Abstract: A device comprises a termination impedance circuit, coupled to a communication link. The termination impedance circuit provides a termination impedance of the device, wherein the impedance is selectable. A second device comprises an echo-cancel hybrid circuit, coupled to a communication link, that provides an echo cancel characteristic, wherein the characteristic is selectable.

Abstract: The present invention provides an improved reference source. The reference source has reduced sensitivity to the input offset voltage of the amplifier components in the reference circuit. This is achieved by subtracting two currents at the reference output node such that the combined offset sensitivity is less than the corresponding offset sensitivity for only one current.

Abstract: An amplifier has an input terminal to receive an input signal. The amplifier includes a first gain stage comprising a pair of input transistors and a second gain stage to drive an output stage. The output stage provides inverting and non-inverting differential output signals on inverting and non-inverting output nodes. The amplifier may also include a feedback signal electrically connected between the inverting and non-inverting output nodes to emitters of the input transistors through a resistor network.

Abstract: A modified pipeline architecture allows the simple implementation of a foreground calibration technique with the continuous calibration benefits of the background calibration techniques. To calibrate a stage in the pipeline, a calibration voltage is presented to the input instead of the output from the previous stage. To prevent loss of information, the output data of the previous stage is passed on to a stage further down.

Abstract: A microelectromechanical system is fabricated from a substrate having a handle layer, a silicon sacrificial layer and a device layer. A micromechanical structure is etched in the device layer and the underlying silicon sacrificial layer is etched away to release the micromechanical structure for movement. One particular micromechanical structure described is a micromirror.

Abstract: A comparator includes a circuit which provides a plurality of common-mode difference signals in response to differential input signals. The circuit provides a common-mode feedback signal in response to the plurality of common-mode difference signals. The common-mode feedback signal is used to drive the common-mode level of an amplifier to a desired value.

Abstract: In one aspect, a method and apparatus for advancing a state of a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) computation on a transmitted message via a look-up table (LUT) storing a plurality of entries associated with possible states of the CRC computation is provided. A plurality of indexes is computed based on a message chunk and a current state of the CRC computation to obtain a plurality of entries from an LUT. The plurality of entries is used to determine an advanced state of the CRC computation. In another aspect, the LUT is accessed with the plurality of indexes in parallel. In another aspect the LUT includes fewer than 2k entries, where k is the number of states advanced on each iteration.

Abstract: Bridge structures provide a surface on which to form interconnections to components through through-hole vias. The bridge structures at least partially, and preferably fully, span the gap between two wafers, and, more specifically, between a through-hole via in one wafer and a corresponding component on the other wafer. Bridge structure may be formed on the wafer having the through-hole via and/or the wafer having the component.

Abstract: An acquisition and averaging circuit is provided in which, during a sampling phase capacitors in sample blocks 4 and 6 are sequentially connected to the input signal to sample it and are then isolated so as to hold the sample. The capacitors are then connected to a combining/averaging arrangement such that an average of the sample values is formed.

Abstract: In one aspect, an automatic gain control (AGC) for applying a variable gain to a broadband signal is provided. The AGC comprises a variable gain amplifier adapted to receive the broadband signal as an input, the variable gain amplifier configured to apply a variable gain to the broadband signal based on a value of a gain signal to provide an amplified broadband signal, and a controller to provide the gain signal to the variable gain amplifier, the controller adapted to determine the value of the gain signal based on at least one characteristic of the amplified broadband signal. In a further aspect, the one or more characteristic is a power characteristic of the broadband signal that facilitates control of the broadband signal within a desired power range.

Abstract: The invention provides a sensor element formed in a first substrate and at least one optical element formed in a second substrate, the first and second substrates being configured relative to one another such that the second substrate forms a cap over the at least one sensor element, the at least one optical element being configured to guide incident radiation on the cap to the at least one sensor element.

Abstract: A Galois field multiply/multiply-add/multiply-accumulate system includes a multiplier circuit for multiplying two polynomials with coefficients over a Galois field to obtain their product; a Galois field linear transformer circuit responsive to the multiplier circuit for predicting the modulo remainder of the polynomial product for an irreducible polynomial; a storage circuit for supplying to the Galois field linear transformer circuit a set of coefficient for predicting the modulo remainder for a predetermined irreducible polynomial; and a Galois field adder circuit for adding the product of the multiplier circuit with a third polynomial with coefficients over a Galois field for performing the multiplication and add operations in a single cycle.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a digital signal processor includes look ahead logic to decrease the number of bubbles inserted in the processing pipeline. The processor receives data containing instructions in a plurality of buffers and decodes the size of a first instruction. The beginning of a second instruction is determined based on the size of the first instruction. The size of the second instruction is decoded and the processor determines whether loading the second instruction will deplete one of the plurality of buffers.

Abstract: A multiplying current mirror provides at least one base current compensation stage between two other stages that establish a desired gain n. (n?1) compensation stages are provided for n>1, and [(1/n)?1] compensation stages for n<1. The compensation stages can be established as series connected repetitions of a basic cell stage. Each stage after the first includes a diode-connected bipolar transistor, with a low overall transistor count.

Abstract: A touch screen controller has a converter that digitizes analog input as a function of an interference signal generated by an underlying touch screen device. To that end, the touch screen controller includes a set of inputs for receiving the noted interference signal from the touch screen device. The set of inputs also receives analog data from the touch screen device. The above noted converter, which is operatively coupled with the set of inputs, is capable of digitizing the analog data received from the touch screen device as a function of the interference signal.

Abstract: A method for enhancing the linearity of a differential capacitive sensor as a function of beam displacement. An ac-modulated feedback connection from a sensor output terminal to a movable beam electrode is provided through a fix-up capacitor. The output terminal signal is inverted in the feedback connection so that the fix-up capacitor reduces the capacitance from the fixed electrodes to the beam electrode. When the fix-up capacitor value is chosen approximately equal to the fixed capacitance of the differential capacitor, the feedback circuit compensates for the effect of this fixed capacitance. The linearity of the output as a function of the displacement of the beam is improved. Thus, the signal-to-noise ratio of devices such as accelerometers may be increased by allowing sensors to employ a large displacement range. The invention may be used in differential accelerometers and in other types of differential capacitive sensors.

Abstract: A system is disclosed for processing digital signals in a data converter. The system includes a thermometer encoder for receiving signed binary data and for providing signed thermometer data. The signed thermometer data includes positive thermometer data and negative thermometer data. The system also includes a shuffler that receives positive input data responsive to the positive thermometer data and receives negative input data responsive to the negative thermometer data. The system also includes a decoder for receiving output data from the shuffler and providing decoded data to an analog output stage.

Abstract: A switching voltage regulator includes a switching transistor connected to conduct a current (i) between a supply voltage and a first node in response to a control signal which cycles the transistor on and off, and a “pre-driver” circuit which provides the control signal. The control signal is pulled up and down with a current Idrv. The pre-driver circuit adaptively varies Idrv such that it is at a relatively low level when the rate of change of current i (di/dt) in the switching transistor is relatively high, and is at a relatively high level when di/dt is relatively low.

Abstract: A micromechanical relay is made by surface micromachining techniques. It includes a metallic cantilever beam deflectable by an electrostatic field and a beam contact connected to the beam and electrically insulated from the beam by an insulating segment. During operation, the beam deflects, and the beam contact establishes an electrical contact between two drain electrodes.

Abstract: A logic signal isolator comprising a transformer having a primary winding and a secondary winding; a transmitter circuit which drives said primary winding in response to a received logic signal, such that in response to a first type of edge in the logic signal, a signal of a first predetermined type is supplied to the primary winding and in response to a second type of edge in the logic signal, a signal of a second predetermined type is supplied to said primary winding, the primary winding and the transmitter being referenced to a first ground; and the secondary winding being referenced to a second ground which is galvanically isolated from the first ground and said secondary winding supplying to a receiver circuit signals received in correspondence to the signals provided to the primary winding, the receiver reconstructing the received logic signal from the received signals.