CircuitSim: A Simple FPGA-Based Circuit Simulation Accelerator

Senior thesis for the Bachelor of Arts at Bard College at Simon’s Rock, advised by Prof. Michael Bergman, with Prof. Stephen Edwards as second reader.

The thesis builds on the CircuitSim project: a SPICE-like simulator that parses netlists, linearizes nonlinear and time-varying components, and solves each step’s matrix on a small floating-point Gaussian elimination core on the FPGA. It is validated on circuits from filters and rectifiers up to a transistor-level 555 timer.