Title :
Low power pulse generator as a capacitive interface for MEMS applications
Author :
Al Kadi Jazairli, Mohamad ; Flandre, Denis
Author_Institution :
Microelectron. Lab., Univ. Catholique de Louvain, Louvain-La-Neuve, Belgium
Abstract :
This paper presents an ultra low power pulse generator based on special design of a voltage controlled ring oscillator (VCRO). This pulse generator can be used as a capacitive sensor interface for MEMS applications with the advantage of using short pulse width to achieve lower power consumption and high sensitivity for low capacitance. The pulse frequency can be controlled by voltage bias. The design is made using 2 mum MEMS compatible silicon-on-insulator CMOS technology. The power consumption is estimated to be in the range of 2 muW when the pulse frequency is set to 300 kHz.
Keywords :
CMOS integrated circuits; capacitive sensors; integrated circuit design; low-power electronics; microsensors; pulse generators; silicon-on-insulator; voltage-controlled oscillators; MEMS compatible silicon-on-insulator CMOS technology; Si; VCRO design; capacitive sensor interface; frequency 300 kHz; pulse frequency; ultralow power pulse generator; voltage controlled ring oscillator; CMOS technology; Capacitive sensors; Energy consumption; Frequency estimation; Micromechanical devices; Pulse generation; Ring oscillators; Silicon on insulator technology; Voltage control; Voltage-controlled oscillators;
Conference_Titel :
Research in Microelectronics and Electronics, 2009. PRIME 2009. Ph.D.
Conference_Location :
Cork
Print_ISBN :
978-1-4244-3733-7
Electronic_ISBN :
978-1-4244-3734-4
DOI :
10.1109/RME.2009.5201366
