A VHDL-based methodology for the design and verification of pipeline A/D converters

This paper proposes a methodology for designing sampled-data mixed-signal circuits by using VHDL-based behavioural descriptions. The goal is using a VHDL description of both the analog and the digital part, to simulate and verify the entire mixed-signal system, as well as to facilitate the synthesis and fault simulation of the digital part. As an example of the proposed methodology, a digitally corrected/calibrated pipeline A/D converter (ADC) has been designed. Among other aspects of general interest, we show how analog dynamic effects are incorporated in order to obtain accurate high level simulations. Results from simulations carried out using QuickHDL in MentorGraphics prove the feasibility of the approach and are in agreement with those obtained experimentally from a silicon prototype