This application is a 371 of international application of PCT application serial no. PCT/CN2022/114424, filed on Aug. 24, 2022, which claims the priority benefit of China application no. 202210953031.3, filed on Aug. 9, 2022. The entirety of each of the above mentioned patent applications is hereby incorporated by reference herein and made a part of this specification.
The present disclosure provides a low-dropout regulator circuit with high loop stability based on a load-dependent zero mobile compensation and a method thereof, and belongs to the technical field of circuits and electronics.
LDO (Low-dropout regulator) is widely used in mobile devices, industrial controls, and automobiles. Specifications for evaluating the LDO are divided into: 1) static-state specification; 2) dynamic-state specification, and 3) high-frequency specification, and the loop stability belongs to the static-state specification.
At present, many compensation methods have been used in the loop compensation for LDO, such as the frequency compensation method by utilizing cascode-miller, the frequency compensation method by using damping-factor-control and the frequency compensation method by using load-dependent zero mobile compensation. Among them, the load-dependent zero mobile compensation (LZMC) is widely used in the loop stability design of LDO due to its simple structure.
Zero points that vary with the load can be generated at the on-chip nodes by the load-dependent zero mobile compensation, enabling the entire LDO loop to be stable. In practical applications, when the load varies little, the load-dependent zero mobile compensation has a good effect of loop stability compensation. However, when the load varies greatly, unrecoverable oscillations of the LDO output voltages are currently generated, which exists in most LDOs, thus limiting the load response ability of the LDO circuit.
The present disclosure provides a low-dropout regulator circuit with high loop stability based on a load-dependent zero mobile compensation and a method thereof, which can permanently maintain the loop stability, improve the load response ability, and maintain safety and reliability, when the load-dependent zero mobile compensation is adopted and the load undergoes significant and drastic variations, to solve the problems of generating unrecoverable oscillations of the LDO output voltage in the traditional LDO circuit in prior art, the adopted technical solutions are as follows.
Provided is a low-dropout regulator circuit with high loop stability based on a load-dependent zero mobile compensation, the LDO circuit with high loop stability comprises a LDO circuit body based on the load-dependent zero mobile compensation, the LDO circuit body includes a PMOS transistor MP6 configured to follow the load variations; the LDO circuit with high loop stability further comprises a dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit adaptively connected with the PMOS transistor MP6, for a load adaptively connected to the LDO circuit body, varying states of the load are represented according to a source-drain dropout voltage between a source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6 and a drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6, when the represented varying state of the load is matched with a preset load varying threshold in the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit, a dynamically variable resistor in parallel with the PMOS transistor MP6 is generated according to the varying states of the load by the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit.
The dynamically variable resistor is connected in parallel with the PMOS transistor MP6 following the load variations and acting as a resistor to form a load equivalent resistor, a value for the formed load equivalent resistor is less than an equivalent resistance maximum value for the PMOS transistor MP6 in a stable loop stable, so that a high frequency pole frequency of the LDO circuit body is greater than a unit gain frequency of the LDO circuit body.
Further, when the varying state of the load represented according to the source-drain dropout voltage is less than the preset load varying threshold in the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit, the PMOS transistor MP6 is in a linear operating region, and a dynamically variable resistor in a state of high resistance is generated according to the varying state of the load in the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit; a resistance value for the dynamically variable resistor generated in the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit is much greater than a linear region resistance value for the PMOS transistor MP6 in the linear operating region.
Further, the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit includes a NMOS transistor MN4, an input terminal Input of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit is formed by a gate terminal of the NMOS transistor MN4, and the input terminal Input of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit is adaptively connected to the drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6.
A source terminal of the NMOS transistor MN4 is connected to a positive terminal of a current source I0 and a first terminal of a resistance R0, a negative terminal of the current source I0 is grounded or floated on the ground, a drain terminal of a NMOS transistor MN1 is connected to an input voltage VIN, a positive terminal of a current source I1, a first terminal of a resistance R3, a source terminal of a PMOS transistor MP10, and a source terminal of a PMOS transistor MP11.
A negative terminal of the current source I1 is connected to a second terminal of the resistance R0 and a gate terminal of a PMOS transistor MP7; a source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP7 is connected to a second terminal of the resistance R3; a drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP7 is connected to a drain terminal of a PMOS transistor MP8, a gate terminal of the PMOS transistor MP8 and a gate terminal of a PMOS transistor MP9, and both a source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP8 and a source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP9 are grounded; a drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP9 is connected to a drain terminal of a PMOS transistor MP10, a gate terminal of the PMOS transistor MP10 and a gate terminal of a PMOS transistor MP11; an output terminal Output of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit is formed by a drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP11, and the output terminal Output of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit is adaptively connected to the drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6.
Further, the preset load varying threshold is I1*R0, and when the represented varying state of the load is matched with the preset load varying threshold in the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit, the source-drain dropout voltage is greater than or equal to I1*R0.
Further, the LDO circuit body includes a compensation capacitor Cc connected with the drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6, one terminal of the compensation capacitor Cc is connected to the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit and the drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6, and another terminal of the compensation capacitor Cc is connected to an output terminal of a main operational amplifier OPA and an input terminal of a buffer Buffer.
The gate terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6 is connected to a gate terminal of a PMOS transistor MP5, a drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP5, a positive terminal of a bias current source IBIAS and a drain terminal of a NMOS transistor MN3; both a negative terminal of the bias current source IBIAS and a source terminal of the NMOS transistor MN3 are grounded.
A gate terminal of the NMOS transistor MN3 is connected to a gate terminal of a NMOS transistor MN1, a gate terminal of a NMOS transistor MN2, a drain terminal of the NMOS transistor MN2 and a drain terminal of a PMOS transistor MP3, and a source terminal of the NMOS transistor MN2 and a source terminal of the NMOS transistor MN1 are grounded; a drain terminal of the NMOS transistor MN1 is connected to a drain terminal of a PMOS transistor MP4, a gate terminal of the PMOS transistor MP4 and a gate terminal of the PMOS transistor MP3.
A source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP3 is connected to a drain terminal of a PMOS transistor MP2; a source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP4 is connected to a drain terminal of a PMOS transistor MP1 and a first terminal of a resistance R1; the source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP4 is connected with the drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP1 and the first terminal of the resistor R1 to form an output terminal VOUT of the LDO circuit body. A second terminal of a resistor R2 is connected to an in-phase terminal of the main operational amplifier OPA and one terminal of the resistor R2, and another terminal of the resistor R2 is grounded.
An output terminal of the buffer Buffer is connected to a gate terminal of the PMOS transistor MP2 and a gate terminal of the PMOS transistor MP1, and a reverse-phase terminal of the main operational amplifier OPA is connected to a reference voltage VREF.
Further provided is a method of a low-dropout regulator circuit with high loop stability based on a load-dependent zero mobile compensation. The method provides a LDO circuit body based on the load-dependent zero mobile compensation, the LDO circuit body includes a PMOS transistor MP6 configured to follow load variations. The method further comprises the following steps. A dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit adaptively connected with PMOS transistor MP6 is provided, for the load adaptively connected to the LDO circuit body, varying states of the load are represented according to a source-drain dropout voltage between a source terminal of PMOS transistor MP6 and a drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6; when the represented varying state of the load is matched with a preset load varying threshold in the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit, a dynamically variable resistor in parallel with the PMOS transistor MP6 is generated according to the varying state of the load by the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit.
The dynamically variable resistor is connected in parallel with the PMOS transistor MP6 following the load variations and acting as a resistor to form a load equivalent resistor, a value for the formed load equivalent resistor is less than an equivalent resistance maximum value for the PMOS transistor MP6 in a stable loop stable, so that a high frequency pole frequency of the LDO circuit body is greater than a unit gain frequency of the LDO circuit body
Further, when the varying state of the load represented according to the source-drain dropout voltage is less than the preset load varying threshold in the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit, the PMOS transistor MP6 is in a linear operating region, and a dynamically variable resistor in a state of high resistance is generated according to the varying state of the load in the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit.
The resistance value for the dynamically variable resistor generated in the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit is much greater than a linear region resistance value for PMOS transistor MP6 in the linear operating region.
Further, the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit includes a NMOS transistor MN4, an input terminal Input of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit is formed by a gate terminal of the NMOS transistor MN4, and the input terminal Input of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit is adaptively connected to the drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6.
A source terminal of the NMOS transistor MN4 is connected to a positive terminal of a current source I0 and a first terminal of a resistance R0, a negative terminal of the current source I0 is connected to a ground or floating on the ground, a drain terminal of a NMOS transistor MN1 is connected to an input voltage VIN, a positive terminal of a current source I1, a first terminal of a resistance R3, a source terminal of a PMOS transistor MP10, and a source terminal of a PMOS transistor MP11.
A negative terminal of the current source I1 is connected to a second terminal of the resistance R0 and a gate terminal of a PMOS transistor MP7; a source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP7 is connected to a second terminal of the resistance R3; a drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP7 is connected to a drain terminal of a PMOS transistor MP8, a gate terminal of the PMOS transistor MP8 and a gate terminal of a PMOS transistor MP9, and both a source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP8 and a source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP9 are grounded; a drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP9 is connected to a drain terminal of a PMOS transistor MP10, a gate terminal of the PMOS transistor MP10 and a gate terminal of a PMOS transistor MP11; an output terminal Output of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit is formed by a drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP11, and the output terminal Output of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit is adaptively connected to the drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6.
Further, the preset load varying threshold is I1*R0, and when the represented varying state of the load is matched with the preset load varying threshold in the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit, the source-drain dropout voltage is greater than or equal to I1*R0.
Further, the LDO circuit body includes a compensation capacitor Cc connected with the drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6, one terminal of the compensation capacitor Cc is connected to the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit and the drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6, and another terminal of the compensation capacitor Cc is connected to an output terminal of a main operational amplifier OPA and an input terminal of a buffer Buffer.
The gate terminal of PMOS transistor MP6 is connected to a gate terminal of a PMOS transistor MP5, a drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP5, a positive terminal of a bias current source IBIAS and a drain terminal of a NMOS transistor MN3, a negative terminal of the bias current source IBIAS and a source terminal of the NMOS transistor MN3 are grounded.
A gate terminal of the NMOS transistor MN3 is connected to a gate terminal of a NMOS transistor MN1, a gate terminal of a NMOS transistor MN2, a drain terminal of the NMOS transistor MN2 and a drain terminal of a PMOS transistor MP3, and a source terminal of the NMOS transistor MN2 and a source terminal of the NMOS transistor MN1 are grounded; a drain terminal of the NMOS transistor MN1 is connected to a drain terminal of a PMOS transistor MP4, a gate terminal of the PMOS transistor MP4 and a gate terminal of the PMOS transistor MP3.
A source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP3 is connected to a drain terminal of a PMOS transistor MP2; a source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP4 is connected to a drain terminal of a PMOS transistor MP1 and a first terminal of a resistance R1; the source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP4 is connected with the drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP1 and the first terminal of the resistor R1 to form an output terminal VOUT of the LDO circuit body. A second terminal of a resistor R2 is connected to an in-phase terminal of the main operational amplifier OPA and one terminal of the resistor R2, and another terminal of the resistor R2 is grounded.
An output terminal of the buffer Buffer is connected to a gate terminal of the PMOS transistor MP2 and a gate terminal of the PMOS transistor MP1, and a reverse-phase terminal of the main operational amplifier OPA is connected to a reference voltage VREF.
Preferred embodiments of the present disclosure are described as follows in conjunction with the drawings, it should be understood that the preferred embodiments described herein are merely intended to illustrate and explain the present disclosure and are not intended to limit the present disclosure.
As illustrated in
The present disclosure further comprises a dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit which is adaptively connected with the PMOS transistor MP6. For the load adaptively connected to the LDO circuit body, varying states of the load are represented according to a source-drain dropout voltage between a source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6 and a drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6. When the represented varying state of the load is matched with a preset load varying threshold in the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit, a dynamically variable resistor in parallel with the PMOS transistor MP6 is generated according to the varying states of the load by the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit.
The dynamically variable resistor is connected in parallel with the resistor followed by the PMOS transistor MP6 and acting as a resistor to form a load equivalent resistor, the value for the formed load equivalent resistor is less than an equivalent resistance maximum value for the PMOS transistor MP6 in a stable loop state, so that a high frequency pole frequency of the LDO circuit body is greater than a unit gain frequency of the LDO circuit body.
Specifically, a loop compensation form of the load-dependent zero mobile compensation is adopted in the LDO circuit body. The specific situation of LDO circuit body formed by the load-dependent zero mobile compensation is consistent with that of the prior art, which is in accordance with the loop compensation that can form the load-dependent zero mobile compensation. It can be seen from the above description that for the LDO circuit body based on the load-dependent zero mobile compensation, when the load varies greatly or drastically, the loop is unstable.
The LDO circuit body based on the load-dependent zero mobile compensation generally includes PMOS transistors configured to follow load variations, such as the PMOS transistor MP6 in
The frequency of the high frequency pole p3 of the LDO circuit body is fp3, then: 2π*fp3=ωp3. In general, the angular frequency ωp3 of the high frequency pole p3 is
RMP6 is the resistance of PMOS transistor MP6 when varying with the load, C1 is the equivalent capacitance of the LDO circuit body, and the specific situation of the equivalent capacitance of the LDO circuit body is consistent with that of the prior art. For example, for the circuit in
When the load varies greatly or drastically, it is difficult for the PMOS transistor MP6 following the load variations and acting as a resistor to maintain in the linear region, instead, the PMOS transistor MP6 enters the saturation region, and then the resistance value for the PMOS transistor MP6 acting as the resistor varies from the linear region resistance value RMP6-linear to the saturation region resistance value RMP6-linear. Since the saturation region resistance value RMP6-linear is greater than the linear region resistance value RMP6-linear, the frequency fp3 of the high frequency pole p3 shifts from outside of the unity-gain frequency to inside of the unity-gain frequency, thus eventually leading to the loss of loop stability, as illustrated in
Therefore, when the load varies greatly or drastically, the operating interval of PMOS transistor MP6 in the LDO circuit can be varied, and then the frequency and angular frequency of the LDO circuit body can vary correspondingly. When the frequency of the LDO circuit body does not satisfy the stable condition of the zero-pole distribution of the LDO circuit after the load varies, the LDO circuit body can produce the problem of unrecoverable oscillations.
In order to avoid the loss of loop stability, in the embodiments of the present disclosure, a dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit which is adaptively connected with PMOS transistor MP6 is configured. Specifically, when utilizing the PMOS transistor MP6 to follow the load variations of the LDO circuit body, the varying states of the load are represented according to the source-drain dropout voltage between the source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6 and the drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6. When the varying state represented by the source-drain dropout voltage is matched with the preset load varying threshold in the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit, specifically, it means that the load is determined to be in a state of great or drastic variation according to the source-drain dropout voltage of the PMOS transistor MP6. Generally, when the source-drain dropout voltage is greater than or equal to the preset load varying threshold, a dynamically variable resistor in parallel with PMOS transistor MP6 is generated according to the varying state of the load in the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit.
In specific implementations, after the dynamic regulating resistance is generated by the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit, the dynamically variable resistor is connected in parallel with the PMOS transistor MP6 following the load variations and acting as a resistor to form a load equivalent resistor, the value for the formed load equivalent resistor is less than an equivalent resistance maximum value for the PMOS transistor MP6 in a stable loop state, so that a high frequency pole frequency of the LDO circuit body is greater than a unit gain frequency of the LDO circuit body.
In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the equivalent resistance maximum value for PMOS transistor MP6 in the stable loop state, specifically refers to the equivalent resistance value corresponding to PMOS transistor MP6 when the angular frequency of LDO circuit body is the unit-gain angular frequency. Specifically, the equivalent resistance maximum value RMP6(max( )) for the PMOS transistor MP6 is as follows:
where funity-gain denotes the unit gain frequency corresponding to the unit-gain angular frequency. Therefore, for a definite LDO circuit body, the equivalent resistance maximum value RMP6(max( )) for the PMOS transistor MP6 in the stable loop state can be determined specifically.
As can be seen from the above stability conditions of zero poles distribution, when the value for the formed load equivalent resistor is less than the equivalent resistance maximum value for the PMOS transistor MP6 in the stable loop state, the angular frequency ωp3 of the high frequency pole p3 is:
where REqual_mos denotes the value for the load equivalent resistor. When the value for the load equivalent resistor REqual_mos is less than the equivalent resistance maximum value RMP6(max( )) for the PMOS transistor MP6 in the stable loop state, the angular frequency ωp3 of the high frequency pole p3 is greater than the unit-gain angular frequency, and the high frequency pole frequency fp3 of the LDO circuit body is greater than the unit-gain frequency funity-gain of the LDO circuit body.
In summary, in combination with
Further, when the varying state of the load represented according to the source-drain dropout voltage is less than the preset load varying threshold in the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit, the PMOS transistor MP6 is in a linear operating region, and a dynamically variable resistor in a state of high resistance is generated according to the varying state of the load by the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit.
The resistance value for the dynamically variable resistor generated by the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit is much greater than the linear region resistance value for the PMOS transistor MP6 in the linear operating region.
In the embodiments of the present disclosure, when the varying state of the load represented by the source-drain dropout voltage is less than the preset load varying threshold in the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit, which indicates that the load connected to the LDO circuit body is constant or varies little. At this time, the PMOS transistor MP6 is in the linear operating region, and a dynamically variable resistor in a state of high resistance is generated according to the varying state of the load by the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit. The load is constant or varies little means that the above load is stable.
When the dynamically variable resistor is in a high resistance state, the resistance value for the current dynamically variable resistor is much greater than the linear region resistance value RMP6-linear for the PMOS transistor MP6 when the PMOS transistor MP6 is in a linear operating region, and the dynamically variable resistor with high resistance is in parallel with the linear region resistance value RMP6-linear. According to the characteristics of the resistance in parallel, the value for the load equivalent resistor formed currently is less than and proximity to the linear region resistance value RMP6-linear. Since the value REqual_mos for the load equivalent resistor is proximity to the linear region resistance value RMP6-linear for the PMOS transistor MP6 in the linear operating region, the operating state of the existing LDO circuit body based on the load-dependent zero mobile compensation can not be affected.
To sum up, when the load varies greatly or dramatically, a dynamically variable resistor in parallel with the PMOS transistor MP6 is generated by the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit according to the load varying states. The dynamically variable resistor is connected in parallel with the PMOS transistor MP6 following the load variations and acting as a resistor to form the load equivalent resistor with the value of REqual_mos, the value for the formed load equivalent resistor REqual_mos is less than the equivalent resistance maximum value RMP6(max( )) for the PMOS transistor MP6 in the stable loop state, so that the high frequency pole frequency fp3 of the LDO circuit body is greater than the unit-gain frequency funity-gain of the LDO circuit body.
When the load is stable, the dynamically variable resistor of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit exhibits a state of high resistance and the resistance value for the dynamically variable resistor generated by the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit is much greater than the linear region resistance value for the PMOS transistor MP6 in the linear operating region, and the corresponding value REqual_mos for the load equivalent resistor is proximity to the linear region resistance value RMP6-linear for the PMOS transistor MP6 in the linear operating region, which can not affect the operating state of the existing LDO circuit body based on the load-dependent zero mobile compensation, that is, can permanently maintain the loop stability of the LDO circuit body, improve the load response ability, and maintain safety and reliability.
As illustrated in
The gate terminal of PMOS transistor MP6 is connected to a gate terminal of a PMOS transistor MP5, a drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP5, a positive terminal of a bias current source IBIAS and a drain terminal of a NMOS transistor MN3; both a negative terminal of the bias current source IBIAS and a source terminal of the NMOS transistor MN3 are grounded.
A gate terminal of the NMOS transistor MN3 is connected to a gate terminal of a NMOS transistor MN1, a gate terminal of a NMOS transistor MN2, a drain terminal of the NMOS transistor MN2 and a drain terminal of a PMOS transistor MP3, and a source terminal of the NMOS transistor MN2 and a source terminal of the NMOS transistor MN1 are grounded; a drain terminal of the NMOS transistor MN1 is connected to a drain terminal of a PMOS transistor MP4, a gate terminal of the PMOS transistor MP4 and a gate terminal of the PMOS transistor MP3.
A source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP3 is connected to a drain terminal of a PMOS transistor MP2; a source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP4 is connected to a drain terminal of a PMOS transistor MP1 and a first terminal of resistance R1; the source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP4 is connected with the drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP1 and the first terminal of the resistor R1 to form an output terminal VOUT of the LDO circuit body. A second terminal of a resistor R2 is connected to an in-phase terminal of the main operational amplifier OPA and one terminal of the resistor R2, and another terminal of the resistor R2 is grounded.
An output terminal of the buffer Buffer is connected to a gate terminal of the PMOS transistor MP2 and a gate terminal of the PMOS transistor MP1, and a reverse-phase terminal of the main operational amplifier OPA is connected to a reference voltage VREF.
In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the specific conditions of the main operational amplifier OPA, buffer Buffer and reference voltage VREF can all be consistent with those of the prior art, and the loop supplement conditions based on the load-dependent zero mobile compensation is consistent with those of the prior art, which will not be described herein.
Therefore, according to the LDO circuit body in
denotes the width-length ratio of the conductive channel of the PMOS transistor MP5,
denotes the width-length ratio of the conductive channel of the PMOS transistor MP6, μp denotes the average mobility of the PMOS transistor MP6, and α denotes the shunt ratio, which is the current on the PMOS transistor MP5 divided by the current on the PMOS transistor MP1; Cox denotes the gate oxygen layer capacitance of the PMOS transistor MP6, IL denotes the current on PMOS transistor MP1, that is, the load current. The great varying state of the load means the load varies greatly or dramatically and the specific conditions can be referenced to the above description.
In order to satisfy the above ideal mathematical model of the value for the load equivalent resistor, the simplest attempt is to set up a resistance in parallel with the PMOS transistor MP6 in
After the resistance is paralleled, the value REqual_mos for the load equivalent resistor that varies with the load is Rparallel//RMP6. When the load is stable, the equivalent resistance corresponding to the PMOS transistor MP6 is RMP6-linear. Since Rparallel>>RMP6-linear, when the load varies greatly or drastically, due to the parallel of Rparallel, the equivalent resistance of the load is: REqual_mos=(Rparallel//RMP6_sat)<RMP6(max( )).
However, such a design is obviously infeasible, this is due to that in light load, the linear resistance value for the PMOS transistor MP6 that varies with the load is RMP6-linear>10MΩ (M here is 10{circumflex over ( )}6, the same as below). Therefore, in order to satisfy REqual_mos≈RMP6(max( )), when the load is constant, it is necessary to enable Rparallel>10RMP6-linear>100M, which may cause the instability of the loop by REqual_mos>RMP6(max( )) when Rparallel>RMP6(max( )) and the load varies greatly or drastically. Assuming that a resistance with the suitable resistance value Rparallel can be found and connected in parallel with PMOS transistor MP6 in
In order to realize the above ideal mathematical model of the value for the above load equivalent resistor, another attempt can be made to parallel diodes at both terminals of the PMOS transistor MP6. By utilizing the paralleled diodes, although the requirements for Rdio≥RMP6-linear can be satisfied when the load is constant and the dropout voltages at both terminals of the PMOS transistor MP6 is 0, the dropout voltage may be less than the on-off dropout voltage of the diodes when the load varies greatly or drastically and the PMOS transistor MP6 enters the saturation region, so as to play no role of REqual_mos=Rdio//RMP6_sat<RMP6(max( )), where Rdio denotes the equivalent resistance of the parallel diodes.
Even if the diode in parallel can satisfy the above requirements, when the diode is adopted in parallel with the PMOS transistor MP6 and the load varies greatly, in the conditions that the instantaneous required dropout voltage is greater than the on-off dropout voltage of the diode, the voltage clamp at the output point of the main operational amplifier OPA can not decrease as expected at each voltage, thereby resulting in unsatisfactory transient responses. For example, when the load suddenly increases significantly, the output voltage of the PMOS transistor MP6 in parallel with a diode can have a significant peak.
Therefore, in order to achieve the above ideal mathematical model of the value for the load equivalent resistor, the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit of the present disclosure includes a NMOS transistor MN4, an input terminal Input of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit is formed by a gate terminal of the NMOS transistor MN4, and the input terminal Input of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit is adaptively connected to the drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6.
A source terminal of the NMOS transistor MN4 is connected to a positive terminal of a current source I0 and a first terminal of a resistance R0, a negative terminal of the current source I0 is grounded or floated on the ground, a drain terminal of a NMOS transistor MN1 is connected to an input voltage VIN, a positive terminal of a current source I1, a first terminal of a resistance R3, a source terminal of a PMOS transistor MP10, and a source terminal of a PMOS transistor MP11.
A negative terminal of the current source I1 is connected to a second terminal of the resistance R0 and a gate terminal of a PMOS transistor MP7; a source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP7 is connected to a second terminal of the resistance R3; a drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP7 is connected to a drain terminal of a PMOS transistor MP8, a gate terminal of the PMOS transistor MP8 and a gate terminal of a PMOS transistor MP9, and both a source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP8 and a source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP9 are grounded; a drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP9 is connected to a drain terminal of a PMOS transistor MP10, a gate terminal of the PMOS transistor MP10 and a gate terminal of a PMOS transistor MP11; an output terminal Output of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit is formed by a drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP11, and the output terminal Output of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit is adaptively connected to the drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6.
Specifically, the preset load varying threshold is I1*R0, and when the represented varying state of the load is matched with the preset load varying threshold in the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit, the source-drain dropout voltage is greater than or equal to I1*R0. The floating on the ground means that the relative level is at a low level, the absolute potential is not 0, and the conditions of floating on the ground is consistent with those of the prior art, which will not describe in detail herein.
As can be seen from
At the same time, Vthn−|Vthp|<<I1*R0. Therefore, it can be obtained that when the current is output by the output terminal Output of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit, it needs to meet: V1≤VIN−I1*R0.
It can be further understood that: when the source-drain dropout voltage VIN−V1 of the source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6 and the drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6 is less than I1*R0, the output terminal Output of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit has no output current, when the dropout voltage VIN−V1 at two terminals of the PMOS transistor MP6 is greater than I1*R0, output current can be generated by the output terminal Output of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit. For ease of expression, the dropout voltage VIN−V1 at two terminals of the PMOS transistor MP6 is set as ΔV.
When the load is constant or varies little, that is, when the load is stable and ΔV<I1*R0, there is no current out of the output terminal Output of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit, and the value RDRBC for the dynamically variable resistor equivalent parallel at two terminals of PMOS transistor MP6 is:
When the load varies greatly or drastically, ΔV≥I1*R0, the current out of the output terminal Output of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit is:
When the load varies greatly or drastically, ΔV≥I1*R0, therefore the current out of the output terminal Output of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit can be simplified as:
At this time, the value RDRBC for the dynamically variable resistor equivalent parallel at two terminals of PMOS transistor MP6 is:
where
denotes the width-length ratio of the conductive channel of the PMOS transistor MP9,
denotes the width-length ratio of the conductive channel of the PMOS transistor MP8,
denotes the width-length ratio of the conductive channel of the PMOS transistor MP11,
denotes the width-length ratio of the conductive channel of the PMOS transistor MP10, and
denotes the magnification β of the resistance R3, which can be adjusted in the design to satisfy βR3<RMP6(max( )). Preferably, 0.27RMP6(max)<βR3<0.53RMP6(max).
Therefore, through the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit, the stability compensation of the loop can be achieved at the minimum cost without affecting the resistance that varies with the load when the load is stable. When the load varies greatly or drastically, it is ensured that the value REqual_mos for the load equivalent resistor is less than the equivalent resistance maximum value RMP6(max( )) for the PMOS transistor MP6 in the stable loop state, so as to ensure the loop stability of the LDO circuit body and a stable transition of the output voltage.
In summary, a method of a low-dropout regulator circuit with high loop stability based on a load-dependent zero mobile compensation can be obtained. Specifically, an LDO circuit body based on the load-dependent zero mobile compensation is provided, which includes PMOS transistor MP6 configured to follow load variations.
A dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit adaptively connected with the PMOS transistor MP6 is provided, for the load adaptively connected to the LDO circuit body, varying states of the load are represented according to the source-drain dropout voltage between a source terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6 and a drain terminal of the PMOS transistor MP6; when the represented varying state of the load is matched with a preset load varying threshold in the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit, a dynamically variable resistor in parallel with the PMOS transistor MP6 is generated according to the varying state of the load by the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit.
The dynamically variable resistor is connected in parallel with the resistor followed by the PMOS transistor MP6 and acting as a resistor to form a load equivalent resistor, the value for the formed load equivalent resistor is less than an equivalent resistance maximum value for the PMOS transistor MP6 in a stable loop state, so that a high frequency pole frequency of the LDO circuit body is greater than a unit gain frequency of the LDO circuit body.
When the varying state of the load represented according to the source-drain dropout voltage is less than the preset load varying threshold in the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit, the PMOS transistor MP6 is in a linear operating region, and a dynamically variable resistor in a state of high resistance is generated according to the varying state of the load by the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit.
The resistance value for the dynamically variable resistor generated by the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit is much greater than a linear region resistance value for PMOS transistor MP6 in the linear operating region.
In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the LDO circuit body, the PMOS transistor MP6, the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit, the source-drain dropout voltage of the PMOS transistor MP6 all can be referred to the above descriptions, and the adjustment method and process to ensure the loop stability of the LDO circuit body can be referred to the above descriptions, which will not be described in detail herein.
Obviously, a person who skilled in the art may make various alterations and variants of the present disclosure without deviating from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. Thus, to the extent that these modifications and variations of the present disclosure are within the scope of the claims of the present disclosure and their equivalents, the present disclosure is also intended to include such modifications and variations.
Beneficial effects of the present disclosure are as follows.
The present disclosure provides a low-dropout regulator circuit with high loop stability based on a load-dependent zero mobile compensation and a method thereof. When the load varies greatly or drastically, a dynamically variable resistor in parallel with the PMOS transistor MP6 is generated according to the varying states of the load by the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit; the dynamically variable resistor is connected in parallel with the PMOS transistor MP6 following the load variations and acting as a resistor to form a load equivalent resistor, the value for the formed load equivalent resistor is less than an equivalent resistance maximum value for the PMOS transistor MP6 in a stable loop state, so that a high frequency pole frequency of the LDO circuit body is greater than a unit gain frequency of the LDO circuit body.
When the load is stable, the dynamically variable resistor of the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit exhibits a state of high resistance and the resistance value for the dynamically variable resistor generated by the dynamic-resistance-boosting-circuit is much greater than the linear region resistance value for the PMOS transistor MP6 in the linear operating region, which can not affect the operating state of the existing LDO circuit body based on the load-dependent zero mobile compensation, that is, can permanently maintain the loop stability of the LDO circuit body, improve the load response ability, and maintain safety and reliability.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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202210953031.3 | Aug 2022 | CN | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
PCT/CN2022/114424 | 8/24/2022 | WO |
Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
WO2024/031742 | 2/15/2024 | WO | A |
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Entry |
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“International Search Report (Form PCT/ISA/210) of PCT/CN2022/114424”, mailed on Dec. 29, 2022, pp. 1-4. |
“Written Opinion of the International Searching Authority (Form PCT/ISA/237) of PCT/CN2022/114424”, mailed on Dec. 29, 2022, pp. 1-3. |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20250085733 A1 | Mar 2025 | US |