device designs from layout through analysis of MEMS-specific multi-physics, such as coupled electro-mechanics, gas damping, anchor losses, thermo-elastic damping (TED), and manufacturing-induced stress gradients. Coventor’s MEMS design automation platform is used for rapid evaluation of design concepts, optimization and MEMS+IC integration.
“CoventorWare 2012…enables us to rapidly examine all aspects of our high-performance resonators in simulation and predict the Q factor due to thermo-elastic damping within 5% of measurement. As a result, we are able to further reduce the size of our quartz crystal and maintain the high Q necessary to interface with standard ICs," commented Silvio Dalla Piazza, vice president of Research & Development at Micro Crystal AG, a subsidiary of The Swatch Group Inc. Switzerland.
MEMS 2012 attendees can see a live demonstration of 2012 CoventorWare at Booth #10, January 30-February 2 in Paris, France.
Coventor Inc. provides automated design solutions for micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS) and virtual fabrication of MEMS and semiconductor devices. More information is available at http://www.coventor.com.