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A Hybrid Energy-Efficient, Area-Efficient, Low-Complexity Switching Scheme in SAR ADC for Biosensor Applications
Yunfeng Hu1, Chaoyi Chen1, Qingming Huang1
1Zhongshan Institute, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Zhongshan 528402, China.
Micromachines
|January 23, 2024
Summary
A novel switching scheme for successive approximation register analog-to-digital converters (SAR ADCs) significantly enhances energy efficiency and reduces area for biosensor applications. This hybrid approach slashes switching energy by 98.4% and unit capacitors by 87.5%.
Area of Science:
- * Electrical Engineering
- * Integrated Circuit Design
- * Biomedical Engineering
Background:
- * Successive Approximation Register Analog-to-Digital Converters (SAR ADCs) are crucial for biosensor data acquisition.
- * Existing SAR ADCs face challenges in energy efficiency and circuit area, limiting their application in low-power biosensing.
- * Conventional switching schemes in SAR ADCs often lead to high power consumption and large capacitor arrays.
Purpose of the Study:
- * To propose a hybrid switching scheme for SAR ADCs that optimizes energy efficiency and area utilization.
- * To enhance the performance of SAR ADCs specifically for biosensor applications.
- * To reduce the complexity of the drive circuit design in SAR ADCs.
Main Methods:
- * A hybrid switching scheme combining monotonic technique, MSB capacitor-splitting, and a novel switching method.
- * Utilization of reference voltage V_aq for flexible reference voltage conversion, enabling area and energy savings.
- * Implementation of unilateral switching in the capacitor array for most comparisons, simplifying circuit design.
- * Integration of low-noise dynamic comparators, bootstrap-based low-sampling error switches, and dynamic SAR logic.
Main Results:
- * Achieved a 98.4% reduction in switching energy compared to conventional schemes.
- * Reduced the number of unit capacitors by 87.5%.
- * Demonstrated a Signal-to-Noise-Distortion Ratio (SNDR) of 61.51 dB and a Spurious-Free Dynamic Range (SFDR) of 79.21 dB.
- * Achieved ultra-low power consumption of 0.278 μW at 1 V supply in a 180 nm process for a 100 kS/s sampling rate.
Conclusions:
- * The proposed hybrid switching scheme offers significant improvements in energy efficiency and area reduction for SAR ADCs.
- * The developed SAR ADC is highly suitable for power-constrained biosensor applications.
- * The design demonstrates a compelling trade-off between performance metrics and power/area efficiency.
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