MaxLinear Is Staying at the Forefront of Connectivity Solutions with Cadence

In today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape, staying at the cutting edge is crucial to success. For MaxLinear, bridging the gap between firmware and hardware development has been pivotal. All of the company’s products solve critical communication and high-frequency analysis challenges. To keep them at the forefront of connectivity solutions, MaxLinear is using Cadence tools.

MaxLinear has the unique capability of integrating analog and digital design on the same chip. In the optical infrastructure domain, the MaxLinear team has developed the world’s first fully integrated 5nm CMOS PAM4 DSP. One of their biggest challenges has been bringing consumer access and connectivity products to the market concurrently.

Historically, MaxLinear’s frame of development was gated by that of hardware, often leading to extended timelines and potential misalignments. They recognized the need for user firmware development to be moved earlier into the verification cycle, aiming for a more synchronized evolution between the two. This shift not only enabled them to optimize their timeline, but also ensured a more cohesive product outcome.

Cadence tools back MaxLinear’s full verification flow from simulation to emulation. This starts with Cadence Verisium Manager serving as the centralized hub for their metric-driven verification flow and test scheduling. Jasper Formal is then utilized for equivalent checking and formal proof analysis, ensuring design correctness.

With the cost of silicon going through the roof with FinFET technology, predicting chip functionality has become more critical than ever. Cadence Clarity 3D Solver and EMX Designer provide MaxLinear’s designers insight, allowing them to identify issues early on in the design process and giving them direction on improving their products.

Learn more about how MaxLinear is integrating analog and digital design into one chip and bridging the gap between firmware and hardware development.

“Designed with Cadence” is a series of videos that showcases creative products and technologies that are accelerating industry innovation using Cadence tools and solutions. For more Designed with Cadence videos, check out the Cadence website and YouTube channel.