High-voltage power delivery through charge recycling

In this paper, we describe a technique for delivering power to a digital integrated circuit at high voltages, reducing current demands and easing requirements on power-ground network impedances. The design approach consists of stacking CMOS logic domains to operate from a voltage supply that is a multiple of the nominal supply voltage. DC-DC downconversion is performed using charge recycling without the need for explicit downconverters. Experimental results are presented for the prototype system in a 0.18-μm CMOS technology operating at both 3.6 V and 5.4 V. Peak energy efficiencies as high as 93% are demonstrated at 3.6 V.