# Patent

## Title
Charge pump circuit with reuse of accumulated electrical charge

## Abstract

A two-phase charge pump is provided that is capable of being controlled by first and second clock signals that are out-of-phase and take alternatively a first value and a second value during consecutive phases. The charge pump includes a sequence of cascade-connected stages that each have a first section and a second section. Each section includes an input terminal and an output terminal, a capacitive element, and a controlled switch coupling the input terminal of the section with the output terminal of the section. The input terminals in each stage other than the first stage are cross-coupled with the output terminals in a preceding stage. The capacitive element has first and second terminals. The first terminals in the first and second sections receive the first and second clock signals, respectively, and the second terminal is coupled with the output terminal of the section. The controlled switch has a control terminal. In each stage, the control terminals are coupled to each other. The first section further includes a first control circuit coupling the control terminal with the output terminal of the first section during the first phase, and the second section further includes a second control circuit coupling the control terminal with the input terminal of the second section during the second phase.

## Background
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a continuation-in-part of prior U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/995,017, filed Nov. 22, 2004, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,248,096 the entire disclosure.


FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to charge pump circuits, and more specifically to a two-phase charge pump.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
A charge pump is a particular voltage booster circuit, which is used to generate a voltage higher than its power supply voltage. For example, charge pumps commonly find application in an integrated circuit including a non-volatile memory with floating-gate transistors. In this case, a high-voltage is needed to program and/or erase the memory. In order to avoid the need to provide an external power supply voltage of high value, the integrated circuit is designed to have one or more internal charge pumps for producing the high-voltage from the (lower) power supply voltage.
Operation of a charge pump is based on the continuous accumulation and transfer of electric charge in a sequence of pumping capacitors, which are connected through corresponding switching elements. Particularly, each pumping capacitor has a free terminal, which is controlled by a signal switching between a low-voltage and a high-voltage; the control signals of adjacent pumping capacitors are always anti-phase. In this way, when the control signal is at the low-voltage the pumping capacitor is charged by the previous pumping capacitor; when the control signal switches to the high-voltage, the accumulated charge is transferred to the next pumping capacitor.
A classic implementation of the charge pump in which the switching elements consist of diodes is described in John F. Dickson, “On-Chip High-voltage Generation in NMOS Integrated Circuits Using an Improved Voltage Multiplier Technique”, IEEE Journal of Solid State Circuits, vol. 11, no. 2, pp. 374-378, June 1976, the entire disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference. A drawback of this charge pump is the unavoidable loss in its output voltage due to the threshold voltage and to the conduction resistance of the diodes. This drawback is exacerbated as the number of stages of the charge pump increases, because each additional stage further decrements the output voltage.
Alternatively, the diodes are replaced with pass transistors. For example, each pass transistor can be an NMOS transistor having the drain terminal connected to an input of the stage and the source terminal connected to an output of the stage; the gate terminal of the pass transistor is controlled by a signal that maintains the gate to source voltage of the pass transistor higher than its threshold value as the source voltage increases due to the charge transfer process. A known solution for obtaining this result is to use a four-phase architecture, with two additional control signals dedicated to over driving the gate terminals of the pass transistors. This solution, however, requires a more complex circuit for the generation of the control signals.
A different solution with a two-phase architecture is based on the use of pass transistors of the low-voltage type, which exhibit a reduced threshold voltage. In this case, the output resistance of the charge pump (whose value influences the efficiency of the entire circuit) can be favorably reduced by increasing its operating frequency and using transistors with lower parasitic capacitances. Furthermore, it is possible to use smaller pumping capacitors, thus saving silicon area on the chip. However, it is necessary to introduce a dedicated circuit architecture that allows the utilization of low-voltage transistors (typically based on two cross-coupled branches). An example of such a charge pump is described in R. Pelliconi et al., “Power Efficient Charge Pump in Deep Submicron Standard CMOS Technology”, IEEE Journal of Solid State Circuits, vol. 38, no. 6, June 2003, the entire disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference. According to this document, in each stage the charge transfer occurs through the use of two pass transistors of opposite type at a time; as a result, the effects of their threshold voltages are canceled (being of opposite signs). However, the two pass transistors that are series connected in each stage double its conductive resistance.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 08-322241, the entire disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference, illustrates a solution for solving the threshold voltage loss drawback (in a two-phase charge pump of the high-voltage type) using a dynamic system for biasing the pass transistors. Particularly, each pass transistor is a PMOS transistor having the source terminal connected to the input of the stage and the drain terminal connected to the output of the stage. The gate terminal of the pass transistor is selectively connected to the input of the preceding stage (to turn it on), or to the output of the stage (to turn it off). This solution, however, is not suitable for use with low-voltage transistors that withstand a gate to source voltage swing at most equal to the supply voltage. In the circuit architecture proposed by this solution, each pass transistor is driven by a gate to source voltage that is higher than the supply voltage (particularly, equal to twice the supply voltage).
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In view of these drawbacks, it is an object of the present invention to overcome these drawbacks and to provide an improved two-phase charge pump circuit.
One embodiment of the present invention provides a charge pump that is suitable to be controlled by a first clock signal and a second clock signal having a period with a first phase and a second phase. The clock signals are out-of-phase and take alternatively a first value and a second value during each pair of consecutive phases. The charge pump includes a sequence of cascade-connected stages each one having a first section and a second section. Each section includes an input terminal and an output terminal (the input terminals in each stage different from a first stage of the sequence being cross-coupled with the output terminals in a preceding stage), a capacitive element having a first terminal and a second terminal (the first terminals in the first and second sections receiving the first and second clock signals, respectively, and the second terminal being coupled with the output terminal of the section), and a controlled switch for coupling the input terminal of the section with the output terminal of the section (the controlled switch having a control terminal). In each stage the control terminals are coupled to each other; the first section further includes first control circuit for coupling the control terminal with the output terminal of the first section during the first phase, and the second section further includes second control circuit for coupling the control terminal with the input terminal of the second section during the second phase.
In some embodiments, the control circuit in each first and second section includes a further controlled switch with a control terminal that is coupled to the input terminal or to the output terminal, respectively. Preferably, the charge pump includes a different output stage for coupling the output terminals of the last stage with a global output terminal of the charge pump.
In one embodiment, in each section the controlled switch is a pass transistor. Preferably, the pass transistor of each first section is of a first type, and the pass transistor of each second section is of a second type opposite to the first type. Preferably, each further controlled switch consists of a control transistor. Preferably, in each first section the control transistor is of the first type and in each second section the control transistor is of the second type. Preferably, each transistor is of the MOSFET type.
The characterizing features of the present invention are set forth in the appended claims. The present invention itself, however, as well as further features and advantages thereof will be best understood by reference to the following detailed description, given purely by way of a non-restrictive indication, to be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.



BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram of a low-voltage charge pump according to an embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the waveforms of the clock signals controlling the charge pump shown in FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a diagram of the architecture of a generic booster stage belonging to the charge pump illustrated in FIG. 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 4 is a diagram of the architecture of an output stage of the charge pump illustrated in FIG. 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention;
FIGS. 5A and 5B depict the flow of electrical charge in a generic booster stage during different operating phases; and
FIGS. 6A-6E are diagrams showing the results of computer simulations executed on the charge pump of FIG. 1.



DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail hereinbelow with reference to the attached drawings.
FIG. 1 is a simplified and generic circuit diagram of a low-voltage charge pump 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The charge pump 100 comprises a plurality of booster stages BSn (where n=1 to k+1) cross-connected in series. A last booster stage BSk+1 is connected to an output stage 110. Each booster stage BSn includes an upper section BSUn (with an input terminal IUn and an output terminal OUn) and a lower section BSDn (with an input terminal IDn and an output terminal ODn). The input terminals IU1 and ID1 (of the first upper and lower sections BSU1, BSD1) define an input terminal 112 of the charge pump 100 that is connected to a terminal providing a power supply voltage Vdd (for example, 1.2-3 V with respect to a reference voltage or ground). The output terminal OUn of a generic upper section BSUn (apart from the last upper section BSUk+1) is connected in series with the input terminal IDn+1 of the lower section BSDn+1 of the next booster stage BSn+1, while the output terminal ODn of a generic lower section BSDn (apart from the last lower section BSDk+1) is connected in series with the input terminal IUn+1 of the upper section BSUn+1 of the next booster stage BSn+1. The output terminals OUk+1 and ODk+1 of the last sections BSUk+1 and BSDk+1 are both connected to the output stage 110. The output stage 110 is in turn connected to an output terminal 115 of the charge pump 100, which provides an output voltage Vout.
Each section BSUn, BSDn comprises a controlled switch (SWUn and SWDn, respectively) and a pumping capacitor (CUn and CDn, respectively). Considering the generic upper section BSUn, a first terminal of the pumping capacitor CUn receives a clock signal #clk, while a second terminal of the pumping capacitor CUn is connected to the output terminal OUn. Considering instead the generic lower section BSDn, a first terminal of the pumping capacitor CDn receives a clock signal clk, while a second terminal of the pumping capacitor CDn is connected to the output terminal ODn. Each controlled switch SWUn, SWDn is connected between the corresponding input terminal IUn, IDn and output terminal OUn, ODn.
Moreover, the upper section BSUn and the lower section BSDn of a generic booster stage BSn are connected to each other for the correct biasing of their controlled switches SWUn, SWDn, as it will be more clear in the following.
Considering now FIG. 2 together with FIG. 1, the clock signals clk and #clk alternately take a value equal to the voltage Vdd or to the ground voltage; the clock signals clk and #clk always provide mutually complementary values. Particularly, the operation of each booster stage BSn is described below with reference to two temporal semi-periods A and B of the clock signals clk and #clk. In the semi-period A, the clock signal #clk provides the ground voltage and the clock signal clk provides the voltage Vdd. In the semi-period B, the clock signal #clk provides the voltage Vdd and the clock signal clk provides the ground voltage.
During the semi-period A, the controlled switches SWUn in the upper sections BSUn are closed, and the controlled switches SWDn in the lower sections BSDn are open. During the semi-period B, the controlled switches SWUn in the upper sections BSUn are open, and the controlled switches SWDn in the lower sections BSDn are closed.
As a consequence, during the semi-period A, the pumping capacitor CUn of a generic upper section BSUn is charged by the lower section BSDn−1 of its previous booster stage BSn−1 (with the pumping capacitor CU1 of the first upper section BSU1 that is charged by the power supply directly).
During the semi-period B, instead, the output terminal OUn of each upper section BSUn goes to the voltage Vdd plus the voltage at the pumping capacitor CUn (with the electric charge accumulated in the pumping capacitor CUn that is transferred to the next lower section BSDn+1).
In the same way, during the semi-period B, the pumping capacitor CDn of a generic lower section BSDn is charged by the upper section BSUn−1 of its previous booster stage BSn−1 (with the pumping capacitor CD, of the first lower section BSD1 that is charged by the power supply directly).
During the semi-period A, instead, the output terminal ODn of each lower section BSDn goes to the voltage Vdd plus the voltage at the pumping capacitor CDn (with the electric charge accumulated in the pumping capacitor CDn that is transferred to the next upper section BSUn+1).
Therefore, during the semi-period A the output terminal OU1 is brought to a voltage Vdd, the output terminal OU2 is brought to a voltage 2*Vdd, and so on until the output terminal OUk+1, that is brought to a voltage (k+1)*Vdd; moreover, the output terminal OD1 is brought to a voltage 2*(Vdd), the output terminal OD2 is brought to a voltage 3*Vdd, and so on until the output terminal ODk+1, that is brought to a voltage (k+2)*Vdd. In the same way, during the semi-period B the output terminal OU1 is brought to a voltage 2*Vdd, the output terminal OU2 is brought to a voltage 3*Vdd, and so on until the output terminal OUk+1, that is brought to a voltage (k+2)*Vdd; moreover, the output terminal OD1 is brought to a voltage Vdd, the output terminal OD2 is brought to a voltage 2*Vdd, and so on until the output terminal ODk+1, that is brought to a voltage (k+1)*Vdd.
Each pair of corresponding sections BSUn and BSDn of a booster stage BSn (except BSU1 and BSD1) is identically configured. Hence, the configuration and operation thereof are described below with reference to FIG. 3 for the nth (numbered n) booster stage BSn as typical of each other booster stage.
The controlled switch SWUn includes an upper PMOS pass transistor PUn for the controlled connection between the (upper) input terminal IUn and the (upper) output terminal OUn of the upper section BSUn. The controlled switch SWDn includes a lower NMOS pass transistor PDn for the controlled connection between the (lower) input IDn and the (lower) output terminal OUn of the lower section BSDn.
Particularly, the upper pass transistor PUn has the drain terminal connected to the upper input terminal IUn, the source terminal connected to the upper output terminal OUn, and the body terminal connected to a common-body terminal BUn. The gate terminal of the upper pass transistor PUn is connected to the gate terminal of the lower pass transistor PDn (node Ng); at the same time, the gate terminal of the upper pass transistor PUn is also connected to the drain terminal of a PMOS transistor MUn, whose purpose is to control the opening of the upper pass transistor PUn, as it will be more clear in the following. The transistor MUn has the source terminal connected to the upper output terminal OUn, the body terminal connected to the common-body terminal BUn, and the gate terminal connected to the upper input terminal IUn. The controlled switch SWUn further includes two PMOS transistors B1Un and B2Un, whose purpose is to bias the body terminal BUn of the upper pass transistor PUn correctly. The transistor B1Un has the source terminal connected to the upper input terminal IUn, the drain terminal and the body terminal connected to the common-body terminal BUn, and the gate terminal connected to the upper output terminal OUn. The transistor B2Un has the source terminal connected to the upper output terminal OUn, the drain terminal and the body terminal connected to the common-body terminal Bn, and the gate terminal connected to the upper input terminal IUn.
The lower pass transistor PDn has the source terminal connected to the lower input terminal IDn, the drain terminal connected to the lower output terminal ODn, and the body terminal connected to a common-body terminal BDn. The gate terminal of the lower pass transistor PDn is connected (in addition to the gate terminal of the upper pass transistor PUn) to the drain terminal of an NMOS transistor MDn, whose purpose is to control the opening of the lower pass transistor PDn, as it will be more clear in the following. The transistor MDn has the source terminal connected to the lower input terminal IDn, the body terminal connected to the common-body terminal BDn, and the gate terminal connected to the lower output terminal ODn. The controlled switch SWDn further includes two NMOS transistors B1Dn and B2Dn, whose purpose is to bias the body terminal BDn of the lower pass transistor PDn correctly. The transistor B1Dn has the source terminal connected to the lower input terminal IDn, the drain terminal and the body terminal connected to the common-body terminal BDn, and the gate terminal connected to the lower output terminal ODn. The transistor B2Dn has the source terminal connected to the lower output terminal ODn, the drain terminal and the body terminal connected to the common-body terminal BDn, and the gate terminal connected to the lower input terminal IDn.
The operation of the charge-pump 100 will be described in the following assuming that no load is connected to its output terminal (and thus no current is sunk).
Particularly, during the semi-period A, the clock signal clk switches to the voltage Vdd, so as to capacitively pull up the voltage of the lower output terminal ODn by Vdd. At the same time, the voltage of the lower input terminal IDn is pulled down by Vdd by the clock signal #clk provided to the upper section BSUn−1 of the previous booster stage BSN−1 (that during semi-period A switches to the ground voltage). Conversely, the upper output terminal OUn is capacitively pulled down by the clock signal #clk, while the voltage of the upper input terminal IUn is pulled up by Vdd by the clock signal clk provided to the lower section BSDn−1 of the previous booster stage BSn−1.
In this semi-period, the transistor MDn turns on because its gate to source voltage is brought to Vdd. Consequently, the gate and the source terminals of the lower pass transistor PDn are brought to the same voltage; in this way the lower pass transistor PDn turns off, and thus the charge transfer between pumping capacitors CUn−1 and CDn is prevented (the pumping capacitor CUn−1 is charged by the previous booster stage).
Conversely, in this semi-period the transistor MUn turns off, because its source to gate voltage is brought to zero. The gate voltage of the upper pass transistor PUn equals the gate voltage of the lower pass transistor PDn, that is in turn brought to the voltage of the lower input terminal IDn by the transistor MDn. In this way, the upper pass transistor PUn turns on (having the source to gate voltage equal to Vdd), and the charge transfer between pumping capacitors CDn−1 and CUn is enabled.
At the same time, the transistor B1Dn turns on, because its gate terminal has a voltage higher than the voltage of its source terminal. The transistor B2Dn instead turns off, because its gate terminal has a voltage lower than the voltage of its source terminal. The transistor B1Dn short-circuits the body terminal and the source terminal of the lower pass transistor PDn, so as to avoid having its body terminal floating, and then preventing a body-effect (that is, an increasing of the threshold voltage of the pass transistors moving toward the output stage of the charge pump due to the voltage difference between the body terminal and the source terminal); this arrangement is explained in more detail in J. Shin et al., “A New Charge Pump Without Degradation in Threshold Voltage Due to Body Effect”, IEEE Journal of Solid State Circuits, vol. 35, no. 8, August 2000, the entire disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference. Still during the semi-period A, the transistor B1Un turns on, because its gate terminal has a voltage lower than the voltage of its source terminal. The transistor B2Un instead turns off, because its gate terminal has a voltage higher than the voltage of its source terminal. The transistor B1Un short-circuits the body terminal and the drain terminal of the upper pass transistor PUn, so as to avoid having its body terminal floating.
During the semi-period B, the clock signal clk switches to the ground voltage, so as to capacitively pull down the voltage of the lower output terminal ODn by Vdd. At the same time, the voltage of the lower input terminal IDn is pulled up by Vdd by the clock signal #clk provided to the upper section BSUn−1 of the previous booster stage BSn−1 (that during semi-period B switches to the voltage Vdd). Conversely, the upper output terminal OUn is capacitively pulled up by the clock signal #clk, while the voltage of the upper input terminal IUn is pulled down by Vdd by the clock signal clk provided to the lower section BSDn−1 of the previous booster stage BSn−1.
In this semi-period, the transistor MUn turns on because its source to gate voltage is brought to Vdd. Consequently, the gate and the source terminals of the upper pass transistor PUn are brought to the same voltage; in this way the upper pass transistor PUn turns off, and thus the charge transfer between pumping capacitors CDn−1 and CUn is prevented (the pumping capacitor CDn−1 is charged by the previous booster stage).
Conversely, in this semi-period the transistor MDn turns off, because its source to gate voltage is brought to zero. The gate voltage of the lower pass transistor PDn equals the gate voltage of the upper pass transistor PUn, that is in turn brought to the voltage of the upper output terminal OUn by the transistor MUn. In this way, the lower pass transistor PDn turns on (having the gate to source voltage equal to Vdd), and the charge transfer between pumping capacitors CUn−1 and CDn is enabled.
At the same time, the transistor B1Dn turns off, because its gate terminal has a voltage lower than the voltage of its source terminal. The transistor B2Dn instead turns on, because its gate terminal has a voltage higher than the voltage of its source terminal. The transistor B2Dn short-circuits the body terminal and the drain terminal of the lower pass transistor PDn, so as to avoid having its body terminal floating. Still during the semi-period B, the transistor B1Un turns off, because its gate terminal has a voltage higher than the voltage of its source terminal. The transistor B2Un instead turns on, because its gate terminal has a voltage lower than the voltage of its source terminal. The transistor B2Un short-circuits the body terminal and the source terminal of the upper pass transistor PUn, so as to avoid having its body terminal floating.
In short, the charge transfer occurs in the upper sections BSUn during the semi-periods A, and in the lower sections BSDn during the semi-periods B.
The configuration and operation of the sections BSU1 and BSD1 of the first booster stage BS1 are similar to those previously described for a generic booster stage BSn. The only difference is that the lower section BSD1 includes a transistor MD1 (corresponding to the transistor MDn of a generic lower section BSDn) having the source terminal that receives the clock signal #clk directly.
As shown in FIG. 4, the circuit structure of the output stage 110 (a non-boosting stage, i.e., without any pumping capacitor) is simpler than the structure of the other booster stages. The task of the output stage 110 is to transfer the boosted voltages generated by the upper and lower booster stages of the charge pump to the output terminal 115, which is connected to an output capacitor 420. Furthermore, the output stage 110 is realized in such a way that during the semi-period A the voltage Vout at the output terminal 115 is the boosted voltage of the lower section BSDk+1 of the last booster stage BSk+1, and during the semi-period B the voltage Vout at the output terminal 115 is the boosted voltage of the higher section BSUk+1 of the last booster stage BSk+1. To realize this function, a PMOS pass transistor 425 is connected between the output upper terminal OUk+1 and the output terminal 115. The gate terminal of the pass transistor 425 is connected to the output lower terminal ODk+1, in such a way that the pass transistor 425 turns on during the semi-period B. In the same way, a PMOS pass transistor 430 is connected between the output lower terminal ODk+1 and the output terminal 115. The gate terminal of the pass transistor 430 is connected to the output upper terminal OUk+1, in such a way that the pass transistor 430 turns on during the semi-period A.
In each booster stage BSn, the voltages at the output terminals OUn, ODn are higher than the corresponding voltages at the output terminals OUn−1, ODn−1 of the previous booster stage BSn−1 by an amount ΔV equal to:




  
    Δ
    ⁢
    
      
    
    ⁢
    V
  
  =
  
    
      
        V
        dd
      
      ⁡
      
        (
        
          
            C
            n
          
          
            
              C
              n
            
            +
            
              C
              p
            
          
        
        )
      
    
    -
    
      
        R
        out
      
      ⁢
      
        I
        out
      
    
  




where the parameter Cn represents the capacitance of either the pumping capacitor CDn or the pumping capacitor CUn, Cp represents the whole parasitic capacitances of the output terminals OUn, ODn, Rout represents the output resistance of each section of the booster stage BSn and Iout represents the output current flowing toward the next booster stage BS+1. As can be seen in the above equation, ΔV, i.e., the voltage gain of a single booster stage BSn, is not affected by the threshold voltages of the pass transistors PUn, PDn.

The output resistance Rout is defined by the following equation.




  
    
      R
      out
    
    =
    
      
        1
        
          2
          ⁢
          
            f
            ⁡
            
              (
              
                
                  C
                  n
                
                +
                
                  C
                  p
                
              
              )
            
          
        
      
      +
      
        R
        
          PUN
          ,
          PDN
        
      
    
  
  ,




where f is the frequency of the clock signals clk, #clk and RPUN,PDN is the conduction resistance of the pass transistors PUn, PDn. As can be seen in the above equation, the output resistance Rout is inversely proportional to the frequency f of the clock signals.

The charge pump of this embodiment is suitable for “low-voltage” technology. In fact, the charge pump is structured in such a way that each transistor has a gate to source voltage at most equal to the voltage Vdd. In this way, it is possible to use pass transistors with lower threshold voltages and to operate at higher frequencies (than in the case of using high-voltage technology); consequently, it is possible to use pumping capacitors of smaller size, without worsening (i.e., increasing) the output resistance of the charge pump.
Moreover, in comparison with the conventional charge pump with low-voltage architecture presented above, the structure of this embodiment of the present invention suffers lower voltage losses due to the conduction resistance of the pass transistors. In fact, unlike the conventional charge pump, the charge transfer from a pumping capacitor to the next one occurs by a single pass transistor per each stage (and not by two series-connected ones); thus, the voltage loss due to conduction resistances is ideally halved.
A further advantage provided by the architecture of this embodiment of the present invention is the possibility of reusing the electric charge which is accumulated at the highly-capacitive gate terminals of the pass transistors PUn, PDn of each booster stage BSn.
More particularly, for the purpose of illustrating this effect, the current flows due to the drift of electric charge in the nth booster stage BSn are illustrated during the semi-period B in FIG. 5A. During the semi-period B, the charge transfer between the booster stage BSn−1 and the booster stage BSn occurs from the pumping capacitor CUn−1 to the pumping capacitor CDn. In this semi-period, the upper pass transistor PUn is turned off, while the lower pass transistor PDn is turned on; moreover, the transistor MUn is turned on, while the transistor MDn is turned off. Consequently, there is a further flow of electrical charge, from the upper output terminal OUn to the gate terminals of the pass transistors PUn and PUd. Since the gate terminals of the pass transistors PUn and PUd forms the highly-capacitive node Ng (the transistor MDn is turned off), the electrical charge provided by the upper output terminal OUn is stored in the latter terminal, which voltage increases.
During the subsequent semi-period A, the situation is inverted. The charge transfer between the booster stage BSn−1 and the booster stage BSn occurs now from the pumping capacitor CDn−1 to the pumping capacitor CUn, as illustrated in FIG. 5B. In this semi-period, the upper pass transistor PUn is turned on, while the lower pass transistor PDn is turned off; moreover, the transistor MUn is turned off, while the transistor MDn is turned on. In order to turn on the upper pass transistor PUn it is necessary that the voltage of the node Ng decreases. Consequently, the electrical charge previously stored in the node Ng during the semi-period B has to be removed therefrom. The only conductive path adapted to this purpose is provided by the transistor MDn. In this way, a flow of electrical charge occurs from the node Ng to the lower input terminal IDn, that is connected to the pumping capacitor CUn−1. Since during the semi-period A the pumping capacitor CUn−1 has to be charged by its previous booster stage BSn−2, the flow of electrical charge due to the discharging of the node Ng helps the charging of the pumping capacitor CUn−1, speeding up the operation of the charge pump 100.
Naturally, in order to satisfy local and specific requirements, one of ordinary skill in the art may apply to the embodiment described above many modifications and alterations. Particularly, although the present invention has been described with a certain degree of particularity with reference to preferred embodiment(s) thereof, it should be understood that various omissions, substitutions and changes in the form and details as well as other embodiments are possible; moreover, it is expressly intended that specific elements and/or method steps described in connection with any disclosed embodiment of the present invention may be incorporated in any other embodiment as a general matter of design choice.
Particularly, similar considerations apply if the charge pump has an equivalent structure or includes other elements (for example, if it is formed by a different number of booster stages or if it is supplied by a voltage having another value); in any case, nothing prevents the use of the present invention in a negative charge pump. Moreover, the use of equivalent components for controlling the gate terminals of the pass transistors is not excluded. Likewise, the output stage may be implemented with an equivalent structure. Similar considerations apply if the NMOS transistors are replaced with PMOS transistors, and vice versa; in any case, the use of bipolar transistors (or more generally any other controlled switches) is within the scope of the present invention.
Experimental Results
To evaluate the performance of an embodiment of the present invention, the charge pump has been simulated on a computer and analyzed at the following operating conditions: switching frequency f=100 MHz, duty cycle of 50% for each clock signal, supply voltage Vdd=1.1V and output current Iout=185 μA.
The charge pump has been dimensioned in such a way to ensure the maximization of its energy efficiency. The capacitance of the pumping capacitors heavily affects the power consumption, and thus the efficiency of the whole charge pump. Consequently, it is necessary to reduce the size of the pumping capacitors as far as possible. Considering a load connected to the output terminal, and thus in presence of an output current Iout, it has been demonstrated that the optimum capacitance Copt is given by the following.




  
    C
    opt
  
  =
  
    
      
        I
        out
      
      
        f
        ⁢
        
          
        
        ⁢
        
          V
          dd
        
      
    
    =
    
      2
      ⁢
      
        
      
      ⁢
      
        pF
        .
      
    
  




This value can easily be used in an integration process, and implies a substantial saving of silicon area.
The dimensioning of both the upper and lower pass transistors has to ensure a good charge transfer between the various booster stages. This is true when the time constant τ of each booster stage is about a fourth of the semi-period of the clock signals. A good result has been achieved with the following values.




  
    
      
        
          
            (
            
              W
              L
            
            )
          
          PUn
        
        =
        36
      
    
  
  
    
      
        
          
            (
            
              W
              L
            
            )
          
          PDn
        
        =
        12
      
    
  




The charge pump has been loaded by inserting a load circuit between the output terminal and a terminal providing the ground voltage. The load circuit is a resistive load having a variable resistance RL connected in parallel with a capacitive load having a capacitance CL of 2 pF (necessary for reducing the voltage ripple of the output voltage Vout).
In the case of a resistive load with RL equal to 20KΩ (FIG. 6A), the output voltage Vout reaches a maximum steady condition voltage of 3.98 V, with a steady condition mean voltage of 3.9 V. Moreover, in this case, the output voltage Vout has a voltage ripple of 175 mV, and a rising time trise equal to about 175 nsec.
FIG. 6B is a diagram showing the output voltage Vout of the proposed charge pump depending on time with different resistance values (RL from 15KΩ to 40 KΩ).
FIG. 6C is a is a diagram showing the output voltage Vout depending on time at different supply voltages Vdd (Vdd from 1.1 V to 1.3 V).
A very important parameter characterizing a charge pump is the energetic efficiency η, defined by the following




  η
  =
  
    
      
        P
        out
      
      
        P
        int
      
    
    *
    100
  




where Pout is the output power supplied to the load by the charge pump, while Pin is the input power provided to the charge pump, that has to comprise the contributions of all the input signals necessary for operating the charge pump, namely, the supply voltage Vdd and the clock signals clk and #clk. Consequently, the energetic efficiency η becomes equal to the following.





  η
  =
  
    
      
        P
        out
      
      
        
          P
          Vdd
        
        +
        
          P
          clk
        
        +
        
          P
          
            #
            ⁢
            clk
          
        
      
    
    *
    100
  




where PVdd is the power provided by the supply voltage Vdd, Pclk is the power provided by the clock signal clk and P#clk is the power provided by the clock signal #clk (the powers are obtained as an average of the voltage-current products after a transient period).

FIG. 6D is a diagram showing the energetic efficiency η of the proposed charge pump depending on the output current Iout (and so, depending on the resistance RL). The energetic efficiency η has an excellent value of about 55% with an output current Iout equal to 200 μA.
The following table shows the results of the simulations relating to the proposed charge pump depending on the resistance RL.










4 stages-charge pump












RL
Vout (max)
Iout (max)
η
ripple
trise





15 KΩ
3.55 V
236 μA
49.70%
208 mV
160.4 nsec


20 KΩ
3.98 V
200 μA
53.70%
170 mV
165.3 nsec


25 KΩ
4.26 V
170 μA
55.20%
150 mV
  170 nsec


30 KΩ
4.46 V
148 μA
55.80%
127 mV
170.3 nsec


35 KΩ
4.62 V
132 μA
55.60%
108 mV
174.9 nsec


40 KΩ
4.74 V
118 μA
55.30%
 98 mV
  175 nsec









From the results illustrated in this table, it can be shown that the output voltage Vout is close to that provided by the theory. In fact, disregarding the parasitic capacitance of the intermediate terminals, the following results.




  
    V
    out
  
  =
  
    
      
        (
        
          k
          +
          1
        
        )
      
      ⁢
      
        
      
      ⁢
      
        V
        dd
      
    
    -
    
      
        k
        ⁢
        
          
        
        ⁢
        
          I
          out
        
      
      
        2
        ⁢
        fC
      
    
  




(C represents the value of each pumping capacitance). In the case of four stages, and with Iout=185 μA, it results that Vout=4.15 V, close to the ideal result.

The proposed charge pump, without a connected load (that is, without output current), allows reaching an output voltage Vout equal to 5.8V, a value that is close to the theoretical value of 6V obtainable with Vdd=1.2V (the difference is caused by the parasitic capacitance on the intermediate terminals).
Moreover, still from the results illustrated in the table above, it can be shown that the raising time trise is always lower than 200 nsec.
For the purpose of better evaluating the reliability of the present invention, in the following there are illustrated the results of computer simulations obtained varying the number of booster stages included in the charge pump.
In particular, the following tables show the results of simulations relating to the proposed charge pump implemented with six, eight and ten booster stages, depending on the resistance RL.










6 stages-charge pump











RL
Vout (max)
Iout (max)
η
trise





25 KΩ
5.12 V
205 μA
49.21%
355.6 nsec


30 KΩ
5.47 V
182 μA
52.92%
359.9 nsec


35 KΩ
5.74 V
164 μA
54.09%
359.8 nsec


40 KΩ
5.96 V
149 μA
54.98%
359.8 nsec


45 KΩ
6.15 V
137 μA
55.52%
360.4 nsec


50 KΩ
 6.3 V
126 μA
55.73%
364.6 nsec


55 KΩ
6.43 V
117 μA
55.62%
364.8 nsec


60 KΩ
6.54 V
109 μA
55.27%
365.4 nsec



















8 stages-charge pump











RL
Vout (max)
Iout (max)
η
trise





30 KΩ
6.26 V
208 μA
48.36%
619.3 nsec


35 KΩ
6.68 V
190 μA
52.88%
619.7 nsec


40 KΩ
  7 V
175 μA
54.11%
623.1 nsec


45 KΩ
7.28 V
161 μA
55.21%
621.2 nsec


50 KΩ
 7.5 V
150 μA
55.92%
621.4 nsec


55 KΩ
 7.7 V
140 μA
56.39%
625.4 nsec


60 KΩ
7.87 V
131 μA
56.71%
625.3 nsec


65 KΩ
8.02 V
123 μA
56.83%
625.5 nsec


70 KΩ
8.15 V
116 μA
56.81%
625.9 nsec


75 KΩ
8.27 V
110 μA
56.67%
630.1 nsec


80 KΩ
 8.4 V
105 μA
56.15%
630.6 nsec



















10 stages-charge pump











RL
Vout (max)
Iout (max)
η
trise





45 KΩ
 8.3 V
184 μA
55.01%
904.4 nsec


50 KΩ
 8.6 V
172 μA
56.30%
903.7 nsec


55 KΩ
8.87 V
161 μA
57.40%
901.4 nsec


60 KΩ
 9.1 V
151 μA
58.19%
906.2 nsec


65 KΩ
 9.3 V
143 μA
58.78%
910.9 nsec


70 KΩ
9.48 V
135 μA
59.20%
911.3 nsec


75 KΩ
9.64 V
128 μA
59.49%
  916 nsec


80 KΩ
9.79 V
122 μA
59.68%
920.7 nsec


85 KΩ
9.92 V
116 μA
59.77%
  921 nsec


90 KΩ
10.05 V 
112 μA
59.77%
925.9 nsec


95 KΩ
10.15 V 
107 μA
59.72%
930.5 nsec


100 KΩ 
10.20 V 
102 μA
59.62%
930.7 nsec









For the purpose of evaluating the effects on the energetic efficiency η of the number of booster stages, FIG. 6E shows the comparison among the energetic efficiencies η of the proposed charge pump implemented with six, eight and ten booster stages.
By inspecting FIG. 6E, it is possible to assert that the qualitative trend of the energetic efficiency η depending on the output current Iout is similar in all the three cases taken in exam (i.e., with six, eight or ten booster stages). Moreover, for the same output current Iout, the energetic efficiency η increases with the number of boosting stages. This latest feature is due to the increased output voltages Vout, the decreased ripple voltages, and the stronger reuse of the electric charge.
While there has been illustrated and described what are presently considered to be the preferred embodiments of the present invention, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various other modifications may be made, and equivalents may be substituted, without departing from the true scope of the present invention. Additionally, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation to the teachings of the present invention without departing from the central inventive concept described herein. Furthermore, an embodiment of the present invention may not include all of the features described above. Therefore, it is intended that the present invention not be limited to the particular embodiments disclosed, but that the invention include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims.

## Claims

1. A two-phase charge pump capable of being controlled by a first clock signal having a first phase and a second clock signal having a second phase, the first and second clock signals being out-of-phase and taking alternatively a first value and a second value during consecutive phases, the charge pump comprising:
a sequence of cascade-connected stages that each have a first section and a second section, each of the first and second sections including:
an input terminal and an output terminal, the input terminal of each of the stages other than the first stage of the sequence being cross-coupled with the output terminal of a preceding stage;
a capacitive element having a first terminal and a second terminal, the second terminal being coupled with the output terminal of the section, the first terminal in each of the first sections receiving the first clock signal, the first terminal in each of the second sections receiving the second clock signal; and
a controlled switch coupling the input terminal of the section with the output terminal of the section, the controlled switch having a control terminal,

wherein in each of the stages, the control terminal of the controlled switch of the first section is directly connected to the control terminal of the controlled switch of the second section,
each of the first sections further includes a first control circuit coupling the control terminal with the output terminal of the first section during the first phase, and
each of the second sections further includes a second control circuit coupling the control terminal with the input terminal of the second section during the second phase.

2. The charge pump according to claim 1,
wherein in each of the first sections, the first control circuit includes a first additional controlled switch having a control terminal coupled to the input terminal of the first section, and
in each of the second sections, the second control circuit includes a second additional controlled switch having a control terminal coupled to the output terminal of the second section.

3. The charge pump according to claim 2, further comprising:
a global output terminal; and
an output stage cascade-connected to a last stage of the sequence; and
wherein the output stage includes a first output controlled switch coupling the output terminal of the first section in the last stage with the global output terminal,
the output stage further includes a second output controlled switch coupling the output terminal of the second section in the last stage with the global output terminal,
the first output controlled switch has a control terminal coupled with the output terminal of the second section in the last stage, and
the second output controlled switch has a control terminal coupled with the output terminal of the first section in the last stage.

4. The charge pump according to claim 3, wherein in each of the first and second sections, the controlled switch consists of a pass transistor that is connected between the input terminal of the section and the output terminal of the section.

5. A two-phase charge pump capable of being controlled by a first clock signal having a first phase and a second clock signal having a second phase, the first and second clock signals being out-of-phase and taking alternatively a first value and a second value during consecutive phases, the charge pump comprising:
a sequence of cascade-connected stages that each have a first section and a second section, each of the first and second sections including:
an input terminal and an output terminal, the input terminal of each of the stages other than the first stage of the sequence being cross-coupled with the output terminal of a preceding stage;
a capacitive element having a first terminal and a second terminal, the second terminal being coupled with the output terminal of the section; the first terminal in each of the first sections receiving the first clock signal, the first terminal in each of the second sections receiving the second clock signal; and
a controlled switch coupling the input terminal of the section with the output terminal of the section, the controlled switch having a control terminal,

wherein in each of the stages, the control terminals are coupled to each other,
each of the first sections further includes a first control circuit coupling the control terminal with the output terminal of the first section during the first phase,
each of the second sections further includes a second control circuit coupling the control terminal with the input terminal of the second section during the second phase,
in each of the first and second sections, the controlled switch consists of a pass transistor that is connected between the input terminal of the section and the output terminal of the section, and
the pass transistor of each of the first sections is of a first type, and the pass transistor of each of the second sections is of a second type, which is opposite of the first type.

6. The charge pump according to claim 2,
wherein in each of the first sections, the first additional controlled switch consists of a first control transistor connected between the control terminal and the output terminal of the first section, and
in each of the second sections, the second additional controlled switch consists of a second control transistor connected between the control terminal and the input terminal of the second section.

7. The charge pump according to claim 6,
wherein in each of the first sections, the first control transistor is of the first type, and
in each of the second sections, the second control transistor is of the second type.

8. The charge pump according to claim 3,
wherein the first output controlled switch consists of a first output transistor connected between the output terminal of the first section in the last stage and the global output terminal, and
the second output controlled switch consists of a second output transistor connected between the output terminal of the second section in the last stage and the global output terminal.

9. The charge pump according to claim 8, wherein the first output transistor is of the first type and the second output transistor is of the second type.

10. The charge pump according to claim 5, wherein each transistor of the first type is a PMOS transistor, and each transistor of the second type is an NMOS transistor.

11. An integrated circuit including at least one two-phase charge pump capable of being controlled by a first clock signal and a second clock signal that are out-of-phase and take alternatively a first value and a second value, the charge pump comprising:
a sequence of cascade-connected stages that each have a first section and a second section, each of the first and second sections including:
an input terminal and an output terminal, the input terminal of each of the stages other than the first stage of the sequence being cross-coupled with the output terminal of a preceding stage;
a capacitive element having a first terminal and a second terminal, the second terminal being coupled with the output terminal of the section, the first terminal in each of the first sections receiving the first clock signal, the first terminal in each of the second sections receiving the second clock signal; and
a controlled switch coupling the input terminal of the section with the output terminal of the section, the controlled switch having a control terminal,

wherein in each of the stages, the control terminal of the controlled switch of the first section is directly connected to the control terminal of the controlled switch of the second section,
each of the first sections further includes a first control circuit coupling the control terminal with the output terminal of the first section during the first phase, and
each of the second sections further includes a second control circuit coupling the control terminal with the input terminal of the second section during the second phase.

12. The integrated circuit according to claim 11,
wherein in each of the first sections of the charge pump, the first control circuit includes a first additional controlled switch having a control terminal connected to the input terminal of the first section, and
in each of the second sections of the charge pump, the second control circuit includes a second additional controlled switch having a control terminal coupled to the output terminal of the second section.

13. The integrated circuit according to claim 12, wherein the charge pump further comprises:
a global output terminal; and
an output stage cascade-connected to a last stage of the sequence; and
wherein the output stage includes a first output controlled switch coupling the output terminal of the first section in the last stage with the global output terminal,
the output stage further includes a second output controlled switch coupling the output terminal of the second section in the last stage with the global output terminal,
the first output controlled switch has a control terminal coupled with the output terminal of the second section in the last stage, and
the second output controlled switch has a control terminal coupled with the output terminal of the first section in the last stage.

14. The integrated circuit according to claim 13, wherein in each of the first and second sections of the charge pump, the controlled switch consists of a pass transistor that is connected between the input terminal of the section and the output terminal of the section.

15. An integrated circuit, including at least one two-phase charge pump capable of being controlled by a first clock signal and a second clock signal that are out-of-phase and take alternatively a first value and a second value, the charge pump comprising:
a sequence of cascade-connected stages that each have a first section and a second section, each of the first and second sections including:
an input terminal and an output terminal, the input terminal of each of the stages other than the first stage of the sequence being cross-coupled with the output terminal of a preceding stage;
a capacitive element having a first terminal and a second terminal, the second terminal being coupled with the output terminal of the section; the first terminal in each of the first sections receiving the first clock signal, the first terminal in each of the second sections receiving the second clock signal; and
a controlled switch coupling the input terminal of the section with the output terminal of the section, the controlled switch having a control terminal,

wherein in each of the stages, the control terminals are coupled to each other,
each of the first sections further includes a first control circuit coupling the control terminal with the output terminal of the first section during the first phase,
each of the second sections further includes a second control circuit coupling the control terminal with the input terminal of the second section during the second phase,
in each of the first and second sections of the charge pump, the controlled switch consists of a pass transistor that is connected between the input terminal of the section and the output terminal of the section, and
the pass transistor of each of the first sections of the charge pump is of a first type, and the pass transistor of each of the second sections of the charge pump is of a second type, which is opposite of the first type.

16. The integrated circuit according to claim 12,
wherein in each of the first sections of the charge pump, the first additional controlled switch consists of a first control transistor having a first terminal connected to the control terminal of the controlled switch of the first section and a second terminal connected to the output terminal of the first section, and
in each of the second sections of the charge pump, the second additional controlled switch consists of a second control transistor connected between the control terminal and the input terminal of the second section.

17. The integrated circuit according to claim 16,
wherein in each of the first sections of the charge pump, the first control transistor is of the first type, and
in each of the second sections of the charge pump, the second control transistor is of the second type.

18. The integrated circuit according to claim 13,
wherein the first output controlled switch of the charge pump consists of a first output transistor connected between the output terminal of the first section in the last stage and the global output terminal, and
the second output controlled switch of the charge pump consists of a second output transistor connected between the output terminal of the second section in the last stage and the global output terminal.

19. The integrated circuit according to claim 15, wherein in the charge pump, each transistor of the first type is a PMOS transistor, and each transistor of the second type is an NMOS transistor.

20. The charge pump according to claim 1, wherein in each of the first sections, the first control circuit includes a first control transistor having a first terminal connected to the control terminal of the controlled switch of the first section, a second terminal connected to the output terminal of the first section, and a control terminal connected to the input terminal of the first section.