Improvement of a Propagation Delay Model for CMOS Digital Logic Circuits

Propagation delay models, for CMOS Digital Circuits, provide an initial design solution for Integrated Circuits. Resources, both monetary and manpower, constrain the design process, leading to the need for a more accurate entry point further along in the design cycle. By verifying an existing propagation delay method, and its resulting delay model, calibration for any given process technology can be achieved. Literature reviews and detailed analysis of each step in the model development allow for greater understanding of each contributing parameter, and ultimately, adjustments to the model calibration result in a more accurate analytical model. An existing model was verified and improved upon using TSMC 0.18um and IBM 0.13um SPICE decks, and the resulting improvements can be used to further assist individuals needing a method and model for deriving an initial circuit design solution for integrated circuits

Multi-gigabit CMOS analog-to-digital converter and mixed-signal demodulator for low-power millimeter-wave communication systems

The objective of the research is to develop high-speed ADCs and mixed-signal demodulator for multi-gigabit communication systems using millimeter-wave frequency bands in standard CMOS technology. With rapid advancements in semiconductor technologies, mobile communication devices have become more versatile, portable, and inexpensive over the last few decades. However, plagued by the short lifetime of batteries, low power consumption has become an extremely important specification in developing mobile communication devices. The ever-expanding demand of consumers to access and share information ubiquitously at faster speeds requires higher throughputs, increased signal-processing functionalities at lower power and lower costs. In today’s technology, high-speed signal processing and data converters are incorporated in almost all modern multi-gigabit communication systems. They are key enabling technologies for scalable digital design and implementation of baseband signal processors. Ultimately, the merits of a high performance mixed-signal receiver, such as data rate, sensitivity, signal dynamic range, bit-error rate, and power consumption, are directly related to the quality of the embedded ADCs. Therefore, this dissertation focuses on the analysis and design of high-speed ADCs and a novel broadband mixed-signal demodulator with a fully-integrated DSP composed of low-cost CMOS circuitry. The proposed system features a novel dual-mode solution to demodulate multi-gigabit BPSK and ASK signals. This approach reduces the resolution requirement of high-speed ADCs, while dramatically reducing its power consumption for multi-gigabit wireless communication systems.PhDGee-Kung Chang - Committee Chair; Chang-Ho Lee - Committee Member; Geoffrey Ye Li - Committee Member; Paul A. Kohl - Committee Member; Shyh-Chiang Shen - Committee Membe

Design of Autonomous Underwater Vehicle and Optimization of Hydrodynamic Properties and Control

Autonomous vehicles are becoming more and more prevalent in military, private industry and residential applications. Unfortunately, research currently being done in the area of autonomous underwater craft is often hindered by expense. It was desired to build a craft at WPI which could serve as an inexpensive test-bed for future research and implementation of control algorithms, etc. The vehicle\u27s construction required the design and manufacture of a number of components including water-jet stabilization thrusters, propeller driven main thrusters, a complete multi-hub electronic sensor and drive control system and individual sensors such as a tri-axial sonar unit as well as a capacitance based water-leak sensor. A Lexan heat forming process was also developed for hull construction

An advanced Framework for efficient IC optimization based on analytical models engine

En base als reptes sorgits a conseqüència de l'escalat de la tecnologia, la present tesis desenvolupa i analitza un conjunt d'eines orientades a avaluar la sensibilitat a la propagació d'esdeveniments SET en circuits microelectrònics. S'han proposant varies mètriques de propagació de SETs considerant l'impacto dels emmascaraments lògic, elèctric i combinat lògic-elèctric. Aquestes mètriques proporcionen una via d'anàlisi per quantificar tant les regions més susceptibles a propagar SETs com les sortides més susceptibles de rebre'ls. S'ha desenvolupat un conjunt d'algorismes de cerca de camins sensibilitzables altament adaptables a múltiples aplicacions, un sistema lògic especific i diverses tècniques de simplificació de circuits. S'ha demostrat que el retard d'un camí donat depèn dels vectors de sensibilització aplicats a les portes que formen part del mateix, essent aquesta variació de retard comparable a la atribuïble a les variacions paramètriques del proces.En base a los desafíos surgidos a consecuencia del escalado de la tecnología, la presente tesis desarrolla y analiza un conjunto de herramientas orientadas a evaluar la sensibilidad a la propagación de eventos SET en circuitos microelectrónicos. Se han propuesto varias métricas de propagación de SETs considerando el impacto de los enmascaramientos lógico, eléctrico y combinado lógico-eléctrico. Estas métricas proporcionan una vía de análisis para cuantificar tanto las regiones más susceptibles a propagar eventos SET como las salidas más susceptibles a recibirlos. Ha sido desarrollado un conjunto de algoritmos de búsqueda de caminos sensibilizables altamente adaptables a múltiples aplicaciones, un sistema lógico especifico y diversas técnicas de simplificación de circuitos. Se ha demostrado que el retardo de un camino dado depende de los vectores de sensibilización aplicados a las puertas que forman parte del mismo, siendo esta variación de retardo comparable a la atribuible a las variaciones paramétricas del proceso.Based on the challenges arising as a result of technology scaling, this thesis develops and evaluates a complete framework for SET propagation sensitivity. The framework comprises a number of processing tools capable of handling circuits with high complexity in an efficient way. Various SET propagation metrics have been proposed considering the impact of logic, electric and combined logic-electric masking. Such metrics provide a valuable vehicle to grade either in-circuit regions being more susceptible of propagating SETs toward the circuit outputs or circuit outputs more susceptible to produce SET. A quite efficient and customizable true path finding algorithm with a specific logic system has been constructed and its efficacy demonstrated on large benchmark circuits. It has been shown that the delay of a path depends on the sensitization vectors applied to the gates within the path. In some cases, this variation is comparable to the one caused by process parameters variation

Clock-Feedthrough Compensation in MOS Sample-and-Hold Circuits

All MOS sample-and-hold circuits suffer to a greater or lesser extent from clock-feedthrough (CLFT), also called charge-injection. During the transition from sample to hold mode, charge is transferred from an MOS transistor switch onto the hold capacitor, thus the name charge-injection. This error can lead to considerable voltage change across the capacitor, and predicting the extent of the induced error potentials is important to circuit designers. Previous studies have shown a considerable dependency of CLFT on signal voltage, circuit impedances, clock amplitude and clock fall-time. The focus of this work was on the signal dependency of the CLFT error and on the CLFT induced signal distortion in open-loop sample-and-hold circuits. CLFT was found to have a strongly non-linear, signal dependent, component, which may cause considerable distortion of the sampled signal. The parameters influencing this distortion were established. It was discovered that distortion could be reduced by more than 20dB through careful adjustment of the clock fall-rate. Several circuit solutions that can help reduce the level of distortion arising from CLFT are presented. These circuits can also reduce the absolute level of CLFT. Simulations showed their effectiveness, which was also proven in silicon. The CLFT reduction methods used in these circuits are easily transferable to other switched-capacitor circuits and are suitable for applications where space is at a premium (as, for example, in analogue neural networks). A new saturation mode contribution to CLFT was found. It is shown to give rise to increased CLFT under high injection conditions