gdsfactoryplus

What it is and what it does

GDSFactory+ is a specialized extension to the GDSFactory library for electronic design automation and photonics. It adds production-ready features including foundry process design kits (PDKs), integrated circuit simulation, and verification tools such as design rule checking (DRC) and layout-versus-schematic (LVS) comparison. The package targets researchers and engineers working on photonic and electronic circuit design who need both simulation and verification capabilities beyond the base GDSFactory toolkit.

The package carries medium install friction due to its 34 runtime dependencies, which include numerical computing (jax, numpy), visualization (bokeh, altair), and specialized EDA tools (klayout, elvis-lvs). It is pinned to Python 3.12 and receives active maintenance. The proprietary license status creates uncertainty around commercial use; the terms are not publicly specified in standard SPDX form.

Use it for:

• Design and verify photonic integrated circuits using foundry-specific design rules and PDKs
• Run circuit simulations and extract netlists for layout verification workflows
• Perform automated DRC checks on GDS layouts against foundry design rule decks
• Compare layouts against schematics (LVS) to detect wiring and connectivity errors
• Integrate with existing GDSFactory-based design flows for end-to-end EDA automation

Worth the install?

AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying

GDSFactory+ extends the GDSFactory library with foundry PDKs, simulation capabilities, and verification tools including DRC and LVS for electronic design automation and photonics workflows.

Yes, if you are actively developing photonic or electronic circuits and need integrated DRC/LVS verification and simulation within a Python workflow. The active maintenance and recent release are positive signals. However, clarify the proprietary license terms with the vendor before production use, and confirm Python 3.12 compatibility with your environment. The large dependency footprint may require careful environment management.

Install

gdsfactoryplus on PyPI

pip install gdsfactoryplus

uv add gdsfactoryplus

poetry add gdsfactoryplus

Installing gdsfactoryplus

Before you install

Medium install friction due to 34 runtime dependencies including compiled packages like jax, klayout, and elvis-lvs. Active maintenance with a release 2 days old. Requires Python 3.12 specifically.

License in practice

License is marked PROPRIETARY AND CONFIDENTIAL with no SPDX identifier. Terms of use and redistribution rights are unclear; review the vendor's licensing terms before integrating into production or commercial workflows.

Quickstart

pip install gdsfactoryplus
import gdsfactoryplus
# Access foundry PDKs, DRC/LVS tools, and simulation features through the gdsfactoryplus API

Requires Python 3.12 exactly (~=3.12.0); incompatible with other Python versions. Large dependency footprint including jax and klayout may require system libraries.

Verify before relying

• Specific API surface and which foundry PDKs are included in version 1.8.20
• Whether proprietary license permits commercial use or requires separate licensing agreement
• Performance characteristics and scalability limits for large layout verification tasks
• Integration requirements with existing GDSFactory installations and version compatibility

Package facts

Evidence: gdsfactoryplus-1.8.20-cp312-cp312-macosx_11_0_arm64.whl; gdsfactoryplus-1.8.20-cp312-cp312-manylinux_2_28_aarch64.whl; gdsfactoryplus-1.8.20-cp312-cp312-manylinux_2_28_x86_64.whl; gdsfactoryplus-1.8.20-cp312-cp312-win_amd64.whl

Keywords: eda, photonics, python, drc, verification, lvs, simulation

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Further reading