Barcelona Design Proves Synthesizable Analog IP with Industry-First Certification Program and Validation in TSMC Silicon

Update: Barcelona has been bought by Synopsys

Newark, Calif., August 8, 2002 -- Barcelona Design Inc. has accomplished two key milestones in proving its synthesizable analog IP solution. The company presented its first certification report at a customer seminar entitled "Powering Innovation with Synthesizable Full-Custom Analog IP," and achieved silicon validation using Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) 0.18-micron process technology.

Previewed at the seminar, Barcelona's groundbreaking certification plan for qualifying synthesizable analog IP, detailed four exhaustive levels of qualifications to an enthusiastic audience. Keynote speaker, Professor Tom Lee, a noted analog expert from the electrical engineering department at Stanford University said, "Barcelona's approach to the certification process is just as innovative as the company's analog IP – it really shows how well they've thought through all of the technology's implications."

PLLs generated using Barcelona's CGS18T Engine were functionally verified in silicon through TSMC's Cybershuttle program for rapid prototyping of silicon devices. Silicon validation through TSMC allows Barcelona to expand its line of products to include higher performance and a wider range of process technologies and options.

"Barcelona's synthesizable analog IP solutions are a unique addition to our industry-leading portfolio of semiconductor IP," said Kurt Wolf, director of IP and Library Alliances at TSMC.

"We are really pleased with the results of our certification and with the opportunity to build a closer relationship with TSMC and its customers," said Amit Nanda, Director of Business Development at Barcelona Design. "Close ties to foundries such as TSMC are essential for us to enable our joint customers to get complex chips to market faster."

Barcelona has demonstrated silicon results and proven functionality in TSMC processes, with PLL circuits that surpass the performance achieved by the wide-range library-based analog IP approach. The company's unique full-custom synthesizable IP technology is altering the landscape of analog and mixed-signal intellectual property by enabling designers to create multiple complex analog functions radically faster and more optimally than before.

About TSMC

TSMC is the world's largest dedicated semiconductor foundry, providing the industry's leading process technology and the foundry industry's largest portfolio of process-proven library, IP, design tools and reference flows. The company operates two advanced 300mm wafer fabs, seven eight-inch fabs and one six-inch wafer fab. TSMC also has substantial capacity commitments at two joint ventures fabs (Vanguard and SSMC) and at its wholly-owned subsidiary, WaferTech. In early 2002, TSMC became the first IC manufacturer to announce a 90 nanometer technology alignment program with its customers. TSMC's corporate headquarters are in Hsin-Chu, Taiwan. For more information about TSMC go to http://www.tsmc.com.

About Barcelona Design, Inc.

Barcelona Design is the leading supplier of synthesizable full-custom analog IP,offering unique semiconductor intellectual property complemented by powerful design technology. Barcelona was founded in 1999 by CTO Dr. Mar Hershenson and Stanford University professor Dr. Stephen Boyd as a result of their research on the application of convex optimization mathematics to analog circuit design. The firm's analog circuit solution enables electronics companies to implement complex intellectual property (IP) instances radically faster than ever before. The company has proven its technology with working silicon, and has demonstrated market acceptance of its innovative approach by winning key customers, including Mitsubishi and ST Microelectronics. Barcelona has secured financing from leading venture capitalists including, Crosslink Capital, Sequoia Capital and Foundation Capital. The firm is headquartered in Newark, CA. For more information please visit www.barcelonadesign.com.