Design principles for low-voltage low-power analog integrated circuits

In this paper it is argued that there are good reasons to choose current as the information-carrying quantity in the case of low-voltage low-power design constraints. This paper focuses on the influence of the transfer quality on that choice. To obtain power-efficient transfer quality, indirect feedback is shown to be a good alternative to traditional feedback techniques.     

Bulk-driven floating-gate and bulk-driven quasi-floating-gate techniques for low-voltage low-power analog circuits design

In this paper, novel non-conventional techniques,¹ named by the author of this paper “bulk-driven floating-gate (BD-FG)” MOS transistor (MOST) and “bulk-driven quasi-floating-gate (BD-QFG) MOST” for low-voltage (LV) low-power (LP) analog circuit design are presented. These novel techniques appear as a good solution to merge the advantages of floating-gate (FG) and quasi-floating-gate (QFG) with the advantages of bulk-driven (BD) technique and suppress their disadvantages. Consequently, the transconductance and transient frequency of BD-FG and BD-QFG MOSTs approach the conventional gate driven (GD) MOST values. Furthermore, a novel LV LP class AB second generation current conveyor based on BD-FG MOST is presented in this paper as an example. The supply voltage is only ±0.4 V with a rail-to-rail voltage swing capability and total power consumption of mere 10 μW. PSpice simulation results using the 0.18 μm P-well CMOS technology are included to confirm the attractive properties of these new techniques.     

A design for testability approach for nano-CMOS analogue integrated circuits

Dependability requirements must be considered from the beginning when designing safety-critical systems. Therefore, testing should even be considered earlier, intertwined with the design process. The process of designing for better testability is called design for testability (DfT). This article presents two designs for testability and fault diagnosis techniques using a new design analogue checker circuit in order to improve the testability and the diagnosability of nano-CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor) analogue circuits used in safety-critical applications based on the system-on-chip (SoC) approach design. The testing techniques presented in this work can be done during and after the system fabrication. The checker is implemented in full-custom 65 nm Complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (CMOS) technology with low supply voltage and small-size capabilities. SPICE simulations of the post-layout extracted CMOS checker, which include all parasitic, are used to validate the technique and demonstrate the acceptable electrical behaviour of the checker.     

模拟集成电路模块版图的生成系统

介绍了模拟集成电路模块版图的开发系统.系统用高效的过程化版图描述语言构造模拟模块,编译产生与工艺及应用无关的模块版图生成器.系统的网络识别和模块内布线功能自动完成模块网络的完全连通,基于优选的电气特性驱动版图生成,提高设计可靠性.该系统已辅助设计出多个高性能集成运算放大器、模拟开关等芯片版图.     

A performance-driven placement tool for analog integrated circuits

This paper presents a new approach toward performance-driven placement of analog integrated circuits. The freedom in placing the devices is used to control the layout-induced performance degradation within the margins imposed by the designer's specifications. This guarantees that the resulting layout will meet all specifications by construction. During each iteration of the simulated annealing algorithm, the layout-induced performance degradation is calculated from the geometrical properties of the intermediate solution. The placement tool inherently handles symmetry constraints, circuit loading effects and device mismatches. The feasibility of the approach is demonstrated with practical circuit examples     

Technology for the design of low-power circuits

Operation of integrated circuits at micropower levels requires transistors with adequate current gain at collector currents of 1 /spl mu/A and less and resistors of the order of 1 M/spl Omega/ within reasonable areas. Factors affecting current gain at low currents are discussed and design criteria presented that optimize gain at low collector current. A benefit of micropower operation is low-current noise. Factors tending to optimize noise performance are discussed. In order to obtain voltage gain at low collector current, high values of load resistance are required. Both passive and active loads suitable for incorporation in micropower integrated circuits are discussed.     

Efficient design centering of analog integrated circuits using binary search

This paper introduces a procedure for automatically design centering analog integrated circuits called the divide-and-focus method (DAF). DAF is a simple, efficient, and effective algorithm for design centering complex circuits, even if the performance of the original nominal design is poor. DAF uses a binary search of each dimension of parameter space to rapidly focus on regions promising high yield. DAF was applied to a third-order elliptic CMOS transconductance-C integrated circuit filter derived from an automated layout and containing 126 nodes and 319 MOSFETS. Using five key capacitor values as design centering parameters, DAF improved yield in the presence of parasitic capacitance (as extracted from the layout) by a factor of 19 from an initial value of 4% to a final value of 76%. By relaxing constraints on component value symmetry, DAF found a higher yield than was possible when maintaining symmetry, where DAF achieved a yield of 34%. Since DAF uses Monte Carlo analysis to estimate circuit yield, its execution time can be further reduced by exploiting the parallelism implicit in Monte Carlo techniques. Using a local area network of 10 workstations similar to those available at most engineering sites, DAF completed the design centering of the filter 7.4 times faster than when using a single workstation.Supported in part by a Research Initiation grant (CCR-9111941) from the National Science Foundation.Supported in part by a grant (MIP-9121360) from the National Science Foundation.     

GaAs low-power integrated circuits for a high-speed digital signalprocessor

A high-speed 4-bit ALU, 4×4-bit multiplier, and 8×8-bit multiplier/accumulator have been implemented in low-power GaAs enhanced/depletion E/D direct-coupled FET logic (DCFL). Circuits are fabricated with a high-yield titanium tungsten nitride self-aligned gate MESFET process. The 4-bit ALU performs at up to 1.2 GHz with only 131-mW power dissipation. The multiplication time for the 4×4-bit array multiplier is 940 ps, which is the fastest multiplication time reported for any semiconductor technology. The 8×8-bit two's complement multiplier/accumulator uses 4278 FETs (1317 logic gates) and exhibits a multiplication time of 3.17 ns. the fastest yet reported for a multiplier of this type. Yield on the best wafer for the 4×4-bit and 8×8-bit circuits is 94 and 43%, respectively. A digital arithmetic subsystem has been demonstrated, consisting of the 8×8-bit multiplier/accumulator, two of the 4-bit ALUs, three logical multiplexers, and a logical demultiplexer. The subsystem performs arithmetic and logic functions required in signal processing at clock rates as high as 325 MHz     

Vertically integrated SOI circuits for low-power and high-performance applications

Vertical integration offers numerous advantages over conventional structures. By stacking multiple-material layers to form double gate transistors and by stacking multiple device layers to form multidevice-layer integration, vertical integration can emerge as the technology of choice for low-power and high-performance integration. In this paper, we demonstrate that the vertical integration can achieve better circuit performance and power dissipation due to improved device characteristics and reduced interconnect complexity and delay. The structures of vertically integrated double gate (DG) silicon-on-insulator (SOI) devices and circuits, and corresponding multidevice-layer (3-D) SOI circuits are presented; a general double-gate SOI model is provided for the study of symmetric and asymmetric SOI CMOS circuits; circuit speed, power dissipation of double-gate dynamic threshold (DGDT) SOI circuits are investigated and compared to single gate (SG) SOI circuits; potential 3-D SOI circuits are laid out. Chip area, layout complexity, process cost, and impact on circuit performance are studied. Results show that DGDT SOI CMOS circuits provide the best power-delay product, which makes them very attractive for low-voltage low-power applications. Multidevice-layer integration achieves performance improvement by shortening the interconnects. Results indicate that up to 40% of interconnect performance improvements can be expected for a 4-device-layer integration.     

Potential of MOS technologies for analog integrated circuits

Reviews the rapid progress in MOS analog circuit techniques over the past three years, and attempts to estimate the near-term attainable characteristics of MOS LSI circuits which incorporate both analog and digital functions.     

MOSFET thermal noise modeling for analog integrated circuits

The effects of device geometry, oxide thickness, and bias condition on the thermal noise of MOSFET's are investigated. The experimental results show that the conventional MOSFET thermal noise models do not accurately predict the thermal noise of MOSFET's. A model that is capable of predicting the thermal noise of both long and short channel devices in both the triode and saturation regions is presented. This model, which can be easily implemented into existing circuit simulators such as SPICE, has been verified by a wide variety of measurements     

A manufacturing process for analog and digital gallium arsenide integrated circuits

A process for manufacturing small-to-medium scale GaAs integrated circuits is described. Integrated FET's, diodes, resistors, thin-film capacitors, and inductors are used for monolithic integration of digital and analog circuits. Direct implantation of Si into > 10⁵Ω.cm resistivity substrates produces n-layers with ± 10-percent sheet resistance variation. A planar fabrication process featuring retained anneal cap (SiO2), proton isolation, recessed Mo-Au gates, silicon nitride passivation, and a dual-level metal system with polyimide intermetal dielectric is described. Automated on-wafer testing at frequencies up to 4 GHz is introduced, and a calculator-controlled frequency domain test system described. Circuit yields for six different circuit designs are reported, and process defect densities are inferred.     

Distributed integrated circuits: an alternative approach tohigh-frequency design

Distributed integrated circuits are presented as a methodology to design high-frequency communication building blocks. Distributed circuits operate based on multiple parallel signal paths working in synchronization that can be used to enhance the frequency of operation, combine power, and enhance the robustness of the design. These multiple signal paths usually result in strong couplings inside the circuit that necessitate a treatment spanning architecture, circuits, devices, and electromagnetic levels of abstraction     

A new, precharged, low-power logic family for GaAs circuits

We present a new precharged, low-power logic family in GaAs that operates at speeds comparable to DCFL and consumes about one-fourth the power of DCFL. It uses a 2 V power supply for operation and can be used in conjunction with the widely used DCFL circuits. The logic family allows us to build complex gates in one gate delay, provides better noise margins, and is less susceptible to load capacitances than an unbuffered DCFL gate, thus making it useful for standard-cell based designs. To verify the approach, we have designed and fabricated a fully functional test chip containing a precharged full adder     

Biasing a differential pair in low-voltage analog circuits: a systematic approach

This paper deals with a systematic approach to the common mode and the differential mode biasing of a differential transistor pair. Four different variants will be shown, two of these variants show practical importance; a practical circuit of one of these variants turns out to be the traditional long-tailed pair. This variant is mainly suited, if the input signal operates at voltage level, whereas another variant has great advantages if operation at current level occurs. Besides, the latter variant turns out to be very favorable in circuits operating with a single low supply voltage. Two practical circuits based on this variant are given.     

ISAAC: a symbolic simulator for analog integrated circuits

The symbolic simulator ISAAC (interactive symbolic analysis of analog circuits) is presented. The program derives all AC characteristics for any analog integrated circuit (time-continuous and switched-capacitor, CMOS, JFET, and bipolar) as symbolic expressions in the circuit parameters. This yields analytic formulas for transfer functions, CMRR (common-mode rejection ratio), PSRR (power-supply rejection ratio), impedances, noise, etc. Two novel features are included in the program. First, the expressions can be simplified with a heuristic criterion based on the magnitudes of the elements. This yields interpretable formulas showing only the dominant terms. Second, the explicit representation of mismatch terms allows the accurate calculation of second-order effects, such as the PSRR. ISAAC provides analog designers with more insight into the circuit behavior than do numerical simulators and is a useful tool for instruction or designer assistance. Moreover, it generates complete analytic AC circuit models, which are used for automatic sizing in a nonfixed topology analog module generator. The program's capabilities are illustrated with several examples. The efficiency is established by a dedicated sparse-matrix algorithm