Patent ID: 7180383

Claim:
A capacitor arrangement that is operable to be connected to and disconnected from a circuit, comprising: a first capacitor element having a main terminal and an auxiliary terminal; a second capacitor element having a main terminal and an auxiliary terminal; wherein the first and second capacitor elements each have one control electrode connected to its respective main terminal, and each have a channel with a controllable conductivity connected to the auxiliary terminal; wherein the auxiliary terminals of the first and second capacitor elements are connected to one another at a reference node; wherein the main terminal of the first capacitor element and the main terminal of the second capacitor element form terminals of the capacitor; wherein a control input is coupled to the reference node, and based upon a state thereof is operable to alter a capacitance of the capacitor, thereby selectively connecting or disconnecting the capacitor to or from the circuit, respectively; an inverter configured to couple the control input to the reference node; and a driver transistor having a controlled path and configured to selectively connect the reference node to a reference potential terminal, the driver transistor comprising a control terminal connected to the control input of the arrangement.