Canonical piecewise‐linear analysis: Generalized breakpoint hopping algorithm

As an extension to the breakpoint hopping algorithm developed in reference 1, the algorithm presented in this paper efficiently solves the d.c. problem for finding the d.c. operating point(s) and for tracing the driving‐point and transfer characteristics of an extremely broad class of non‐linear resistive circuits. In particular, bipolar and MOS transistor circuits are included. A user‐friendly C program has been written to implement this algorithm where the input format for describing the circuit is compatible with the SPICE program.