What is in the Silvaco Technical Library?

Reference material for five product lines: TCAD, Analog and Custom Design, Parasitic Extraction, SPICE Simulation, and Variation and Yield Analysis. It holds 49 application notes, 14 presentations, 2 TCAD training guides, published papers in 16 TCAD topics, white papers on variation-aware design, and 566 Simulation Standard articles going back to 1998.

Do I need an account to read these documents?

Not for most of them. Application notes, presentations, training guides and most papers open straight away as PDFs. White papers and Simulation Standard PDFs open a download page instead, where you log in to a Silvaco account or register to get the file. Papers published in outside journals open on the publisher’s site.

What is the difference between an application note and a white paper?

An application note shows how to do one task in one tool, such as writing PCells in JavaScript for Expert or getting the best performance from a Verilog-A model in SmartSpice. A white paper steps back to explain a method and the case for it, as the VarMan papers do for variation-aware design.

Which Silvaco release do these documents apply to?

The release that was current when each one was written. The library keeps older material, and some documents name their release, such as the notes on the SmartSpice 2021 and 2022 baseline releases. Before you rely on a menu path or an option, check your version against Latest Release, which lists the current version of every tool.

Where do I find product manuals rather than reference material?

On the Documentation page. User manuals are in the Silvaco support portal, filed by tool and by release, and each tool installs its own manual with the software. Release notes and installation guides are public. This library holds reference material instead: application notes, papers, presentations and the Simulation Standard journal.

Silvaco Technical Library

The Silvaco Technical Library is where the methods behind the simulation and design tools get written down. Expect application notes, published papers, white papers, presentations, TCAD training guides and the Simulation Standard journal.

Read it if you run TCAD, SPICE simulation, custom layout or parasitic extraction. Or if you're still judging how those tools would handle your own devices.

Browse by product line

Start from the tool you work in.

TCAD

Analog and Custom Design

Parasitic Extraction

SPICE Simulation

Variation and Yield Analysis

White papers3 white papers

Browse by material type

Or pick the format first, whichever tool it covers.

Application notes

White papers

Published papers

Presentations

Training materials

TCAD2 guides

Simulation Standard journal

TCAD566 articles

Featured

The Simulation Standard Technical Journal

Silvaco writes Simulation Standard for process and device engineers. Its online archive goes back to 1998: 566 articles, the newest dated September 3, 2026. This year's issues have tracked GaN power devices and FTCO workflows. Each article page links the PDF of its issue, which you download after registering.

Predictive TCAD Modeling of Normally-Off p-GaN HEMTs for Dynamic RDS(on), Leakage, Breakdown, and ML-Based Design Exploration

September 2026PDF · registration required

Read the latest article Download the September 2026 issue

Questions about the Silvaco Technical Library

Material for TCAD, Analog and Custom Design, Parasitic Extraction, SPICE Simulation, and Variation and Yield Analysis: five product lines in all. Inside are 49 application notes, 14 presentations and two TCAD training guides. You'll also find papers across 16 TCAD topics and five on SPICE, the VarMan white papers, and 566 Simulation Standard articles from 1998 on.

For most of them, no. Application notes, presentations and training guides open as PDFs right away. Papers from outside journals go to the publisher's site. White papers and Simulation Standard issues sit behind a download page: register there, or sign in with your Silvaco account, to get the file.

An application note solves one task in one tool. The notes on scripting Expert PCells in JavaScript and on Verilog-A model performance in SmartSpice are typical. A white paper argues for a method. The VarMan papers, for one, make the case for variation-aware design with fast Monte Carlo and high-sigma analysis.

To whichever release was current when each was written. Older material stays in the library. Some titles carry their release in the name, like the SmartSpice 2021 and 2022 Baseline notes. When an older document gives a menu path or option, check the version you run against Latest Release first.

On the Documentation page. Manuals live in the support portal and need an account; release notes and installation guides don't. The library explains a method and shows it applied. The documentation is for setting the tool up and keeping it running.

Need to know whether a method holds up on your device?

Bring the result you're trying to reproduce, or the structure you want to apply it to. Our technical experts will work through it with you. To test it on your own data, ask for an evaluation.

Licensed and stuck on the software itself? That's a case for Silvaco support, which sits under Support and Downloads.

Talk to our Technical Experts Request an evaluation