Patent ID: 7024652

Claim:
A method of simulating a circuit having a hierarchical data structure, comprising: representing the circuit as a hierarchically arranged set of branches, including a root branch and a plurality of other branches logically organized in a graph; the hierarchically arranged set of branches including a first branch that includes one or more leaf circuits and a second branch that includes one or more leaf circuits; wherein the first branch and second branch are interconnected in the graph through a third branch at a higher hierarchical level in the graph than the first and second branches; selecting a group of leaf circuits from the first branch and the second branch for simulation, wherein each leaf circuit is represented by a matrix comprising a set of equations; determining a strength of coupling between two or more leaf circuits of the group in accordance with a set of predetermined electrical coupling criteria; if two or more leaf circuits are deemed be strongly coupled, combining the corresponding matrix of each strongly coupled leaf circuit into a combined matrix; performing computation for the two or more strongly coupled leaf circuits in accordance with the combined matrix.