Open AccessSelf‐biased nano‐power four‐transistor current and voltage reference with a single resistor
Author(s) -
Aminzadeh H.
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
electronics letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.375
H-Index - 146
ISSN - 1350-911X
DOI - 10.1049/el.2019.3671
Subject(s) - subthreshold conduction , resistor , voltage reference , electrical engineering , transistor , voltage , biasing , cmos , topology (electrical circuits) , operational amplifier , bandgap voltage reference , temperature coefficient , voltage divider , amplifier , electronic engineering , engineering , dropout voltage
A generic nano‐power voltage and current reference topology, which takes advantage of the unequal threshold voltage ( V TH ) of two MOSFETs in subthreshold region, is developed to provide reliable bias and reference signals for the analogue integrated blocks used in the Internet‐of‐Things applications. The new architecture is a self‐powered four‐transistor topology with a single temperature‐insensitive resistor, generating both temperature‐independent voltage and current without any operational amplifier or bias network. Instead, the resistor defines the absolute value of the current reference ( I REF ) which supplies the core devices. The circuit is designed and simulated for a target current reference of 7.50 nA in 0.18 µm CMOS process, and achieves a worst‐case temperature coefficient (TC) of 59.47 ppm/°C over a temperature range from −40 to 125°C and 1.8 V voltage supply. The average voltage reference ( V REF ) is 346 mV, and the worst‐case TC of different corners is 21.98 ppm/°C. The nominal current consumption is twice the I REF(15 nA) regardless of the supply and temperature, and can be scaled down by reducing the desired current reference.