TxACE Analog Symposium

Scaling of CMOS technology has made major innovations in the last decade with the introduction of strained silicon and high-k metal gate, however at the same time an increasing amount of complex analog mixed-signal circuit functionality has been integrated on microprocessors and SOCs. Examples of key analog mixed-signal circuit functional blocks implemented in advanced 45nm and 32nm logic CMOS on microprocessors and SOCs are described. Techniques that overcome the challenges of dimensional scaling in 45nm and 32nm CMOS and the low supply voltage include: the use of the digital transistor for analog circuits and the use of “digital assist” logic for circuit calibration and differential pair offset cancellation. The co-optimization of design techniques and process enhancements for high-performance RF wireless circuits integrated on SOCs have been employed to manage complexity and cost. Biography Dr. Ian Young joined Intel Corp. in 1983 and is now a senior fellow in the Technology and Manufacturing Group. His technical contributions at Intel have been in the design of DRAMs, SRAMs, microprocessor circuit design, phase locked loops for microprocessor clocking, mixed-signal circuits for microprocessor high-speed I/O links and RF CMOS circuits for wireless transceivers. He has also contributed to the definition and development of Intelʼs process technologies. Until March 2010 he was directing the research and development of analog, mixedsignal and RF circuits in 32nm and 22nm logic processes. He now leads a research group exploring the future options for the integrated circuit in the era beyond CMOS. He received BSEE and M.Eng. Science degrees from the University of Melbourne, and he received a PhD in electrical engineering from the University of California, Berkeley. He is a Fellow of the IEEE. Title Can Neurons Sense Millimeter Waves? Abstract Historically THz applications have focused on the identification and mapping of light weight gases and molecules present in the cold, low pressure environments in and around regions of new star formation, gas and dust in the galaxy, the sphere encompassing the early universe, the atmospheres of planets and small solar system bodies (moons and comets) and the upper atmosphere of the Earth. Seventeen space missions have already completed observations in this energy rich region of the electromagnetic spectrum which boasts 98% of all the photons in the universe. In more recent times, especially after the advent of THz pulsed time domain spectroscopy, applications of this far infrared wavelength regime have spread into many new areas of technology. Most prescient is the recent interest in THz imaging and spectroscopy for security applications. The largest commercial driver for THz however is likely to be in communications, and if early results are proven to hold up, THz radiation may have substantial impact on biological function. It is this latter problem that the speaker will address in his talk.Historically THz applications have focused on the identification and mapping of light weight gases and molecules present in the cold, low pressure environments in and around regions of new star formation, gas and dust in the galaxy, the sphere encompassing the early universe, the atmospheres of planets and small solar system bodies (moons and comets) and the upper atmosphere of the Earth. Seventeen space missions have already completed observations in this energy rich region of the electromagnetic spectrum which boasts 98% of all the photons in the universe. In more recent times, especially after the advent of THz pulsed time domain spectroscopy, applications of this far infrared wavelength regime have spread into many new areas of technology. Most prescient is the recent interest in THz imaging and spectroscopy for security applications. The largest commercial driver for THz however is likely to be in communications, and if early results are proven to hold up, THz radiation may have substantial impact on biological function. It is this latter problem that the speaker will address in his talk. Biography Dr. Peter H. Siegel (BA Astronomy, Colgate 1976; MA Physics, Columbia, 1978; PhD Electrical Engineering, Columbia, 1983; National Research Council Fellow, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Institute for Space Studies, NYC, 1984) holds appointments as faculty associate in electrical engineering and senior scientist in biology at Caltech and technical group supervisor, senior research scientist and principal engineer for Submillimeter Wave Advanced Technology (SWAT) at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, where he manages a group of 24 scientists and engineers working on nearand long-term applications of THz technology for NASA Earth, planetary and space science missions. He has been working in the areas of millimeterand submillimeter-wave technology and applications for nearly 35 years and has PIʼd or co-Iʼd more 75 R&D programs and been involved in four major space flight instruments. Among many other duties, he founded and chairs the International Society for Infrared, Millimeter and Terahertz Waves (IRMMW-THz), the oldest and largest venue devoted to the field of far IR techniques, science and applications. Dr. Siegel is a Fellow of IEEE and has served as an IEEE Distinguished Lecturer and cochair and chair of IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques Committee 4 – THz Technology. He is also the founding editor-in-chief of a new IEEE journal, Transactions on Terahertz Science and Applications, which will release its inaugural issue in the fall of 2011. His current interests are split between traditional Earth, planetary and astrophysics applications and new THz applications in medicine and biology. http://www.thz.caltech.edu [email protected] Title Back to The Future! Challenges for Analog Design in the Age of Applications Abstract In the 50 years since the first silicon integrated circuit was produced our industry has grown exponentially and now is a vital contributor to the growth of the global economy. Today billions of people benefit from products, services and applications enabled by IC technology. Those range from everyday items such as cell phones – 1 billion new phones per year! – to improved health care supported in part by medical imaging systems such as CT,MRI and ultrasound. ICs are now critical ingredients.In the 50 years since the first silicon integrated circuit was produced our industry has grown exponentially and now is a vital contributor to the growth of the global economy. Today billions of people benefit from products, services and applications enabled by IC technology. Those range from everyday items such as cell phones – 1 billion new phones per year! – to improved health care supported in part by medical imaging systems such as CT,MRI and ultrasound. ICs are now critical ingredients. My talk will focus on these two areas: medical imaging and cellular communication. Improving the diagnostic quality of CT images while reducing the patient's exposure to X-rays and, of course, lowering the cost per scan requires new thinking at both the system and component level. Cellular service providers are facing relentless demand for improved coverage and increased data rates to handle streaming video and real-time Internet access. Multi-standard radio (MSR) base stations are at present the favored choice for handling the increasing traffic while, of course, reducing the cost per unit of service. MSRs, however, must be designed to handle the worst case, highest dynamic range (blocker to noise floor) standard even though that standard may not carry much traffic. Here again new thinking is required to provide the dynamic range and flexibility while decreasing cost. Biography Lewis Counts received a BSEE degree from MIT in 1965. In 1969 he joined Analog Devices as a design engineer and specialized in the development of translinear and lownoise analog signal conditioning products. In 1983 he was promoted to fellow in recognition of his leadership and technical contributions to ADI. He served as engineering manager for analog ICs and then as VP for Advanced Linear Products and VP for Analog Technology. He has authored and co-authored numerous technical and applications articles, including “The Guide to Instrumentation Amplifiers” published by ADI. In 2007 he presented a paper to the ISSCC Plenary Session titled “Analog and Mixed-Signal Innovation: The Process-Circuit-System-Application Interaction.” He retired from full-time work in 2007 and is now a consulting fellow to ADI. Title The Future of Electronics in Patient Care Abstract Electronics has yet to be fully applied to the area of patient care. There is a significant opportunity for advances in analog electronics to greatly improve patient diagnosis and care.Electronics has yet to be fully applied to the area of patient care. There is a significant opportunity for advances in analog electronics to greatly improve patient diagnosis and care. Biography Mark Denissen is vice president of Worldwide Strategic Marketing at Texas Instruments, where he is focused on incubating and building new businesses for TI. His organizationʼs current focus includes technology development and market segmentation for the energy efficiency, medical and security markets. Energy efficiency is the most promising one of these areas, and in the last 18 months TI has started systems labs in solar, LED lighting and motor control. His team also built the technology and business case to start a smart grid business unit. Present efforts also include hybrid electric vehicles and advanced power monitoring. He holds a BSEE from UCLA and has worked for TI for more than 25 years. He has experience in product line management, technology licensing and acquisition, strategic investments and acquisitions, and sales and marketing. He is a member of TI Kilby Labs Advisory Board, the TI Ventures Advisory Board, the InCube Labs Advisory Board, the Texas Institute Advisory Board and the TECH Fort Worth Board of Directors. Title Recent Advances in Zero-Crossing Based Analog Circuits Abstract Traditional op amp based circuits have been a popular architecture for analog circuits such as data converters, filters, and programmable gain amplifier for many decades. CMOS technology scaling into deep submicron dimensions, however, made op amps extremely difficult to realize due to the reduced signal swing and low devices gain. Recently developed zero-crossing based circuits have a potential to greatly improve the power efficiency of analog circuits. Lack of explicit feedback and high device gain requirement, lower noise, and high power efficiency make CBSC circuits more suitable in scaled technologies. These circuits are more digital in nature than traditional counterparts providing digital circuit-like properties in analog functions. Recent advances in zero-crossing based circuits for high speed/high accuracy A/D converters, reconfigurable analog circuits, and voltage scalable ADCs will be discussed.Traditional op amp based circuits have been a popular architecture for analog circuits such as data converters, filters, and programmable gain amplifier for many decades. CMOS technology scaling into deep submicron dimensions, however, made op amps extremely difficult to realize due to the reduced signal swing and low devices gain. Recently developed zero-crossing based circuits have a potential to greatly improve the power efficiency of analog circuits. Lack of explicit feedback and high device gain requirement, lower noise, and high power efficiency make CBSC circuits more suitable in scaled technologies. These circuits are more digital in nature than traditional counterparts providing digital circuit-like properties in analog functions. Recent advances in zero-crossing based circuits for high speed/high accuracy A/D converters, reconfigurable analog circuits, and voltage scalable ADCs will be discussed. Biography Dr. Hae-Seung Lee received B.S. and M.S. degrees in Electronic Engineering from Seoul National University in 1978 and 1980 respectively. He received the Ph.D. degree in electrical engineering from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1984, where he developed self-calibration techniques for A/D converters. Since 1984, he has been on the faculty in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, where he is now Professor and the Director of Center for Integrated Circuits and Systems. He is also an Associate Director of Microsystems Technology Laboratories. From 1985 to 1999, he has acted as Consultant to Analog Devices, Inc., Wilmington, MA, and MIT Lincoln Laboratories. He has served the Technology Advisory Committee for Samsung Electronics, Cypress Semiconductor, and Sensata Technologies. His research interests are in the areas of analog integrated circuits with the emphasis on analog-to-digital converters in scaled CMOS technologies. Prof. Lee is a recipient of the 1988 Presidential Young Investigators' Award, and a co-recipient ISSCC Jack Kilby Outstanding Student Paper Award in 2002 and 2006. He has served a number of technical program committees for various IEEE conferences, including the International Electron Devices Meeting, the International Solid-State Circuits Conference, the Custom Integrated Circuits Conference, and the IEEE Symposium on VLSI circuits. He is an elected AdCom member and Treasurer of the IEEE Solid-State Circuits Society. Prof. Lee is a Fellow of IEEE. Title An Overview of Integrated Power Management Circuits for Portable Wireless Applications Abstract This presentation summarizes the design challenges in the implementation of highly integrated DC-DC power converters for portable wireless applications. These circuits require high power density, high energy efficiency, low noise, small size and low cost. The advantages and disadvantages of each of the main topologies – namely low-dropout linear, switched-capacitor and switched-inductor DC-DC converters – are examined in light of these requirements.This presentation summarizes the design challenges in the implementation of highly integrated DC-DC power converters for portable wireless applications. These circuits require high power density, high energy efficiency, low noise, small size and low cost. The advantages and disadvantages of each of the main topologies – namely low-dropout linear, switched-capacitor and switched-inductor DC-DC converters – are examined in light of these requirements. Biography Dr. Siamak Abedinpour received BS and MS degrees from Iran University of Science and Technology and his PhD from Arizona State University in 2004, all in electrical engineering. He is currently a senior design manager with the Analog and Power Division at Integrated Device Technology (IDT) Inc. in Tempe, Ariz., where he is responsible for designing portable power management IC products. Prior to IDT, he was a senior member of technical staff with the RF, Analog, and Sensors Group at Freescale Semiconductor, designing highly integrated power management ICs. Title Analog Computation Based Real-Time Global Power Management: From Maxwell Heat Theorem to Ultradynamic Voltage Scaling
 Abstract As semiconductor technology enters the nanometer regime, modern VLSI systems face an unprecedented power crisis. Based on the study on Maxwell Heat Theorem, the speaker introduces a new concept of using analog computation to solve multi-variable global power optimization problems. Analog computation provides a much faster, more accurate, real-time solution than the digital counterparts. It is adaptable to changes in temperature, process variation, aging, and voltage fluctuations. An innovative hardwarebased approach, through a power-aware multiple and variable output converter design, is proposed, which works harmoniously with the power optimizer to incorporate converter-consciousness into ultradynamic voltage scaling.As semiconductor technology enters the nanometer regime, modern VLSI systems face an unprecedented power crisis. Based on the study on Maxwell Heat Theorem, the speaker introduces a new concept of using analog computation to solve multi-variable global power optimization problems. Analog computation provides a much faster, more accurate, real-time solution than the digital counterparts. It is adaptable to changes in temperature, process variation, aging, and voltage fluctuations. An innovative hardwarebased approach, through a power-aware multiple and variable output converter design, is proposed, which works harmoniously with the power optimizer to incorporate converter-consciousness into ultradynamic voltage scaling. Biography Dr. Dongsheng Ma currently serves as TxACE Chair and associate professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University of Texas at Dallas. He also serves as the leader of Energy Efficiency Thrust in TxACE. Prior to joining UT Dallas, he was an associate professor at the University of Arizona. Prof. Ma is the recipient of several awards, including National Science Foundation CAREER Award, University of Arizona Outstanding Faculty Award (2006), TxACE Chair (2010-15) and Analog Devices Chair (2004-08) Professorships. He was also the winner of 2004 IEEE/ACM ASPDAC Best Design Award and 2009 IEEE MWSCAS Best Student Paper Award. Title Vehicle-Based Wireless Communication for Collision Prevention Abstract Wireless communication technology is being applied to an important new application: cooperative prevention of automobile collisions. This emerging technology is called Dedicated Short Range Communication (DSRC). It utilizes communication directly between vehicles, and also between vehicles and roadside infrastructure, to identify and track potential collision threats. When a threat reaches a critical threshold, the on-board system can issue a warning to the driver or take control of the vehicle to avoid the collision. This talk explains the basic DSRC technology operating at 5.9 GHz, and highlights some technical challenges related to the physical aspects of communication.Wireless communication technology is being applied to an important new application: cooperative prevention of automobile collisions. This emerging technology is called Dedicated Short Range Communication (DSRC). It utilizes communication directly between vehicles, and also between vehicles and roadside infrastructure, to identify and track potential collision threats. When a threat reaches a critical threshold, the on-board system can issue a warning to the driver or take control of the vehicle to avoid the collision. This talk explains the basic DSRC technology operating at 5.9 GHz, and highlights some technical challenges related to the physical aspects of communication. Biography Dr. John Kenney is a senior research manager at the Toyota InfoTechnology Center in Mountain View, California. He leads a group doing research on networking issues. His particular interest is vehicle-to-vehicle communication for safety applications. He has represented Toyota in DSRC-related standards groups (IEEE and SAE) and in cooperative projects between the U.S. Department of Transportation and a consortium of auto manufacturers. He also served as an adjunct professor of electrical engineering at the University of Notre Dame for more than 20 years. Title Architectures, Circuits and Packaging Technology for Power-Efficient Serial Links in CMOS Abstract Improving the power efficiency of chip-to-chip communications is critical to meeting the I/O needs of future computing and network systems. This task becomes especially difficult as serial link data rates are pushed above 10 Gb/s, for the limited bandwidth of the electrical channel causes pulse distortion that must be compensated by complex circuitry such as a decision-feedback equalizer (DFE). This talk will illustrate various techniques for improving power efficiency by describing two 65-nm CMOS serial link designs with DFEs custom-tailored to different application requirements.Improving the power efficiency of chip-to-chip communications is critical to meeting the I/O needs of future computing and network systems. This task becomes especially difficult as serial link data rates are pushed above 10 Gb/s, for the limited bandwidth of the electrical channel causes pulse distortion that must be compensated by complex circuitry such as a decision-feedback equalizer (DFE). This talk will illustrate various techniques for improving power efficiency by describing two 65-nm CMOS serial link designs with DFEs custom-tailored to different application requirements. The first one, designed for conventional backplane applications, features a 5-tap DFE receiver employing current-integrating summers that are more power-efficient than resistively loaded summing amplifiers; this receiver achieves 11.1 Gb/s operation while consuming 119 mW. The second one, designed for chip-to-chip communication across a silicon carrier package, demonstrates a DFE with infinite impulse response (IIR) feedback, which saves considerable power and area by taking advantage of known channel characteristics; in this case, the full link (transmitter and receiver) consumes only 17 mW at a data rate of 8.9 Gb/s. Speaker Biography Dr. John F. Bulzacchelli holds BS, MS and PhD degrees in electrical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Since 2003 he has been a research staff member at the IBM T.J. Watson Research Center, where his primary job is the design of high-speed CMOS circuits for data communications. His research interests include the design of analog and mixed-signal circuits in both conventional and exploratory technologies. He received the Jack Kilby Award for Outstanding Student Paper at the 2002 ISSCC and was a co-recipient of the Beatrice Winner Award for Editorial Excellence at the 2009 ISSCC. Title Silicon Solution for Automotive Radar Abstract Interest in automotive safety has moved beyond passive protection like airbags and seat belts to various driver-assistance/collision-avoidance systems, including adaptive cruise control. As the performance of silicon-based devices surpasses an fT of 200GHz, implementation of these 77GHz mm-wave radars becomes feasible.Interest in automotive safety has moved beyond passive protection like airbags and seat belts to various driver-assistance/collision-avoidance systems, including adaptive cruise control. As the performance of silicon-based devices surpasses an fT of 200GHz, implementation of these 77GHz mm-wave radars becomes feasible. In this talk we will review various transceiver designs realized in SiGe-based technology and the technology requirements critical for the application. Biography Margaret Huang received her MSEE from the University of California, Berkeley. She joined Motorola, now Freescale Semiconductor, in 1990 and worked on mixed-mode SiGe BiCMOS, RFCMOS and RFSOI technologies. Her current interests are in silicon millimeter-wave application development. She has served on various technical committees, including ITRS, the Symposium on VLSI Circuits and BCTM. She has 11 patents and more than 70 publications. Title A Theoretical Framework for Background Calibration of Data Converters Abstract A neural network model and learning algorithm — independent component analysis — is applied to the topic of digital-domain background calibration of data converters with testsignal injection. The theoretical framework develops an alternative/uniform conceptual view of what is actually accomplished in a calibration, and it points to a potential path to other iterative learning algorithms that can be useful in practical applications.A neural network model and learning algorithm — independent component analysis — is applied to the topic of digital-domain background calibration of data converters with testsignal injection. The theoretical framework develops an alternative/uniform conceptual view of what is actually accomplished in a calibration, and it points to a potential path to other iterative learning algorithms that can be useful in practical applications. Bio Dr. Yun Chiu received his PhD in electrical engineering and computer sciences from the University of California, Berkeley, and was with the ECE Department of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign from 2005 to 2010. He is now an associate professor of electrical engineering at UT Dallas and holds the Texas Analog Center of Excellence Endowed Professorship of Electrical Engineering. He received the Jack Kilby Award from the 2005 International Solid-State Circuits Conference, the 2009 ISSCC/DAC Student Design Contest Award and the Agilent Foundation Award in 2009. He is an IEEE senior member and the author of the book “Analysis and Design of Pipelined Analog-to-Digital Converters.”