SPC-101 · Digital Design & Silicon
Circuit Simulation & SPICE Analysis
Reason about analog behaviour instead of guessing: build circuits in SPICE, run the analyses that matter, and know when a simulation is lying to you.
Who this course is for
Hardware and embedded engineers who need to reason about analog behaviour rather than guess at it, and digital engineers who have to interface with analog blocks.
Prerequisites
The detailed curriculum behind this course. The library holds the lesson-level curriculum for this ground — every lesson named, in order. Take it as the syllabus map, or work through it yourself with the all-access library.
- Circuit Simulation & SPICE Analysis with LTspice 40 lessons · Beginner to Advanced
Course outline
Day 1 — SPICE fundamentals and DC analysis
- Netlists, nodes, device models and how the solver actually works
- DC operating point: .op and reading the bias report
- DC sweeps and transfer functions: .dc and .tf
- Convergence failures: gmin stepping, source stepping, and what they mean
Day 2 — Transient and AC analysis
- Transient analysis: timestep control, accuracy vs runtime, and simulation artefacts
- RC and RL transients, switch-mode behaviour, startup inrush
- AC analysis: gain and phase, poles and zeros, phase margin
- Compensating a feedback loop, and reading a Bode plot properly
Day 3 — Corners, noise and signal integrity
- Monte Carlo and worst-case corner simulation
- Noise analysis: thermal, shot, flicker — and reading a noise budget
- Parasitics, transmission lines and termination
- Model quality: where vendor models mislead, and how to verify one
What you build
Not exercises with a known answer. Each project is built, measured and defended by you, on hardware and a kernel version you actually run — so the result is something you can take back to your team.
The convergence failure post-mortem
Take a circuit that will not converge, reproduce the failure reliably, and fix it three ways — then explain which fix was legitimate and which merely hid the problem.
You leave witha reproducible failing netlist, three fixes, and a written verdict on each
The stability margin investigation
Design a feedback loop, measure its phase margin in AC, destabilise it deliberately, then compensate it and prove the margin you achieved.
You leave withBode plots before and after compensation with the margin measured and explained
Corner and Monte Carlo budget
Simulate a circuit across corners and a Monte Carlo run, attribute the output spread to specific components, and state which tolerance to tighten.
You leave witha sensitivity ranking backed by simulation, with the recommended tolerance change
Hands-on labs
Labs follow the academy model — 35% principles, 20% guided investigation, 45% engineering studio. Every claim you make in a lab is backed by a trace, a counter or a measurement you captured yourself. How we teach
- Lab: build and simulate a bias network, then explain every entry in the operating-point report
- Lab: reproduce a convergence failure deliberately and fix it three different ways
- Lab: simulate a switching supply's startup and find the inrush that stresses the input
- Lab: measure phase margin on a feedback amplifier and compensate it for stability
- Lab: run a Monte Carlo sweep and identify which component dominates the output spread
Capstone project
Simulate a real circuit you care about — a power supply, a filter, a sensor front end — from DC through transient and AC, across corners and with noise, then write the engineering note you would hand a colleague: what the simulation proves, what it assumes, and where it cannot be trusted.
What you leave with
- Working fluency with DC, transient and AC analyses
- The judgement to know when a simulation result is an artefact
- Corner and Monte Carlo practice for real component tolerances
- A healthy suspicion of vendor models, and a way to check one
How it runs
Every course follows the same model: 35% principles, 20% guided investigation, 45% engineering studio. You leave with working code, raw measurements and an evidence-based report — not a certificate of attendance. Read the methodology or see a full sample lesson.
Material is adapted to your kernel version, hardware and workload before a private delivery. For public cohorts, the environment is provided and configured.
Questions
Who is this course for?
Hardware and embedded engineers who need to reason about analog behaviour rather than guess at it, and digital engineers who have to interface with analog blocks. It sits at practitioner level within the Digital Design & Silicon track.
What do I need to know already?
Specific prerequisites for this course: Basic electronics: Ohm's law, RC circuits, transistors as switches; Comfort reading a schematic; No SPICE experience required. We confirm levels before the cohort starts and adapt if a group is stronger or weaker than expected.
Can this run privately for my team?
Yes. Any course runs on-site at your offices anywhere, or live online for a distributed team, with labs adapted to your hardware and codebase.
What is the difference between in-person and online?
In person is 3 full days with hardware on your desk, capped at 14. Online is 6 half-day sessions across about two weeks so you can keep working, capped at 20, with remote lab access.
Do you invoice companies?
Yes. Purchase orders are accepted and invoicing is available in USD, EUR, GBP, SAR and CAD.
Upcoming dates
| Dates | Where | Seats | Early bird | Regular | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 Nov – 29 Nov 20266 half-days | Gulf bandLive online · 14:00–18:00 GST | 14 of 20 | US$1,580until 23 Oct | ||
| 30 Nov – 7 Dec 20266 half-days | Europe bandLive online · 14:00–18:00 CET | 3 of 20 | US$1,580until 31 Oct | ||
| 30 Nov – 7 Dec 20266 half-days | Americas bandLive online · 13:00–17:00 ET | 8 of 20 | US$1,580until 31 Oct | ||
| 8 Nov – 10 Nov 20263 full days | RiyadhIn person · KAFD Conference Centre | 12 of 14 | — | SAR 9,000 | |
| 15 Nov – 17 Nov 20263 full days | Kuwait CityIn person · Al Hamra Tower | 7 of 14 | US$2,160until 16 Oct | ||
| 22 Nov – 24 Nov 20263 full days | MuscatIn person · Knowledge Oasis Muscat | 12 of 14 | US$2,160until 23 Oct | ||
| 23 Nov – 25 Nov 20263 full days | OttawaIn person · Kanata North Tech Park | 7 of 14 | CAD 2,930until 24 Oct | ||
| 30 Nov – 2 Dec 20263 full days | TorontoIn person · MaRS Discovery District | 12 of 14 | CAD 2,930until 31 Oct | ||
| 7 Dec – 9 Dec 20263 full days | LondonIn person · Shoreditch Works | 7 of 14 | GBP 1,680until 7 Nov | ||
| 7 Dec – 9 Dec 20263 full days | BerlinIn person · Factory Görlitzer Park | 12 of 14 | EUR 1,990until 7 Nov |
Dates shown for the next few months. If nothing fits, tell us where and when — cohorts are added on demand, and private delivery can be scheduled any week.
