This paper reviews the main last generation symbolic analyzers, comparing them in terms of functionality, pointing out also their shortcomings. The state-of-the-art in this field is also studied, pointing out directions for future research. 1. INTRODUCTION Circuit analysis is a basic milestone for efficient design of integrated circuits. Ever since powerful computers have been available, designers have developed programs to analyze circuits automatically. Today, all electrical engineering professionals and students use electrical simulators (such as HSPICE or ELDO). However, electrical simulators do not cover all the analysis tasks required for integrated circuit design. Essentially, they only serve to verify the performance of previously sized circuits. Among other things, designers must be able to predict the behavior of unsized circuits by tracing relationships among performance figures and design parameters. These relationships may be in the form of transfer functions, poles and ...

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