Abstract: In the preferred embodiment, a current source is switchable between two precisely defined output currents. A terminal of a coupling capacitor is coupled to the gate of an output MOSFET. The other terminal of the capacitor is switched between two reference voltages to toggle the MOSFET to output the selected one of the two currents. A switchable bias voltage source is coupled to the gate only during the on state of the MOSFET to set the gate voltage of the MOSFET. The current output of the current source is quickly and accurately changed. A reference MOSFET is not directly coupled to the output MOSFET, so there are no slow settling components coupled to the gate of the output MOSFET.

Abstract: Circuits and methods are provided that compensate for dynamic errors caused by voltage drops across a switch coupled in series with a capacitor in an electrical circuit such as a track-and-hold circuit. In such circuits, the capacitor should provide the same voltage as a signal coupled to the switch, but does not because of the switch voltage drop. The switch can be, for example, a MOSFET or more particularly a CMOS device. Dynamic errors are compensated for by measuring the voltage drop across the switch and then effectively adding the measured voltage drop to a voltage provided by the capacitor.

Abstract: Improved pipelined successive approximation analog-to-digital converter circuits are provided. Some embodiments of the present invention comprises two stages in which a first portion of the total bits are evaluated in the first stage of the circuit and then the residue is passed to the second stage of the circuit that evaluates the remaining portion. By operating both stages simultaneously, the throughput is increased. These embodiments utilize two matched buffers to isolate the first and second stages from switching errors of a sampling circuit and the loading effects of comparators associated with the two stages. In another embodiment, upon completion of the conversion of the MSBs, the remaining input signal or residue signal is amplified by a preamp and the output is subsequently sampled by a residue sample and hold circuit (S/H). After the residue is sampled by the residue S/H, the second stage begins to solve the least significant bits (LSBs). The second stage is a matched copy of the first stage.

Abstract: A current-input, autoscaling, dual-slope A/D converter includes means for adjusting the integration period of the input current to effectively adjust a scale factor associated with the converter. An integrator circuit of the converter includes means for precharging an integration capacitor of the integrator circuit to an off-set voltage associated with an amplifier of the integrator circuit, so as to effectively eliminate integration error due to the off-set voltage. A PMOS switching transistor associated with precharging the integration capacitor is formed in an n-well biased to a voltage approximately equal in magnitude to a voltage held across the integration capacitor, so as to minimized leakage current from the capacitor through the PMOS switching transistor.

Abstract: Temperature-sensitive transducers and other circuitry are manufactured by an electrochemical post-processing etch on an integrated circuit fabricated using a conventional CMOS process. Tetramethyl ammonium hydroxide or another anisotropic etchant having similar characterisics is used to selectively etch exposed front-side regions of a p-type silicon substrate, leaving n-type wells suspended from oxide beams. Circuits in the n-wells are thermally and electrically insulated from the substrate.