Designing and fabricating computer chips takes a lot of time and money. Chip designers alleviate as much of this expense as they can by using modeling tools to ensure the chips that reach the fabrication and testing phase have a high likelihood of success. Simulation enables designers to model device operations before sending their designs to fabrication. The capstone team of Phoung Tran, Trammy Nguyen and Stephen Liang developed a software tool to make the modeling of photonic circuits easier, a huge advantage in a young and vital industry.
Working with their clients, Mentor Graphics and Lumerical Solutions, the team developed a “software bridge” between the two companies’ chip development tools. The software bridge links Mentor Graphics’ layout (Pyxis) and verification (Calibre) tools to Lumerical Solutions’ powerful simulation tools. The students put 
a lot of effort into the software interface, working with the GDSII file format and photonics-specific design configurations.
The students were invited by Mentor Graphics to present their work at the Mentor Graphics Corporations User 2 User conference. They had the opportunity to meet professionals working in this area. “We enjoyed some great food in a casual environment while chatting with Mentor’s CEO, Walden Rhines, and lots of industry professionals. It was great to listen to their experiences and thoughts on where the industry is headed.”
Find out more:
Lumerical Solutions
Mentor Graphics
Call for Capstone Proposals