| As complexity of the packaged electronic system continues to escalate, with clock frequencies extending beyond the 1 gigahertz mark, while signal switching times continue to decrease down to the picosecond regime, accurate modeling of the distributed electromagnetic effects in the power distribution network becomes a crucial issue. This thesis presents an efficient and systematic modeling and simulation methodology to aid the electrical design of complex power distribution networks multigigahertz integrated circuits.;A locally three-dimensional model is used to model correctly the field behavior at irregular discontinuities such as splits, holes, vias, and pins in the power-ground plane structure. The resulting discrete, locally three-dimensional electromagnetic model, is used in conjunction with a passive reduced-order interconnect macromodeling algorithm to generate low-order, multiport macromodels of the power distribution network that can be incorporated in nonlinear circuit simulators such as SPICE. Through a rigorous mathematical and physical investigation of the distributed electromagnetic effects between power-ground planes, reliable estimates for the order of the reduced model are derived for accurate multiport modeling over a given frequency bandwidth. Systematic equivalent circuit synthesis techniques are used to make the model compatible with SPICE and thus facilitate its connection to electronic circuits and other macromodels external to it. The modeling capabilities of the resulting solver are demonstrated by means of numerical studies involving generic printed circuit board structures representative of real-world applications. |
