Patent ID: 7012473

Claim:
A charge pump for receiving control signals, the charge pump sourcing and sinking current in response to the control signals, the charge pump comprisng: a main current source; a secondary current source; a main current sink; a secondary current sink; three current paths provided between the current sources and the current sinks, wherein a first current path and an output node is provided between the main current source and the main current sink, a second current path is provided between the main current source and the secondary current sink, and a third current path is provided between the secondary current source and the main current sink wherein each of the three parallel current paths includes at least one switch, wherein three current paths are parallel current paths, and wherein each of the three current paths includes an upper switch connected in series with a lower switch, wherein the common node of the switches of the first current path defines the output node, wherein the common nodes of the switches of the second and third current paths define two central nodes, and further comprising first and second buffers operative to maintain the node voltages of the central nodes of the second and third current paths at the same voltage as the output node, each buffer coupled between two of the current paths.