TRANSMISSION LINE TERMINATOR FOR OFF-CHIP DRIVER

Abstract: A signal transmission line terminator for an off-chip driver circuit is disclosed in which each capacitor (C1, C2) and resistor (R1) comprised in the terminator are formed on the same chip (1) separate from the driver circuit chip. The close proximity of the elements of the terminator reduce the path lengths therebetween to a minimum. The structure substantially eliminates the corresponding inductive reac­ tance and concommitant ΔI noise at high switching rates employed in high performance computers.

Description: This invention relates to signal transmission line terminators for off-chip driver circuits. In conventional designs, the terminator resistors for off-chip driver circuits are located on the same chip with the receiver or driver circuits. Decoupling capacitors, if any, are located on the module or card on which the chips with the terminator resistors are placed. Examples of the placement of a receiver circuit or driver circuit on the same chip with terminator resistors are described in U.S. Patent 3,832,575, entitled "Data Bus Transmission Line Termination Circuit", and in U.S. Patent 4,228,369, entitled "Integrated Circuit Interconnection Structure Having Precision Terminating Resistors". Although there is a saving in processing cost and other advantages in placing terminator resistors on active circuit chips having receiver and driver circuits, a switching noise (ΔI) problem arises as the driver circuits are operated at the extremely high switching rates of high performance computers. The current pulses of the data signals issuing from the driver circuits encounter significant inductive reactance in traversing the distance between the terminator resistors and the power supply return line. The resulting reactive voltage transients cause substantial ΔI noise which can produce false data or errors in the functioning of the logic circuits or storage devices connected to the same return line. The problem of supplying current to off-chip drivers operating at extremely high switching rates, which precludes obtaining current from more distant power supplies due to the inductance of the interconnecting lines, is addressed in an article "Decoupling Capacitor Implementation Scheme" by I. Feinberg et al., published in the IBM Technical Disclosure Bulletin, Vol. 22, No. 11, April 1980, p. 4919. Terminator resistors and ΔI noise problems are not discussed. Accordingly, there is a need to terminate a transmission line from an off-chip driver in such a way that extremely fast switching rates may be realized without the introduction of objectionable ΔI noise. For solving this problem, the invention as claimed in Claim 1 provides a signal transmission line terminator for an off-chip driver circuit comprising a resistor and a decoupling capacitor for each voltage source, placed on one chip, separate from the driver chip, in such a way that the path inductance between the resistor and each capacitor is reduced to a minimum. This arrangement greatly reduces ΔI terminator noise and significantly enhances system performance, especially at the extremely high data switching rates encountered in high performance computers. In the sequel, an embodiment of the invention is described with reference to two drawings. Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a terminator resistor and representative decoupling capacitors of the single chip configuration of the present invention; and Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a chip structure equivalent to the schematic diagram of Fig. 1. Push-pull drivers, characterized by a plurality of voltage sources (V C and V T ) connected to the output elements thereof, are widely used in high performance machines. Accordingly, the preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in the context of such a driver. To reduce power dissipation, the terminator resistor of such a driver is connected to V G . V G is a voltage level between V C and V T . The switching current from a state-of-the-art push-pull driver chip flows via its terminator resistor through the power pins to the module decoupling capacitors or board decoupling capacitors, as the case may be, and to the respective voltage sources V C and V T . There is normally very large AC resistance between V C and V G (ground) and between V T and V G (ground) for most chip circuit designs. Consequently, there is no substantial loading effect presented by the internal chip circuits to alleviate ΔI switching noise. This fact, coupled with the relatively high inductive reactance presented by the power pins through which the switching currents flow from all driver circuits, produces unacceptable ΔI noise when large numbers of driver circuits switch simultaneously. The limiting factor for the maximum acceptable number of simultaneously stitching drivers has been found to be the inductance in the path between the driver circuit chip terminator resistor and the respective decoupling capacitors. In accordance with the present invention, the aforementioned limiting factor is removed by use of a unique decoupling capacitor-terminator resistor chip in which capacitors and resistors are merged, thereby minimizing the path inductance therebetween. The basic design is shown in Fig. 1 in which decoupling capacitors C1 and C2 are formed with terminator-resistor R1 on the same chip 1 separate from the chip (not shown) on which the push-pull driver circuit is located. The two chips normally are mounted on, and connected together through, a module. One terminal of each of capacitors C1 and C2 is connected to a respective voltage source V C and V T . The other capacitor terminals are commonly connected to ground and to one terminal of resistor R1. The other terminal of resistor R1 is connected to the output of a respective push-pull driver circuit on a separate chip (not shown). A preferred embodiment of the chip 1 structure of Fig. 1 is shown in the Fig. 2 cross-section. The same designations are used in Fig. 2 for the corresponding elements of Fig. 1. Resistor R1 consists of n diffusion 3 in P⁻ chip substrate 2. Silicon dioxide layer 4 is apertured to allow contacts 5 and 6 to opposite ends of resistor R1. Contact 5 is connected to ground member 10 which also forms a common plate of capacitors C2 and C1. Additional dielectric layer 7 separates member 10 from the opposing plates 8 and 9 of capacitors C2 and C1, respectively. Plates 8 and 9, in turn, are connected to voltage sources V T and V C , respectively. Contact 6 is connected to the output of an associated push-pull driver (not shown) which also is connected to voltage sources V T and V C . It should be noted that the connection 5 between resistor R1 and capacitors C2 and C1 is of minimal length (less than a micrometer) and of negligible inductive reactance at the switching speeds of high performance machines so that ΔI noise is substantially eliminated, as previously explained.

Claims: A signal transmission line terminator for a driver circuit on a first semiconductor chip energized by at least one source of voltage (V T , V C ) relative to ground (V G ), comprising: on a second chip (1; 2), one capacitor (C1, C2) for each said voltage source and a resistor (R1; 3), said first and second chips being connected to each other, one terminal (5) of said resistor and one terminal of each said capacitor being connected to said ground (V G ), the other terminal (6) of said resistor being connected to said driver circuit, the other terminal of each said capacitor being connected to to a respective one (V T , V C ) of said at least one voltage source, said resistor being formed of a doped region (3) of one conductivity type in said second chip and covered by a first dielectric layer (4) apertured to provide first (5) and second (6) conductive contacts to said region, and each said capacitor (C1, C2) being formed of a first conductive layer (10) on the upper surface of said first dielectric layer (4) and a respective second conductive layer (8, 9) spaced from said first layer by a second dielectric layer (7), said first conductive layer (10) and one of said contacts (5) being connected together and to said ground (V G ), the connection being of minimal length, preferably less than about 1 µm. The terminator defined in claim 1, characterized in that said first and second chips are mounted on, and connected together via, a module. The terminator defined in claim 1, characterized in that said driver circuit is a push-pull driver circuit energized by two sources of voltage (V C , V T ). The terminator defined in claim 3, characterized in that two capacitors (C1, C2) are formed on said second chip.

Inventors: FEINBERG, IRVING, WU, LEON LI-HENG, YUAN, LEO
Applicants: INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION
Application year: 1984
Main classification: H01L27
IPC codes: H01L27, H01L21, H03K19, H01L23