High-speed active-input cascode current mirror

A high-speed active-input cascode current mirror is presented. The proposed configuration combines a high output impedance with the high-frequency performance of a source- or emitter-driven active-input topology. Simulation results in a 0.35 μm SiGe BiCMOS are presented to demonstrate the validation of the proposed current mirror. A much higher (about 30 to 40 times) output impedance is achieved, with no degradation in the high-frequency behaviour compared to conventional emitter-driven active-input current mirrors, without increasing the power consumption. The proposed configuration can be applied to both bipolar and CMOS technology.