Indirect current feedback instrumentation amplifier with acommon-mode input range that includes the negative roll

An instrumentation amplifier which can handle common-mode voltages that extend 200 mV below the negative supply is presented. The extended range is combined with a common-mode rejection of 92 dB and an accuracy of 0.1%, without the need for on-chip trimming. This has been achieved by the use of two p-n-p V-to-f converters in an indirect current feedback configuration. The output voltage can reach the negative supply. The offset voltage is 0.3 mV, and the noise voltage is 30 nV/√Hz. The circuit operates at supply voltages down to 2.5 V, and the quiescent current is 240 μA. The instrumentation amplifier has been integrated in a semicustom bipolar process     

A 1-GHz bipolar class-AB operational amplifier with multipathnested Miller compensation for 76-dB gain

A 1-GHz operational amplifier with a gain of 76 dB while driving a 50-Ω load is presented. The equivalent input noise voltage is as low as 1.2 nV/√Hz. This combination of extremely high bandwidth, high gain, and low noise is the result of a three-stage all-n-p-n topology combined with a multipath nested Miller compensation. Using 10-GHz f_T n-p-n transistors, the realizable bandwidth could be of the order of 2-3 GHz. However, bond-wire inductances restrict the useful bandwidth to 1 GHz. The amplifier occupies an active area of 0.26 mm² and has been realized in the bipolar part of a 1-μm BiCMOS process     

An SOI LDMOS/CMOS/BJT technology for integrated power amplifiersused in wireless transceiver applications

This paper describes a SOI LDMOS/CMOS/BJT technology that can be used in portable wireless communication applications. This technology allows the complete integration of the front-end circuits with the baseband circuits for low-cost/low-power/high-volume single-chip transceiver implementation. The LDMOS transistors (0.35 μm channel length, 3.8 μm drift length, 4.5 GHz f_T and 21 V breakdown voltage), CMOS transistors (1.5 μm channel length, 0.8/-1.2 V threshold voltage), lateral NPN transistor (18 V BV_CBO and h _FE of 20), and high Q-factor (up to 6.1 at 900 MHz and 7.2 at 1.8 GHz) on-chip inductors are fabricated. A fully-functional high performance integrated power amplifier for 900 MHz wireless transceiver application is also demonstrated     

A 1.5-V high drive capability CMOS op-amp

A novel CMOS operational amplifier with a 1.5 V power supply is presented. It is based on a folded-mirror transconductance amplifier and a high-efficiency output stage. The amplifier achieves an open-loop gain and a gain-bandwidth product higher than 65 dB and 1 MHz, respectively. In addition, a 1 V peak-to-peak output voltage into a 500 Ω and 50 pF output load is provided with a total harmonic distortion of -77 dB. This performance was achieved using maximum aspect ratios of 120/1.2 and 360/1.2 for the NMOS and PMOS transistors, respectively, and a quiescent current as low as 60 μA for the driver transistors. The amplifier was implemented in a standard 1.2 μm CMOS process with threshold voltages around 0.8 V. It dissipates less than 300 μW     

Extrinsic base optimization for high-performance RF SiGeheterojunction bipolar transistors

A comprehensive study on the effect of extrinsic base optimization on the RF performance of an advanced SiGe HBT is presented. An optimized extrinsic poly base with its interface to the epi-base passivated by boron ions is demonstrated to enhance the f_max and the current gain almost two times and to reduce the low-frequency 1/f noise ten times and noise figure (NF) 0.5 dB, achieving f_max of 45 GHz, 1/f noise corner frequency of 700 Hz at I_B=1.0 μA, NF⩽1.0 dB at 900 MHz. Early voltage V_A of ⩾200 V is achieved, while maintaining a BV_CEO of ⩾8.0 V     

High-drive CMOS current amplifier

A high-performance current amplifier is proposed which is based on a folded-cascode transresistance amplifier and a low-distortion class AB current output stage. The loop gain of the transresistance amplifier exhibits a gain bandwidth product of 10 MHz and a DC gain as high as 100 dB which allows accurate closed-loop operations to be achieved. Despite the intrinsic low-linearity performance of current amplifiers with respect to their voltage amplifier counterpart, the proposed circuit provides an output current of 7 mA with a total harmonic distortion (THD) better than -55 dB while requiring only 200 μA of quiescent current for the output transistors. The circuit was fabricated in a 1.2 μm CMOS process, uses a 5 V power supply, and dissipates 4 mW     

A low-noise CMOS instrumentation amplifier for thermoelectricinfrared detectors

A low-noise CMOS instrumentation amplifier for low-frequency thermoelectric infrared sensor applications is described which uses a chopper technique to reduce low-frequency noise and offset. The offset reduction efficiency of the band-pass filter, implemented to reduce residual offset due to clock feedthrough, has been analyzed and experimentally verified. The circuit has been integrated in a transistor-only 1-μm single-poly n-well CMOS process. It features a gain of 52 dB with a 500 Hz bandwidth and a common-mode rejection ratio (CMRR) of more than 70 dB. The equivalent input low frequency noise is 15 nV/√Hz. The typical residual input offset is 1.5 μV. The amplifier power consumption is 1.3 mW     

A broad-band tunable CMOS channel-select filter for a low-IFwireless receiver

This paper presents a broad-band bandpass filter (BPF) designed as a channel-select filter for wireless applications. It is implemented as a low-pass filter (LPF) in series with a high-pass filter (HPF) for lower power consumption compared to true BPF. Semiscaling of the filter nodes is superior in the wireless receiver over traditional full scaling. The HPF is built with low-pass feedback of an amplifier. The bandwidth is selectable from 625 kHz, 2.5 MHz, or 10 MHz. The filter stopband loss is more than 50 dB extending beyond 100 MHz, and passband ripple less than 2.5 dB. Fabricated in a 0.6-μm CMOS process, it provides a minimum input noise of 16 nV/√Hz noise with 22.5-dBm out-of-band IIP3, while draining an average 14 mA from 3.3 V     

High performance 0.1 μm gate-length p-type SiGe MODFET's andMOS-MODFET's

High performance p-type modulation-doped field-effect transistors (MODFET's) and metal-oxide-semiconductor MODFET (MOS-MODFET) with 0.1 μm gate-length have been fabricated on a high hole mobility SiGe-Si heterojunction grown by ultrahigh vacuum chemical vapor deposition. The MODFET devices exhibited an extrinsic transconductance (g_m) of 142 mS/mm, a unity current gain cut-off frequency (f_T) of 45 GHz and a maximum oscillation frequency (f_MAX) of 81 GHz, 5 nm-thick high quality jet-vapor-deposited (JVD) SiO₂ was utilized as gate dielectric for the MOS-MODFET's. The devices exhibited a lower gate leakage current (1 nA/μm at V_gs=6 V) and a wider gate operating voltage swing in comparison to the MODFET's. However, due to the larger gate-to-channel distance and the existence of a parasitic surface channel, MOS-MODFET's demonstrated a smaller peak g _m of 90 mS/mm, f_T of 38 GHz, and f_max of 64 GHz. The threshold voltage shifted from 0.45 V for MODFET's to 1.33 V for MOS-MODFET's. A minimum noise figure (NF_min) of 1.29 dB and an associated power gain (G_a) of 12.8 dB were measured at 2 GHz for MODFET's, while the MOS-MODFET's exhibited a NF _min of 0.92 dB and a G_a of 12 dB at 2 GHz. These DC, RF, and high frequency noise characteristics make SiGe/Si MODFET's and MOS-MODFET's excellent candidates for wireless communications     

1-V DTMOS-Based Class-AB Operational Amplifier: Implementation and Experimental Results

In this paper, we describe a novel low-voltage class-AB operational amplifier (opamp) based on dynamic threshold voltage MOS transistors (DTMOS). A DTMOS transistor is a device whose gate is tied to its bulk. DTMOS transistor pseudo-pMOS differential input pairs are used for input common-mode range enhancement, followed by a single ended class-AB output. Two versions of the proposed opamp (opamp-A and opamp-B) were fabricated in a standard 0.18-mum CMOS process technology. Measurements under 5 pF and 10 kOmega load conditions gave, for opamp-A, a DC open-loop gain of 50.1 dB, and a unity gain bandwidth (GBW) of 26.2 MHz. A common-mode rejection ratio (CMRR) of 78 dB, and input and output swings of 0.7 V and 0.9 V, respectively, were achieved. Opamp-B has been optimized for biomedical applications, and is implemented to build the analog front-end part of a near-infrared spectroreflectometry (NIRS) receiver of a multi-wavelength wireless brain oxymeter apparatus. A DC open-loop gain of 53 dB, a GBW of 1.3 MHz, and input and output swings of 0.6 V and 0.8 V, respectively, were measured. Opamp-A consumes 550 muW with an input referred noise of 160 nV/radicHz at 1 kHz. Opamp-B consumes only 40 muW and exhibits a lower input referred noise of 107 nV/radicHz at 1 kHz     

A rail-to-rail, constant gain, buffered op-amp for real time videoapplications

Inspired by Hogervorst et al's current switch idea, a buffered output stage operational amplifier was designed, which has high frequency, high dc gain, and rail-to-rail constant transconductance (G _m). This operational amplifier is the output stage of an analog/digital system which implements a Gabor convolution for real-time dynamic image processing and it is designed to interface the external analog-to-digital converter (ADC) with a very heavy load. The op amp was fabricated by the MOSIS service in a 2-μm, n-well CMOS, double polysilicon, double metal technology. The fabricated circuit operates from a single 5 V power supply and dissipates 10 mW. The open loop-gain of the fabricated circuit, A_vol, was measured as 67.2 dB for a 163 Ω∥33 pF load. Other dc and ac characteristics were measured for a 50 Ω∥33 pF load. The unify gain-bandwidth (GBW) was measured to be 11.4 MHz, the rising slew rate (SR+) 20.4 V/μs, the falling slew rate (SR-) 18.8 V/μs, and the offset voltage (V_off) 1 mV. The output swings with an amplitude of 3.24 V between 0.88 V and 4.12 V, which matches the input signal specifications of the ADC. In addition to rail-to-rail output voltage swing, the opamp has a constant G_m over the whole common mode (CM) voltage range     

A 50 dB variable gain amplifier using parasitic bipolar transistorsin CMOS

A variable-gain amplifier (VGA) with a gain range of 50 dB has been implemented in a standard 3 μm CMOS process using parasitic lateral and vertical bipolar transistors to form the core of the circuit. The bipolar transistors had been characterized extensively. The VGA has a bandwidth larger than 3 MHz over the whole gain range and operates on a single 5 V power supply. The active area is about 0.8×0.9 mm²     

A CMOS nested-chopper instrumentation amplifier with 100-nV offset

A CMOS nested-chopper instrumentation amplifier is presented with a typical offset of 100 nV. This performance is obtained by nesting an additional low-frequency chopper pair around a conventional chopper amplifier. The inner chopper pair removes the 1/f noise, while the outer chopper pair reduces the residual offset. The test chip is free from 1/f noise and has a thermal noise of 27 nV/√Hz consuming a total supply current of 200 μA     

A BiCMOS technology with 660-MHz vertical p-n-p transistor foranalog/digital ASICs

A fully complementary BiCMOS technology based on a 2-μm process designed for 12-V analog/digital applications is described. In this technology, a triple diffused vertical p-n-p transistor and n-p-n bipolar and CMOS devices are integrated in a single chip. A transition frequency of 660 MHz and a collector-to-emitter breakdown voltage of over 15 V have been obtained for the collector-isolated p-n-p transistor by adding only one extra mask to a conventional 2-μm BiCMOS process. The total number of masks is 20 with double-layer metallization. A unity gain frequency of 52 MHz and a DC gain of 85 dB have been obtained for a single-supply operational amplifier with a vertical p-n-p first stage. The propagation delay time for a CMOS two-NAND gate was 1.27 ns driving three loads and 3 mm of metal     

一种基于BiFET工艺的高输入阻抗运算放大器

针对CMOS运算放大器存在的输入失调电压高、噪声性能差等问题,提出了一种基于双极结型场效应晶体管(BiFET)工艺的高输入阻抗运算放大器。采用P沟道JFET差分对作为输入级,实现了pA量级的极低输入偏置电流/失调电流和nV/Hz量级的极低输入噪声电压谱密度。采用双极晶体管构成的共集-共射增益级和互补推挽输出级,实现了100 dB的开环增益、10 V/μs的输出电压转换速率和10 MHz的带宽。该运算放大器适用于对微弱模拟信号的采集和放大。     

低噪声低功耗斩波运放的分析与设计

CMOS运放的噪声尤其是低频1/f噪声会随着整体功耗的降低而急剧增加,针对传感器读出电路应用,文中在传统斩波运放的基础上设计了一个低噪声、低功耗的嵌套式斩波运算放大器。基于SMIC0.18 μm工艺,通过Spectre仿真工具进行仿真与验证。高频斩波(fchop,high)频率为500 kHz,低频斩波频率(fchop,low)为2 kHz时的仿真结果表明,运放在100 Hz处的噪声功率谱密度(Power Spectral Density,PSD)降为23 nV[KF(]Hz[KF)],总消耗电流14 μA,放大器的增益带宽积(GBW)为16.7 MHz,运放的电流效率(GBW/Itot)达到了1 193,该设计的整体性能与以往的设计相比具有一定优势。     

An Assessment of µ-Czochralski, Single-Grain Silicon Thin-Film Transistor Technology for Large-Area, Sensor and 3-D Electronic Integration

Single-grain (SG) thin-film transistors (TFTs) fabricated inside location-controlled silicon grains using the mu-Czochralski method are benchmarked for analog and RF applications. Each silicon grain is defined by excimer laser recrystallization of polysilicon. Thin-film transistors may be fabricated in this manner on silicon or low-cost flexible plastic substrates as processing temperatures remain below 350degC, making the SG-TFT a potential enabling technology for large-area highly integrated electronic systems or systems-in-package with low manufacturing cost. Operational amplifier and voltage reference circuits of varying complexity were designed and measured in order to evaluate the effects of channel position and processing variation on analog circuits. A two-stage telescopic cascode operational amplifier fabricated in an experimental 1.5 mum SG-TFT technology demonstrates a DC gain of 55 dB (unity-gain bandwidth of 6.3 MHz), while a prototype CMOS voltage reference with a power supply rejection ratio (PSRR) of 50 dB is also demonstrated. With f_T comparable to single-crystal MOSFETs of comparable gate length, the SG-TFT can also enable RF circuits for wireless applications. A 12 dB gain RF cascode amplifier with on-chip inductors and operating in the 433 MHz ISM band is demonstrated. Excellent agreement with simulations is attained using a modified BSIM-SOI model extracted from measurements of experimental SG-TFT devices.     

7.1 GHz bandwidth monolithically integratedIn0.53Ga0.47As/In0.52Al0.48As PIN-HBT transimpedance photoreceiver

A monolithically integrated photoreceiver using an InAlAs/InGaAs HBT-based transimpedance amplifier has been fabricated and characterized. The p-i-n photodiode is implemented using the base-collector junction of the HBT. The 5 μm×5 μm emitter area transistors have self-aligned base metal and non-alloyed Ti/Pt/Au contacts. Discrete transistors demonstrated f_T and f_max of 54 GHz and 51 GHz, respectively. The amplifier demonstrated a -3 dB transimpedance bandwidth of 10 GHz and a gain of 40 dBΩ. The integrated photoreceiver with a 10 μm×10 μm p-i-n photodiode showed a -3 dB bandwidth of 7.1 GHz     

MOS-bipolar monolithic integrated circuit technology

A technique for the fabrication of p-channel MOS transistors and bipolar transistors within monolithic integrated circuits is described. Total process compatibility has been achieved without compromising either the n-p-n bipolar or p-channel MOS characteristics. The technology developed is similar to that used for conventional integrated circuits until the channel oxidation step, A low temperature oxidation followed by a high temperature anneal process that produces negligible changes in preceding diffusion profiles was used to form this oxide. Bias temperature tests of MOS capacitors have shown the oxide to be reproducibly free of contamination. A high slew rate MOS bipolar operational amplifier has been designed and fabricated on 0.045- by 0.045-in chip using the new technology. Typical characteristics are slew rate =80 V/µs voltage gain = 70 dB. The MOS transistors are used as active loads and level shifters in this circuit and provide a much improved frequency response over conventional circuits using p-n-p lateral transistors.     

80-GHz Tuned Amplifier in Bulk CMOS

An 80-GHz six-stage common source tuned amplifier has been demonstrated using low leakage (higher V_T) NMOS transistors of a 65-nm digital CMOS process with six metal levels. It achieves power gain of 12 dB at 80 GHz with a 3-dB bandwidth of 6 GHz, noise figures (NF's) lower than 10.5 dB at frequencies between 75 and 81 GHz with the lowest NF of 9 dB. IP_{1 dB} is -21 dBm and IIP3 is -11.5 dBm. The amplifier consumes 27 mA from a 1.2 V supply. At V_DD = 1.5 V and 33 mA bias current, NF is less than 9.5 dB within the 3-dB bandwidth and reaches a minimum of 8 dB at 80 GHz.