Apparatus and method for power amplifier surge protection

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11323077-B2
Application number	US-202017092066-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 6, 2020
Priority date	Jul 25, 2017
Publication date	May 3, 2022
Grant date	May 3, 2022

Abstract

Components of a power amplifier controller may support lower voltages than the power amplifier itself. As a result, a surge protection circuit that prevents a power amplifier from being damaged due to a power surge may not effectively protect the power amplifier controller. Embodiments disclosed herein present an overvoltage protection circuit that prevents a charge-pump from providing a voltage to a power amplifier controller during a detected surge event. By separately detecting and preventing a voltage from being provided to the power amplifier controller during a surge event, the power amplifier controller can be protected regardless of whether the surge event results in a voltage that may damage the power amplifier. Further, embodiments of the overvoltage protection circuit can prevent a surge voltage from being provided to a power amplifier operating in 2G mode.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A power management integrated circuit comprising:
a charge-pump circuit configured to supply a voltage to a power amplifier controller; and
an overvoltage protection circuit including a comparator configured to compare a first bandgap reference voltage and an input voltage supplied to the power management integrated circuit to determine an occurrence of a power surge event and configure the charge-pump circuit with a surge-protection configuration, the comparator further configured to compare a second bandgap reference voltage and the input voltage to determine when the power surge event has ceased.

2. The power management integrated circuit of claim 1 wherein the surge-protection configuration includes at least one of the group consisting of disabling, deactivating, and disconnecting at least one phase of the charge-pump circuit.

3. The power management integrated circuit of claim 1 wherein the surge-protection configuration disconnects a switch between an output pin of the charge-pump circuit and an output pin of a boost converter.

4. The power management integrated circuit of claim 1 wherein the second bandgap reference voltage is less than the first bandgap reference voltage.

5. The power management integrated circuit of claim 1 wherein the charge-pump circuit includes a plurality of transistors in communication with an output pin of the charge-pump circuit.

6. The power management integrated circuit of claim 5 wherein the overvoltage protection circuit configures the charge-pump circuit with the surge-protection configuration by disconnecting at least one of the plurality of transistors in communication with the output pin of the charge-pump circuit when the power surge event occurs.

7. The power management integrated circuit of claim 6 wherein the overvoltage protection circuit configures the charge-pump circuit with a non-surge protection configuration when the power surge event ceases by reconnecting the at least one of the plurality of transistors in communication with the output pin of the charge-pump circuit.

8. The power management integrated circuit of claim 5 wherein a first transistor of the plurality of transistors connects an input voltage supplied to the power management integrated circuit to an output pin and a second transistor of the plurality of transistors connects the output pin to an external capacitor.

9. The power management integrated circuit of claim 1 wherein the charge-pump circuit includes a phase transistor between an input voltage pin of the charge-pump circuit and an external capacitor that is external to the charge-pump circuit.

10. The power management integrated circuit of claim 9 wherein the overvoltage protection circuit configures the charge-pump circuit with the surge-protection configuration by disabling the phase transistor when the power surge event occurs.

11. A wireless device comprising:
a power amplifier and a power amplifier controller configured to bias the power amplifier; and
a power management integrated circuit including a charge-pump circuit, and an overvoltage protection circuit, the charge-pump circuit configured to supply a voltage to the power amplifier controller, the overvoltage protection circuit configured to determine an occurrence of a power surge event by comparing a first bandgap reference voltage to an input voltage supplied to the power management integrated circuit and configure the charge-pump circuit with a surge-protection configuration, the overvoltage protection circuit further configured to compare a second bandgap reference voltage to the input voltage to determine when the power surge event has ceased.

12. The wireless device of claim 11 wherein the surge-protection configuration includes at least one of the group consisting of disabling, deactivating, and disconnecting at least one phase of the charge-pump circuit.

13. The wireless device of claim 11 wherein the surge-protection configuration disconnects a switch between an output pin of the charge-pump circuit and an output pin of a boost converter.

14. The wireless device of claim 11 wherein the second bandgap reference voltage is less than the first bandgap reference voltage.

15. The wireless device of claim 11 wherein the charge-pump circuit includes a plurality of transistors in communication with an output pin of the charge-pump circuit.

16. The wireless device of claim 15 wherein the overvoltage protection circuit configures the charge-pump circuit with the surge-protection configuration by disconnecting at least one of the plurality of transistors in communication with the output pin of the charge-pump circuit when the power surge event occurs.

17. The wireless device of claim 16 wherein the overvoltage protection circuit configures the charge-pump circuit with a non-surge protection configuration when the power surge event ceases by reconnecting the at least one of the plurality of transistors in communication with the output pin of the charge-pump circuit.

18. The wireless device of claim 15 wherein a first transistor of the plurality of transistors connects an input voltage supplied to the power management integrated circuit to an output pin and a second transistor of the plurality of transistors connects the output pin to an external capacitor.

19. The wireless device of claim 11 wherein the charge-pump circuit includes a phase transistor between an input voltage pin of the charge-pump circuit and an external capacitor that is external to the charge-pump circuit.

20. The wireless device of claim 19 wherein the overvoltage protection circuit configures the charge-pump circuit with the surge-protection configuration by disabling the phase transistor when the power surge event occurs.

Assignees

• Skyworks Solutions Inc

Inventors

• Ng Wendy
• Long Wei
• Cho Kevin

Classifications

• H03F3/245

  with semiconductor devices only · CPC title

• H03F2200/451

  the amplifier being a radio frequency amplifier · CPC title

• H03F1/52 Primary

  Circuit arrangements for protecting such amplifiers {(monitoring arrangements G01R31/28; increasing reliability in communication systems, e.g. using redundancy H04B1/74)} · CPC title

• H03F3/195

  in integrated circuits · CPC title

• H02M3/07

  using capacitors charged and discharged alternately by semiconductor devices with control electrode {, e.g. charge pumps} · CPC title