A 10-b, 500-MSample/s CMOS DAC in 0.6 mm2

A 10-b current steering CMOS digital-to-analog converter (DAC) is described, with optimized performance for frequency domain applications. For sampling frequencies up to 200 MSample/s, the spurious free dynamic range (SFDR) is better than 60 dB for signals from DC to Nyquist. For sampling frequencies up to 400 MSample/s, the SFDR is better than 55 dB for signals from DC to Nyquist. The measured differential nonlinearity and integral nonlinearity are 0.1 least significant bit (LSB) and 0.2 LSB, respectively. The circuit is fabricated in a 0.35-μm, single-poly, four-metal, 3.3 V, standard digital CMOS process and occupies 0.6 mm². When operating at 500 MSample/s, it dissipates 125 mW from a 3.3 V power supply. This DAC is optimized for embedded applications with large amounts of digital circuitry