Netlist

This article is about the electronics term. For the memory company, see Netlist Inc.

In electronic design, a netlist is a description of the connectivity of an electronic circuit.[1][2] In its simplest form, a netlist consists of a list of the electronic components in a circuit and a list of the nodes they are connected to.[1][3] A network (net) is a collection of two or more interconnected components.

The structure, complexity and representation of netlists can vary considerably, but the fundamental purpose of every netlist is to convey connectivity information. Netlists usually provide nothing more than instances, nodes, and perhaps some attributes of the components involved.[4] If they express much more than this, they are usually considered to be a hardware description language such as Verilog or VHDL, or one of several languages specifically designed for input to simulators or hardware compilers (such as SPICE analog simulation netlists).

  1. ^ a b Holt, Randy. "Schematic vs. Netlist: A Guide to PCB Design Integration". blog.optimumdesign.com. Retrieved 2019-04-03.
  2. ^ "netlist.html". www.vlsiip.com. Retrieved 2019-04-03.
  3. ^ "Netlist File Format" (PDF). www.expresspcb.com. Retrieved August 24, 2021. The netlist is written in a single file, but includes four sections: 1) A file header, 2) A table listing each of the components, 3) A table listing each of the net names, 4) A table listing each of the net connections. Every table entry is written using a single line of text that ends with a CRLF. The fields of the table are separated with Space characters (0x20). String fields begin and end with double quotes. Each of the three tables are terminated by a blank line (CRLF).
  4. ^ "Example Circuits and Netlists | Using The spice Circuit Simulation Program | Electronics Textbook". www.allaboutcircuits.com. Retrieved 2019-04-03.