A Continuation Method-based Approach for Measuring the DC Behavior of
Nonlinear Circuits
Abstract
A set of measurement techniques that can find multiple DC
operating points, as well as explore regions of operation that are
unobservable with traditional experimental methods, is described. These
techniques are particularly useful for transistor circuits that exhibit
hysteresis, S- and N-type current-versus-voltage curves and multiple dc
operating points (typically with different physical stability
properties). These techniques are the experimental version of well known
homotopy techniques used in the simulation of dc operating points and
can be applied without access to a numerical simulation model.
Such numerical simulation techniques used to identify and describe such
behaviors are also surveyed and compared to the measurement techniques
described herein.
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