Analog CMOS/VLSI Circuits

Independent Study

Isi Oamen
CWID# 894816099
EGEE 599
Dr. Young D. Kwon
Fall 2011

Introduction:
In modern electronics, VLSI technology plays an important part in everyday applications. The
potential to decrease chip size while simultaneously improving speed is forever improving, as
can be seen with the computers and cellular phones of today. The movement from analog to
digital circuitry led us to replace vacuum tubes with solid-state silicon devices. Due to the
immense decrease in size and manufacturing cost, Metal-Oxide Semiconductors (MOS) and
Bipolar Junction Transistors (BJT) took the lead to be the popular choice in the industry. The
idea is that they can act as switches or voltage/current amplifiers, which can improve power
efficiency as well as performance.

Although these digital devices have been the primary choice for corporations and the consumer
in general, it is important to note that it is necessary for many real world systems to process an
input that originates from a continuously changing source. Because there is no electronic
substitute for what is generated in nature, analog input devices are required because they allow
signals to be handled at the same rate that they are generated. For this reason, a combination of
analog and digital technology is the best solution for those particular situations.

This is

commonly referred to as mixed-signal electronic design.

Mixed-signal circuits are involved in the operation of many devices, which include temperature
sensors, radar systems, and amplifiers. The manner in which many of these devices work is that
they receive an analog or continuous input and then convert it to a digital signal. This digital
signal can then be utilized in a multitude of ways, whether as a digital readout or as an input of
another device. One example of this process can be viewed in the block diagram in Figure C-1.

Figure C-1: Temperature Sensor

This temperature sensor works in the following manner: first the analog input is received by a
sensor diode, which outputs a particular voltage based on the ambient temperature. This voltage
is then passed through an analog-to-digital converter which changes the voltage to a particular
binary value. At this point the binary value is sent to a value register. A value register in essence
acts as a table which contains all of the possible binary values and their corresponding outputs.
This output can then be sent to a digital readout or any device in which it can be used as needed.
This same concept is similarly used in pressure and altitude sensors, light sensors, and
seismometers. Another example of a mixed signal system is a Doppler radar/navigation system,
seen in Figure C-2.

Figure C-2: Doppler Radar/Navigation System

The way a Doppler Navigation System works is that it first accepts an analog waveform through
an antenna. The antenna sends this signal to a receiver which measures the frequency or
performs any other necessary calculations. In the event the signal is going the other direction, it
is sent out as an analog value by a transmitter to the antenna. The incoming measurement is
passed along as a voltage which is then converted by the signal data converter into a digital
value. That value is then displayed on the unit. As you can see, the process works in a similar
fashion to that of the temperature sensor: an analog input is converted to a digital output and
displayed to a device. One type of analog circuit that does not work in the same way is an audio
amplifier, displayed in Figure C-3.

Figure C-3: Audio Amplifier System

In this scenario, the microphone contains a transducer which converts the analog audio input to a
voltage, which is sent to the pre-amp. The pre-amp increases the waveform to a higher voltage
so that there is more signal to work with. At this point the tone and volume controls are accessed
to modify the high and low frequencies, as well as to increase the amplitude. The purpose of the
power amplifier is to strengthen the signal by increasing the amount of current that is transferred
to the speakers or any particular audio component. In turn, the component converts the signal
back to sound.

This system differs from the other two because it maintains an analog signal throughout the
process, and simply deals with the amplification of voltages and currents. For purposes of
staying within the scope of the study, I will focus mainly on these types of analog circuits.
Before that can be done, I must first explain the operational characteristics of the transistor and
MOS process.

nMOS Transistor:

The nMOS transistor is the most basic of all the MOS transistors. MOS stands for Metal Oxide
Semiconductor, which means there is a metal gate, an oxide insulator, and silicon semiconductor.
Polysilicon is more often used today than metal for the gate. The n represents n-type silicon,
which is the material that composes the source and drain. It is doped with a material to give it
more negatively charged ions. When the device conducts the channel also becomes n-type. A
diagram of an nMOS transistor is shown below in Figure C-4.

Figure C-4: nMOS Transistor Process

The reason nMOS is simple is because it requires less steps in manufacturing and utilizes much
less space than other types of transistors. The silicon substrate, which is generally p-type, is
doped with two n-wells to become source and drain. Field oxide is grown across the substrate; a
polysilicon gate and much thinner gate oxide are also applied. Metal contacts are added to the
source, gate and drain.

When zero voltage is applied to the gate, there is no current flowing through the channel. As the
voltage is increased positively, negatively charged ions are attracted to the surface of the p-type
material while the positively charged ions are moved away. Once the gate voltage reaches a
level that collects enough negative ions, the surface of channel becomes n-type and conducts
between the source and drain. This point is called the threshold voltage. Eventually as the drain
voltage increases the current will approach a maximum point and no longer be linear. When that
situation occurs the mode is called saturation, and all of this is characteristic of an enhancement
type nMOS transistor. This can be seen in Figure C-5(a).

The other type of nMOS transistor is one which contains a small amount of doping at the surface
of the substrate, creating an n-type channel. This channel is already conducting when there is
zero voltage applied to the gate. The only way to eliminate the channel is to apply a negative
gate voltage, which is depleting the channel. This is called a depletion type nMOS transistor,
which is shown in Figure C-5(b).

Figure C-5: Enhancement and Depletion Mode nMOS Characteristic

There are a few equations that will come in useful when deciding which mode the transistor is in,
as well as the amount of current flowing through the drain, or Id. The three modes are cutoff,
triode (or linear), and saturation. The equations along with their constraints are below.

Id = 0

Vgs < Vto (cut-off)

Id = Cox(W/L)Vds*(Vgs Vto Vds/2)

Vds < Vgs Vto (triode)

Id = Cox/2(W/L)*(Vgs Vto)

Vds > Vgs Vto (saturation)

Where
carrier mobility

Cox gate oxide capacitance

Vgs gate-source voltage

Vds drain-source voltage

W, L channel length/width
Vto threshold voltage

To understand how these transistors would operate together in a circuit, Figure C-6 shows a
depletion-load nMOS inverter and its drain current and output voltage characteristic.

Figure C-6: Depletion-load nMOS Inverter

Due to the negative threshold voltage and the gate being shorted to the source (Vgs1 = 0),
Transistor 1 is always on. Beginning with Vi at 0V, Transistor 2 is off. This means the output
voltage across the load is at maximum value or Vdd. As Vi is increased, Transistor 2 eventually
reaches its threshold voltage and begins to conduct. This draws current away from the load and
Vo approaches 0V. The second graph shows the effects of increasing Vdd as well as Vgs2 (Vi).
Because the depletion transistor acts as a resistor in the circuit, an increase in Vdd also increases
Id. A higher value of Vgs allows more current to flow through Transistor 2 which also raises Id.
When this condition is true, these equations can be used:

Id = uCox(W2/L2)(Vo)(Vi Vt2 Vo/2)

Vo = (Vi Vt2) [(Vi Vt2) - (W1L2/L1W2)*(-Vt1)]

Now that it is better understood how the components of analog circuits work, I can better explain
the amplifier and its operation.

Operational Amplifier:

One of the most popular devices in analog electronics is the operational amplifier (op-amp).
They are very versatile units that have many applications. The low cost of manufacturing makes
them a good candidate for large scale production, and this also allows them to be used for
circuits that contain a system where many are needed. A typical op-amp has three main stages in
its function, which include: differential amplifier, voltage amplifier and output amplifier. These
stages can be seen in Figure C-7.

Figure C-7: Op-Amp Stages of Operation

The differential amplifier stage receives two input voltages and then outputs the difference in
voltages multiplied by a gain factor, which is usually unity. A single output can be generated by
combining it with a source follower or current mirror. The voltage gain amplifier uses the output
of the first stage and increases the voltage. After this happens, the output amplifier increases the
current output with a low impedance and unity voltage gain.

Generally an ideal op-amp will have a few theoretical characteristics such as infinite input
resistance, infinite open loop gain, and 100% dynamic range. What this equates to in voltage and
current calculations is that there will be minimal current through the input terminals and their
voltages at the point of entry will be the same. The range of output voltages will follow that of
the voltage rails and have a high value of Vdd and a low value of Vss.

An op-amp can be utilized as a voltage comparator, which outputs Vdd when the positive
terminal is a higher value and Vss when the negative terminal is greater. Another use is a noninverting amplifier, which will increase the input voltage with a gain based on the two resistors
used on the negative terminal. It can also act as an inverting amplifier, which operates in a
similar fashion but the output is negative. They can be popular for analog-to-digital and digitalto-analog converters as well.

When creating the differential amplifier portion of the op-amp, it is necessary to know what
combination of devices will give the desired effect. A current mirror circuit is the basic building
block of many of the amplifier stages. The way it operates is that there are two nMOS transistors
with the same gate-source voltage. If both transistors have identical aspect ratios (the width and
length of the channel are the same), then the drain current of one would equal the other. One is
considered the input current (Ii) and the other one is the output current (Io). If the aspect ratios
are different then so will be the Io/Ii ratio. The drain-source voltage also has an effect on the two
currents, which is why a second pair of transistors can be added to help normalize the inequality.

The core of the differential amplifier has opposing depletion nMOS transistors in series with
enhancement mode nMOS transistors. The enhancement transistors should have large aspect
ratios compared to the depletion transistors for the gain to be high. One problem that arises is
that the output voltage will lean towards Vss because of the large resistance of the depletion
transistors. The additional transistors which make up a current mirror provide a current source to
bias the differential portion away from Vss. This differential amplifier combined with current
mirror can be seen in Figure C-8.

Figure C-8: Differential Amplifier

As you can see, transistors M1 and M2 control which side of the circuit has a higher potential. If
the gate of M1 receives a higher voltage than M2 (Vi is high) then M1 draws a current, which

pulls Vo towards Vss (in this case, ground). Similarly with the other side, if Vj is high then Vp
pulls towards Vss. The purpose of M5 in this case is to provide a current source, and to help
attain a reasonable common-mode rejection ratio. In order to show the effects of various
voltages on the differential amplifier combined with current mirror (M5-M7, the PSpice
waveform for this stage of the circuit is in Figure C-9.

Figure C-9: Differential Amplifier Waveform

In this circuit, the voltage applied to M1 remained constant at 2 volts while the voltage to M2
slowly increased from 0 to 5 volts. All values are DC. As you can see, when Vi = 2V and Vj =
0V, Vp holds steady at Vdd = 10V while Vo = 1.5V. Vss = 0V but the Vds value of M5 is what
keeps Vo from reaching Vss. As Vj approaches 2V, the difference in voltage works its way
towards 0, which causes the two outputs to begin reversing their polarities. At exactly Vj = 2V is

when the waveforms change to greater and lesser values. From this point on the difference in Vi
and Vj keep the outputs Vo and Vp high and low, respectively.

At this point we currently have two outputs, but the differential output needs to be converted to a
single output. A source follower or differential to single ended amplifier helps achieve this goal.
Figure C-10 shows a version of this circuit.

Figure C-10: Differential to Single-ended Amplifier

The previous outputs are sent to two depletion transistors, which depending on the voltage can
turn them on or off. Each of them leads in series to an enhancement nMOS, of which both share
a gate voltage. This means that they are either both on or both off. If M12 is on and M13 is off,
then the output is low. If M12 is off and M13 is on, then the output is a voltage differential of
M13 and M11. If both of them are off then the output is high.

The following stage is that of the voltage gain amplifier. This can be a very simple stage which
involves two nMOS transistors in a traditional inverter setup, but the input voltage is tailored so
that the inverter is continuously in the linear mode. When an inverter is in this mode it has a
very large current draw and its negative voltage gain is extremely high when combined with a
resistor or an nMOS transistor acting as a resistor.

The final stage of the op-amp is the output amplifier. This involves two more depletion nMOS
transistors and two enhancement nMOS transistors. Shown in Figure C-11 is a power output
stage which is set up in this fashion.

Figure C-11: Power Output Stage of Op-Amp

The way this process works is when M14 receives a low input it remains off. This sends a high
input to M16 which then turns it on and pulls Vout to ground. The low Vout value means that

M15 and M17 are both conducting, but Id = 0 for M15, while M17 has a very low Id due to the
lower Vgs. The load will not receive much power. On the other hand, if the input to M14 is high
then M14 conducts, which sends a low output to M16 and turns it off. This creates a high
voltage at Vout which then supplies the load. The finished product is shown in Figure C-12.

Figure C-12: Complete Op-Amp Schematic

When looking at this circuit from a whole, you can see that V1 and V4 serve as the high and low
voltage rails (Vdd and Vss) for the amplifier, while V2 and V3 are the inverting and noninverting inputs respectively. Vout is the output from the final stage. Unfortunately the trial
version of PSpice Student Edition doesnt allow circuits this large to be simulated, so I could
only find waveforms for the differential amplifier which is the largest and most versatile portion
of the circuit. The best I could do was to replace my circuit with the op-amp symbol to run a few

simulations. Figures C-13, C-14, C-15, and C-16 show the operation of both an inverting and
non-inverting op-amp with their waveforms.

Figure C-13: Non-inverting Op Amp Circuit

Figure C-14: Waveform for Non-inverting Op Amp

Figure C-15: Inverting Op Amp Circuit

Figure C-16: Waveform for Inverting Op Amp

As you can see, the gain on the non-inverting op-amp is roughly Vi(1+R1/R2) = Vi(1+1) = 2Vi,
which starts to deviate slightly as Vo reaches Vdd. The inverting op-amp has a gain of (R1/R2)Vi = (-1k/1k)Vi = -Vi.

In conclusion, over the course of the semester I was able to learn about analog VLSI circuits
through the analyzing of an operational amplifier and its components. I believe they still have
many useful purposes in todays mixed-signal technology. Although I ran into some road blocks
with the software because of the large nature of the circuit, I was still able to break the circuit
down into smaller pieces and analyze those individually. Due to the absence of an analog course
at CSUF, I was grateful to be given the opportunity to study something not offered at the
university.

Works Cited:
Ayers, John E. Digital Integrated Circuits, Analysis and Design. Boca Raton: CRC Press, 2004
Haskard, Malcolm R., and Ian C. May. Analog VLSI Design, nMOS and CMOS. New York:
Prentice Hall, 1988.
Supplemental links:
http://www.ladyada.net/learn/sensors/tmp36.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Analog_circuit
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Analog_signal
http://howto.circuitdiagram.net/basic-theory/audio-amplifier-block-diagram/
http://www.kpsec.freeuk.com/bdiags.htm
http://people.seas.harvard.edu/~jones/es154/lectures/lecture_6/lecture_6.html
http://www.allaboutcircuits.com/vol_3/chpt_8/2.html
http://www.national.com/AU/design/courses/268/the02/03the02.htm

Exercise 1.1 Name some analog type circuits to study.

Heat/temperature sensors, Doppler radar, pressure/altitude sensors, audio amplifiers, light/IR
sensors, seismographs, etc.