Electronic circuit for generating reference voltage

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2020393500-A1
Application number	US-202016848153-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Apr 14, 2020
Priority date	Jun 11, 2019
Publication date	Dec 17, 2020
Grant date	—

Abstract

An electronic circuit includes first to third transistors. The first transistor has a first channel width and a first channel length and generates a first potential difference by passing an operating current based on a first operating voltage. The second transistor has a second channel width and a second channel length and generates a second potential difference based on the operating current. The third transistor generates a third potential difference based on a second operating voltage and the operating current. A sum of a level of the first operating voltage and a level of the first potential difference corresponds to a sum of a level of the second operating voltage, a level of the second potential difference, and a level of the third potential difference. The first channel width is greater than the second channel width, or the first channel length is longer than the second channel length.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . An electronic circuit comprising:
a first transistor having a first channel width and a first channel length, and configured to generate a first potential difference by passing an operating current based on a first operating voltage; a second transistor having a second channel width and a second channel length, and configured to generate a second potential difference based on the operating current; and a third transistor configured to generate a third potential difference based on a second operating voltage and the operating current, wherein a sum of a level of the first operating voltage and a level of the first potential difference corresponds to a sum of a level of the second operating voltage, a level of the second potential difference, and a level of the third potential difference, and wherein the first channel width is greater than the second channel width, or the first channel length is longer than the second channel length.

2 . The electronic circuit of claim 1 , further comprising:
a fourth transistor having a third channel width and a third channel length and connected between the second transistor and the third transistor.

3 . The electronic circuit of claim 2 , wherein the first channel width is greater than the third channel width, or the first channel length is longer than the third channel length.

4 . The electronic circuit of claim 1 , further comprising:
a fifth transistor connected in series with the first transistor, and configured to pass the operating current to the first transistor based on the first operating voltage.

5 . The electronic circuit of claim 4 , wherein a level of a threshold voltage of the fifth transistor is lower than a level of a threshold voltage of the first transistor, a level of a threshold voltage of the second transistor, and a level of a threshold voltage of the third transistor.

6 . The electronic circuit of claim 1 , wherein, as a process error increases, the level of the second potential difference decreases, and the level of the third potential difference increases.

7 . The electronic circuit of claim 6 , wherein the process error is associated with dopant concentration of the first transistor, the second transistor, and the third transistor.

8 . The electronic circuit of claim 1 , wherein the level of the second potential difference is inversely proportional to a process error, and the level of the third potential difference is proportional to the process error.

9 . The electronic circuit of claim 1 , wherein, as a temperature increases, the level of the second potential difference increases, and the level of the third potential difference decreases.

10 . The electronic circuit of claim 1 , wherein the level of the second potential difference is proportional to a temperature, and the level of the third potential difference is inversely proportional to the temperature.

11 . An electronic circuit comprising:
a first transistor having a first size and a first threshold voltage associated with the first size, and configured to generate a first potential difference based on a first operating voltage; a second transistor having a second size smaller than the first size and a second threshold voltage associated with the second size, and configured to generate a second potential difference; and a third transistor configured to generate a third potential difference based on a second operating voltage, wherein the second potential difference increases as a process error increases, and the third potential difference decreases as the process error increases.

12 . The electronic circuit of claim 11 , wherein the first size is associated with a channel width of the first transistor and a channel length of the first transistor, and the second size is associated with a channel width of the second transistor and a channel length of the second transistor.

13 . The electronic circuit of claim 11 , wherein, when a level of the first operating voltage changes as much as a first value, a sum of the level of the first operating voltage and a level of the first potential difference changes as much as a second value smaller than the first value.

14 . The electronic circuit of claim 11 , wherein, when a level of the third potential difference changes as much as a third value as a temperature changes, a sum of a level of the second potential difference and the level of the third potential difference changes as much as a fourth value smaller than the third value.

15 . The electronic circuit of claim 11 , wherein, when a level of the third potential difference changes as much as a fifth value as the process error changes, a sum of a level of the second potential difference and the level of the third potential difference changes as much as a sixth value smaller than the third value.

16 . An electronic circuit comprising:
a first transistor having a first size and a first threshold voltage associated with the first size, and configured to generate a first potential difference based on a first operating voltage; a second transistor having a second size smaller than the first size and a second threshold voltage associated with the second size, and configured to generate a second potential difference having a level decided based on a difference between a level of the first threshold voltage and a level of the second threshold voltage; and a third transistor configured to generate a third potential difference having a level decided based on the first potential difference.

17 . The electronic circuit of claim 16 , wherein the level of the third potential difference is inversely proportional to the level of the first threshold voltage.

18 . The electronic circuit of claim 16 , further comprising:
a fourth transistor connected in series with the first transistor and having a threshold voltage having a level smaller than the level of the first threshold voltage.

19 . The electronic circuit of claim 18 , wherein the first transistor and the second transistor are a P-type metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor (MOSFET), the third transistor is a bipolar junction transistor (BJT), and the fourth transistor is an N-type MOSFET.

20 . The electronic circuit of claim 16 , further comprising:
a fifth transistor connected in series with the second transistor and having a third size corresponding to the second size and a third threshold voltage corresponding to the second threshold voltage.

Assignees

• Postech Res & Business Dev Found

Inventors

• Sim Jae Yoon
• Ji Young Woo

Classifications

• G05F3/10

  using uncontrolled devices with non-linear characteristics · CPC title

• G05F3/30 Primary

  Regulators using the difference between the base-emitter voltages of two bipolar transistors operating at different current densities (G05F3/26 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G05F3/245

  producing a voltage or current as a predetermined function of the temperature · CPC title

• G05F3/242 Primary

  with compensation for device parameters, e.g. channel width modulation, threshold voltage, processing, or external variations, e.g. temperature, loading, supply voltage · CPC title

• G01R19/16576 Primary

  comparing DC or AC voltage with one threshold (G01R19/16514, G01R19/16519, G01R19/16528, G01R19/16533 and G01R19/1659 take precedence) · CPC title