Patent ID: 8829971

Claim:
A level shifter circuit for transmitting a signal of a first electric potential system to a second electric potential system for which the power supply potential difference is larger than the first electric potential system, comprising: a first circuit for receiving an input signal of the first electric potential system which uses a first high potential which is on the high potential side and a first low potential which is on the low potential side as the power supply electric potential, and outputs a first signal which is a signal of the first electric potential system, the first circuit operating with the first electric potential system; a second circuit which generates an output signal, according to the input signal, of the second electric potential system which uses as the power supply electric potential a second high potential which is on the high potential side and a second low potential which is on the low potential side, the second circuit operating with the second electric potential system; and a buffer circuit which receives the input signal and outputs a logically equivalent second signal to the input signal, the second signal being a signal of the first electric potential system, the buffer circuit operating with the first electric potential system, the second circuit including an initial stage inverter which is an inverter circuit that receives the second signal and outputs a third signal, and an initial stage switch that switches between connecting and disconnecting the initial stage inverter and a power supply that supplies the second high potential or a power supply that supplies the second low potential, based on the first signal, and generates the output signal based on the third signal.