Self-starting transistor-only full-wave rectifier for on-chip AC-DC conversion

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-8964436-B2
Application number	US-201213653016-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 16, 2012
Priority date	Oct 16, 2012
Publication date	Feb 24, 2015
Grant date	Feb 24, 2015

Abstract

A transistor-based full-wave bridge rectifier is suitable for low A.C. input voltages such as received by a Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID) device. Voltage drops due to bridge diodes are avoided. Four p-channel transistors are arranged in a bridge across the A.C. inputs to produce an internal power voltage. A comparator receives the A.C. input and controls timing of voltage boost drivers that alternately drive gates of the four p-channel transistors with voltages boosted higher than the peak A.C. voltage. Four diode-connected transistors are connected in parallel with the four p-channel bridge transistors to conduct during initial start-up before the comparator and boost drivers operate. Substrates are connected to the power voltage on the power-voltage half of the bridge and to the A.C. inputs on the ground half of the bridge to fully shut off transistors, preventing reverse current flow. The transistor bridge can be integrated onto system chips.

First claim

We claim:

1. A transistor-based bridge rectifier comprising:
a first alternating input;
a second alternating input;
a comparator that compares the first alternating input to a reference to generate a timing signal;
a first boost driver, controlled by the timing signal, for generating a first gate signal, the first gate signal being boosted to a voltage greater than a peak voltage of the first alternating input;
a second boost driver, controlled by the timing signal, for ge…

Assignees

• Kwong Kwok Kuen David
• Chan Kwai Chi
• Li Yunlong
• Yang Lee L
• Hk Applied Science & Tech Res

Inventors

• Kwong Kwok Kuen David
• Chan Kwai Chi
• Li Yunlong
• Yang Lee L

Classifications

• H02M7/2195

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H02M7/219 Primary

  Electricity · mapped topic

• Y02B70/10

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic