Abstract: An integrated circuit includes a programmable logic array. The programmable logic array incudes a plurality of logic elements arranged in rows and columns. Each logic element includes a direct output and a synchronized output. The direct output of each logic element is coupled to all other logic elements of higher rank, but is not coupled to logic elements of lower rank.

Abstract: A single-phase flip-flop comprising: a master latch comprising: a first circuit to generate a master latch signal in response to a first master logic operation on a flip flop input signal and a first clock signal, and a second circuit to generate a master output signal in response to a second master logic operation on the first clock signal and master latch signal; a slave latch comprising: a third circuit to generate a slave output signal in response to a first slave logic operation on the first clock signal and one of the master output signal and an inverted slave output signal; and wherein the master latch is configured to capture the flip-flop input signal during a first portion of the first clock signal and the slave latch is configured to capture the master output signal during a second portion of the first clock signal.

Abstract: Methods and apparatuses have been disclosed for a high speed, low power, isolated buffer having architecture and operation that control current flow to minimize coupling and power consumption. Buffer architecture may include one or more of BiCMOS components, an input disabling circuit operated to additionally disable an input circuit when it is also disabled by a selection circuit and a buffer disabling circuit operated to disable the buffer when the input circuit is disabled by the selection circuit. Any one or more of these features may be implemented to improve isolation performance. The selection circuit, input disabling circuit and buffer disabling circuit may be operated by the same control signal.

Abstract: A system, method, and computer program product for converting a design from edge-triggered docking to two-phase non-overlapping clocking is disclosed. The method includes the steps of replacing an edge-triggered flip-flop circuit that is coupled to a combinational logic circuit with a pair of latches including a first latch circuit and a second latch circuit and determining a midpoint of the combinational logic circuit based on timing information. The second latch circuit is propagated to a midpoint of the combinational logic circuit and two-phase non-overlapping clock signals are provided to the pair of latches.

Abstract: A reconfigurable element based on nonlinear (chaotic) dynamics is adapted to implement the three different multivibrator configurations. A nonlinear dynamical system, under parameter modulating control, operates as a tunable oscillator with different dynamical regimes which in turn provide the different multivibrator configurations (monostable, astable, and bistable). The reconfigurable multivibrator is realized as a tunable circuit which includes an input stage for receiving at least one input voltage signal and an output stage that produces a digital two-level electric output signal. The all-in-one reconfigurable multivibrator device consisting of a nonlinear oscillator circuit electrically coupled to the input/output circuitry is used in at least, but not limited to three basic applications, namely, an irregular width pulse generator, a rising flank trigger and a full RS flip-flop device.

Abstract: In an embodiment, the present invention includes a latch circuit having a first input to receive a data signal and a second input to receive a clock signal. This latch circuit may have a first pair of transistors including a first transistor gated by the data signal and a second transistor gated by an inverted data signal and a second pair of transistors including third and fourth transistors gated by the clock signal. The first transistor may be coupled to the third transistor at a first inter-latch node and the second transistor coupled to the fourth transistor at a second inter-latch node. A reset circuit may be coupled to the latch circuit to maintain the first and second inter-latch nodes at a predetermined voltage level when the clock signal is inactive.

Abstract: A device (300, 1000) provides a dual-edge triggered flip-flop (DETFF) that is reconfigurable to a master-slave flip-flop (MSFF). The device includes a reconfigurable MUX-D flip-flop including two distinct circuit configurations. In a first configuration, two latches or storage elements (340, 360, 1040, 1060) are operating in series to provide a MUX-D flip-flop. In a second configuration, the storage elements (340, 360, 1040, 1060) are operating in parallel to provide a dual-edge triggered flip-flop (DETFF).

Abstract: A reconfigurable element based on nonlinear (chaotic) dynamics is adapted to implement the three different multivibrator configurations. A nonlinear dynamical system, under parameter modulating control, operates as a tunable oscillator with different dynamical regimes which in turn provide the different multivibrator configurations (monostable, astable, and bistable). The reconfigurable multivibrator is realized as a tunable circuit which includes an input stage for receiving at least one input voltage signal and an output stage that produces a digital two-level electric output signal. The all-in-one reconfigurable multivibrator device consisting of a nonlinear oscillator circuit electrically coupled to the input/output circuitry is used in at least, but not limited to three basic applications, namely, an irregular width pulse generator, a rising flank trigger and a full RS flip-flop device.

Abstract: A logic circuit includes two two-terminal switching devices and receives first and second pulses as inputs. Each of the two devices has two different stable resistivity values for each applied voltage that is greater than a first threshold voltage (Vth1) and is smaller than a second threshold voltage (Vth2) that is larger than Vth1. Each switching device, when a voltage less than or equal to Vth1 is applied, becomes in a first state having the higher resistivity of the two resistivity values, whereas when a voltage more than or equal to Vth2 is applied, becomes in a second state having the lower resistivity of the two resistivity values. The two devices are connected in series in a direction with uniform polarity to each other. The first and second states are selectively generated in the first and second devices by a combination of inputs of the first and second pulses.

Abstract: The invention includes a two terminal switching device having two stable resistivity values for each applied voltage, which when a voltage of not more than a first threshold voltage (Vth1) is applied, becomes in a first state having a higher resistivity, whereas when a larger second threshold voltage (Vth2) or more is applied, becomes in a second state having a lower resistivity; a resistance connected in series to the switching device; a terminal for applying a bias voltage (Vt) to both ends of a series circuit of the switching device and the resistance; a first pulse inputting terminal; and a second pulse inputting terminal. The invention provides a simple realization of a flip-flop circuit for a sequential logic circuit.

Abstract: Embodiments of a potential converter circuit include a converter for converting a bipolar input signal to a unipolar output signal that only consumes current at a change of potential of the input signal.

Abstract: A semiconductor integrated circuit according to the present invention comprises a latch circuit, a retaining circuit, and a feedback circuit, wherein the latch circuit inputs therein an input data signal, a clock signal and a feedback signal and outputs an output data signal, the retaining circuit retains the output data signal, and the feedback circuit inputs therein the input data signal and the output data signal to thereby generate the feedback signal based on logic combinations of the input data signal and the output data signal, and an internal operation of the latch circuit is turned on/off by means of the feedback signal.

Abstract: In a preferred embodiment, the invention provides a circuit and method for a smaller and faster triple redundant latch. Three settable memory elements set an identical logical value into each settable memory element. After the settable memory elements are set, a voting structure with inputs from the first settable memory element, the second memory element, and control to the settable memory elements determines the logical value held on the third settable memory element. The propagation delay through the third settable memory element is the only propagation delay of the triple redundant latch.

Abstract: A method and system for reducing glitch effects in combinational logic is presented. If combinational logic incurs a particle-induced single event transient (SET) signal, a glitch reducing circuit, which is connected in a signal path between the combinational logic and downstream logic, will prevent the SET from propagating to the downstream logic. The glitch reducing circuit functions as a signal filter that provides a SET-filtered drive signal to downstream logic. The glitch reducing circuit receives both the input to the combinational logic and the output from the combinational logic. The input acts to enable or disable the glitch reducing circuit, so that for certain input values, the glitch reducing circuit passes the logic output signal to downstream logic, and for other input values, the glitch reducing circuit blocks the output signal from passing to downstream logic.

Abstract: In a preferred embodiment, the invention provides a circuit and method for a high reliability triple redundant latch with integrated testability. Three settable memory elements set an identical logical value into each settable memory element. After the settable memory elements are set, a voting structure with inputs from the second settable memory element, the third settable memory element and control to the settable memory elements determine the logical value held on the first settable memory element. Data may be scanned into and out of the second settable memory element. Data is propagated through the buffer into the third settable memory element. The third settable memory element may be used to scan data out of the triple redundant latch. The propagation delay through a latch is the only propagation delay of the triple redundant latch.

Abstract: A flip-flop includes a clock signal input, a data signal input, non-inverting and inverting outputs, a data acceptance unit, and a storage unit having a feedback loop with first and second inverter circuits having feedback to one another. The inverting output is coupled to the first inverter circuit output and the non-inverting output is coupled to the second inverter circuit output. The acceptance unit, dependent upon the data and clock signals present, allocates a programming potential to the first or the second inverter circuit input and applies no potential to the respective other input of the circuits. The acceptance unit has a first switching element applying the predetermined programming potential to the input of the first inverter circuit dependent upon the clock and data signals and a second switching element applying the predetermined programming potential to the second inverter circuit input dependent upon the clock and data signals.

Abstract: A flip flop includes a master portion operable to latch at least one of an input signal and an inverted input signal. The flip flop also includes a slave portion operable to latch at least one of the signal latched by the master portion and an inverted signal latched by the master portion in response to a first phase of a clock signal. The slave portion is also operable to be reset in response to a second phase of the clock signal.

Abstract: An edge-triggered flip-flop circuit in which a pair of capacitors are alternately charged and discharged to voltages approximating supply rail values and, in combination of with a small number of switches, present high or low impedance paths for input signal transitions of a predetermined polarity to trigger state changes. In an alternative embodiment large switching capacitors are avoided in a circuit that employs a pair of pass-transistor configurations to connect respective capacitors to output terminals of a bistable device. The voltages on the capacitors track the corresponding bistable device output voltages when the input signal is in a given state (illustratively low), and store the value of the corresponding voltage when turned off by the (illustratively high) other state of the input signal. Then, the voltage on the capacitors and the selected input signal transition is used to effectively trigger a transition in the bistable device.

Abstract: A clocked-scan flip-flop for multi-threshold CMOS (MTCMOS) is provided. The clocked-scan flip-flop includes a first switching unit which switches normal data that are input from the outside and outputs the data; a second switching unit which switches scan data that are input from the outside and outputs the data; a latch unit which latches the data input from the first switching unit or the second switching unit; and a clock input unit which controls the switching operations of the first and second switching units according to the result of a predetermined operation on a clock signal and a scan clock signal that are input from the outside. The clocked-scan flip-flop has the characteristics of a complementary pass-transistor (CP) flip-flop, that is, low power consumption and high performance. Also, the clocked-scan flip-flop provides a full-scale scan function for test purposes.

Abstract: A sense amplifier type input receiver includes a differential receiver circuit operatively coupled to an output stage. The output stage includes a pass gate enabled latch. The differential receiver circuit may output a first differential output and a second differential output. The output stage may include a first pass gate operatively coupled between the first differential output and an output of the output stage, a second pass gate operatively coupled between the second differential output and the pass gate enabled latch, and the pass gate enabled latch may be operatively coupled to the output of the output stage.

Abstract: A bistable device has first and second complementary input terminals and first and second bistable states that are determined by the polarity of the signal applied to one of the input terminals. A source of an uninverted binary input signal, preferably an uninverted data stream, has a first value or a second value. A source of an inverted binary input signal, preferably an inverted data stream, has a first value or a second value in complementary relationship to the values of the uninverted input signal. A first source of a trigger signal has one polarity. A second source of a trigger signal has the other polarity. The first trigger signal is applied to the first input terminal and the second trigger signal is applied to the second input terminal to drive the bistable device into the first stable state when the input signal has the first value.

Abstract: An octal transparent latch or D-type register (or flip-flop) integrated circuit device may be packaged in an industry standard logic pin-out and configuration but having nonvolatile properties such as automatically recording the output state in nonvolatile form and restoring it on power up. The nonvolatile memory elements are ideally ferroelectric capacitors, using well known ferroelectric materials such as PZT, SBT, or BST or other ferroelectric materials. EEPROM, Flash, SNOS, or other writeable nonvolatile technologies can also be used. In a particular embodiment disclosed herein, the nonvolatile elements of the integrated circuit device are written only when the latched state changes to reduce write endurance changes thereto and data changes on either the input or output data lines that are not latched have no effect.

Abstract: Disclosed are a phase detector for detecting the phase difference between a data signal and a clock signal, and a timing extracting circuit for controlling the phase of the clock signal so that the phase relationship between the clock signal and the data signal is optimal by using the phase detector. The phase detector includes an edge detector for generating an edge signal at the rising edge and the falling edge of the data signal, and a D flip flop (D-FF) for storing and outputting the logical value of the clock signal at the time of generation of the edge signal, and holding the logical value until the generation of the next edge signal, thereby outputting a signal corresponding to the phase difference between the data signal and the clock signal. A clock generator in the timing extracting circuit having a PLL structure controls the phase of the clock signal so that the difference becomes optimal.

Abstract: An input buffer circuit includes a plurality of paths having a different threshold voltage, respectively, a comparator for comparing an output value of the paths, a switch for determining operation of the input buffer circuit based on an output value of the comparator, and a latch coupled to the switch. The input buffer circuit and method for using same maintains a previous output value to improve a noise margin of the input buffer circuit and to improve the stability of input buffer circuit operation.

Abstract: A system for sampling an analog or digital data signal at a relatively high rate utilizing relatively slow circuitry. The system includes several sample and hold circuits, each of which receive the data signal. The sample and hold circuits are clocked by respective clock signals that are at the same frequency but equally phased apart from each other. Thus, the sample and hold circuits take samples of the data signal at times that are equally spaced apart from each other. Each of the sample and hold circuits is connected to a series of shift registers that are clocked at the same frequency as the clock used to clock the sample and hold circuit to which they are connected. The shift registers operate to sequentially store samples obtained by their respective sample and hold circuit. The output of the shift registers may be applied to the column drivers of a conventional matrix display.