1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a non-linearity compensation circuit and a bandgap reference circuit using the same, and more particularly, to a non-linearity compensation circuit capable of improving the precision of a bandgap reference voltage and a bandgap reference circuit using the same.
2. Description of Related Art
Digital-to-analog converters (DACs), analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) or regulators need at least one fixed and stable reference voltage. It is preferred that the reference voltage is stably regenerated each time the power source is started. An ideal reference voltage even had better not be influenced by processing differences, changes in the operating temperature, and power source variations.
A bandgap reference circuit can be used to provide the reference voltage. Therefore, bandgap reference circuits play an important role in many electronic systems as they may determine the stability and precision of the entire systems.
The reference voltage VBG1 can be represented by the following equations.
VBG1=0.5*(VNTC1+VPTC1)=0.5*(VBE1A+VPTC1)=0.5*(VBE1A+K1*VT) (1)
VPTC1=IPTAT1*R102=(ΔVBE/R101)*R102 (2)
ΔVBE=VT*ln(n) (3)
wherein, VT represents the thermal voltage (the value is KT/q, wherein K is the Boltzmann's constant=1.28×10−23 Joules/Kelvin, T is the absolute temperature, q=1.602×10−29 Coulomb), K1 is a constant, VBE1A represents the base-emitter voltage of the BJT transistor B101, VNTC1 represents a negative temperature coefficient (NTC) voltage, VPTC1 represents a proportional to absolute temperature (PTAT) voltage, IPTAT1 is a PTAT current, and n is the size ratio of the transistor B102 to the transistor B101.
The base-emitter voltage VBE of the BJT transistors can be represented by the following equation.
VBE=VG0−(VG0−VBE0)*T/T0−(η−α)*VTln(T/T0) (4)
In equation (4), T0 represents the reference voltage, T represents the operating temperature, VBE0 represents the base-emitter voltage obtained at the reference temperature T0, VG0 is the silicon bandgap voltage at the absolute temperature of 0, η is the structural coefficient of the BJT transistors (the value is between 2 and 6), and the coefficient α is determined by the type of the biasing current of the BJT transistors. When the biasing current is a PTAT current, α=1, and when the biasing current is a temperature independent current, α=0.
As the biasing current of the transistors B101 and B102 is equal to the PTAT current, α=1. Therefore, the base-emitter voltages VBE1A and VBE1B of the transistors B101 and B102 can be respectively represented by the following equations.
VBE1A=VG0−(VG0−VBE0)*T/T0−(η−1)*VTln(T/T0) (5)
VBE1B=VG0−(VG0−VBE0)*T/T0−(η−1)*VTln(T/T0) (6)
Introduce equations (2)˜(6) into equation (1), the following equation is obtained.
In equation (7), if K2=R102/R101*ln(n), K2*VT can be used to compensate the linear term in VBE. (η−1)*VTln(T/T0) (or VTln(T/T0)) is a non-linear term in VBE. Therefore, the compensation effect of the reference voltage VBG1 is limited, and the non-linearity effect still exists.
Therefore, the reference voltage resulting from adding the non-linear VBE and the linear K2*VT also presents the non-linear effect. Thus, the actual reference voltage exhibits quite a large difference in operating temperature range.
It can be seen from
Therefore, a bandgap reference circuit for obtaining a stable reference voltage that does not vary much by compensating the non-linear term is needed.
One objective of the present invention is to provide a non-linearity compensation circuit applicable in most bandgap reference circuits.
Another objective of the present invention is to provide a non-linearity compensation circuit and a bandgap reference circuit using the same, wherein the non-linearity compensation circuit can improve the precision of the reference voltage.
Still another objective of the present invention is to provide a non-linearity compensation circuit and a bandgap reference circuit using the same, wherein the circuit cost of the non-linearity compensation circuit is low, so it can be applied widely.
To achieve the aforementioned objectives, one embodiment of the present invention provides a bandgap reference circuit comprising a PTAT current mirror for generating a PTAT current and a non-linearity current, a first and a second BJT transistors biased by the PTAT current, an operation amplifier and voltage divider circuit for outputting a reference voltage in response to a base-emitter voltage of the first transistor, a PTAT voltage and a non-linear voltage, and a non-linearity compensation circuit for converting the reference voltage output from the operation amplifier and voltage divider circuit into a temperature independent current to compensate the non-linear effect and the temperature dependent effect of the reference voltage. The non-linearity compensation circuit includes a third BJT transistor biased by the temperature independent current, and a first resistor and a second resistor, wherein the voltage drops across the first resistor and the second resistor are the non-linear voltage.
The combination of another resistor and another BJT transistor can be used to obtain the function of the operation amplifier and voltage divider circuit, wherein the voltage drop of the resistor is the sum of the PTAT voltage and the non-linear voltage, and the base-emitter voltage of the BJT transistor is the negative temperature coefficient voltage.
In addition, another embodiment of the present invention provides a non-linearity compensation circuit for compensating the non-linear effect and the temperature dependent effect of a reference voltage generated by a bandgap reference circuit. The bandgap reference circuit includes a first transistor and a second transistor biased by a PTAT current, and a first resistor. The non-linearity compensation circuit includes an operation amplifier for receiving the reference voltage; a third transistor coupled to the operation amplifier, which together convert the reference voltage into a temperature independent current; a temperature independent current mirror for mirroring the temperature independent current; a fourth transistor for receiving the temperature independent current generated by the temperature independent current mirror and biased by the temperature independent current; and a second resistor and a third resistor, a non-linear voltage being across the second and third resistors.
In order to make the aforementioned and other features and advantages of the present invention comprehensible, preferred embodiments accompanied with figures are described in detail below.
The source of the MOS transistor M501 is connected to a power source VDD, the drain thereof is connected to the emitter of the BJT transistor B501 (i.e., node Va5), and the gate thereof is connected to the output of the operation amplifier OP501 and the gates of the MOS transistors M502 and M503. The source of the MOS transistor M502 is connected to the power source VDD, the drain thereof is connected to the emitter of the BJT transistor B502 (i.e., node Vb5), and the gate thereof is connected to the output of the operation amplifier OP501 and the gates of the MOS transistors M501 and M503. The source of the MOS transistor M503 is connected to the power source VDD, the drain thereof is connected to the positive input terminal of the operation amplifier OP502 and one terminal of the resistor R504, and the gate thereof is connected to the output of the operation amplifier OP501 and the gates of the MOS transistors M501 and M502. The output of the operation amplifier OP501 is coupled to the gates of the MOS transistors M501˜M503. As the MOS transistors M501˜M503 have the same size, they generate the same current.
The positive input terminal of the operation amplifier OP501 is connected to the node Vb5, the negative input terminal thereof is connected to the node Va5, and the output terminal thereof is connected to the gates of the MOS transistors M501˜M503. The positive input terminal of the operation amplifier OP502 is connected to the drain of the MOS transistor M503 and the resistor R504, the negative input terminal thereof is coupled to the output terminal thereof, and the output terminal thereof is coupled to the reference voltage VBG5 via the resistor R505A. The positive input terminal of the operation amplifier OP502 is connected to the node Va5, the negative input terminal thereof is coupled to the output terminal thereof, and the output terminal thereof is coupled to the reference voltage VBG5 via the resistor R505B. Therefore, the voltage VNTC5 is equal to the VBE5A of the transistor B501. As known from
The emitter of the BJT transistor B501 is connected to the node Va5, and the collector and the base thereof are both grounded. The emitter of the BJT transistor B502 is connected to the node Vb5 via the resistor R506, and the collector and the base thereof are both grounded.
The resistor R504 is coupled between the drain of the MOS transistor M503 and the ground terminal. The resistors R505A and R505B function as a voltage divider circuit to divide VBG5 from the output voltages of the operation amplifiers OP502 and OP503. The resistors R505A and R505B have the same resistance. The resistor R506 is coupled between the node Vb5 and the emitter of the BJT transistor B502.
The source of the MOS transistor M504 is coupled to the power source VDD, the gate thereof is coupled to its drain and the gate of the MOS transistor M505, and the drain thereof is coupled to the drain of the MOS transistor M506. The source of the MOS transistor M505 is coupled to the power source VDD, the gate thereof is coupled to the gate and the drain of the MOS transistor M504, and the drain thereof is coupled to the emitter of the BJT transistor B503.
The source of the MOS transistor M506 is coupled to the negative input terminal of the operation amplifier OP504 and the resistor R503, the gate thereof is coupled to the output terminal of the operation amplifier OP504, and the drain thereof is coupled to the drain and the gate of the MOS transistor M504.
The positive input terminal of the operation amplifier OP504 is coupled to the reference voltage VBG5, the negative input terminal thereof is coupled to the source of the MOS transistor M506 and the resistor R503, and the output terminal thereof is coupled to the gate of the MOS transistor M506.
The emitter of the BJT transistor B503 is coupled to the drain of the MOS transistor M505 and the resistors R501 and R502, and the base and the collector thereof are both grounded.
The resistor R501 is coupled between the emitter of the BJT transistor B501 and the emitter of the BJT transistor B503. A current INL5 flows through the resistor R501, and the voltage drop across the resistor is VNL5. The resistor R502 is coupled between the node Vb5 and the emitter of the BJT transistor B503. The current INL5 also flows through the resistor R502, and the voltage drop across the resistor R502 is also VNL5. The resistors R501 and R502 are coupled to each other and have the same resistance. The resistor R503 is coupled between the source of the MOS transistor M506 and the ground terminal.
The output voltage of the operation amplifier OP501 adjusts the MOS transistors M501 and M503, such that Va5=Vb5, which further causes a voltage drop ΔVBE5 across the resistor R506. The voltage drop ΔVBE5 across the resistor R506 is represented by the following equation:
ΔVBE5=VT*ln(n) (8)
wherein n is the size ratio of the BJT transistor B502 to the BJT transistor B501 (n:1).
To facilitate the explanation, the current generated by the MOS transistors M501˜M503 is defined as IPTAT5+INL5 hereinafter, wherein IPTAT5 represents the current proportional to absolute temperature, and INL5 represents the non-linear dependent current.
As the output voltage of the MOS transistor M503 is IPTAT5+INL5, a voltage drop across occurs on the resistor R504 is R504*(IPTAT5+INL5)=VPTC5+VNL5, wherein VPTC5 represents the voltage proportional to absolute temperature, and VNL5 represents the non-linear dependent voltage. Therefore, the positive input voltage of the operation amplifier OP502 is VPTC5+VNL5.
Moreover, as the positive input terminal voltage VNTC5 of the operation amplifier OP503 is equal to VBE5A, the following equation can be obtained through the operation of the operation amplifiers OP502 and OP503:
VBG5=0.5*(VPTC5+VNTC+VNL5) (9)
As the transistors B501 and B502 are biased by the PTAT current, α=1. Therefore, VBE5A and VBE5B can be represented by the following equation:
VBE5A=VBE5B=VG0−(VG0−VBE0)*T/T0−(η−1)*VTln(T/T0) (10)
VBE5A and VBE5B are negative temperature coefficient dependent voltages. The non-linear voltage VNL5 still exists in equation 9, so a non-linearity compensation circuit 510 is used to estimate and compensate the non-linear VNL5 in this embodiment.
As shown in
VBE5C=VG0−(VG0−VBE0)*T/T0−(η)*VTln(T/T0) (11)
Subtract equation (11) from equation (10), and the following equation can be obtained:
As known from equation (7), the non-linear term of the reference voltage is VTln(T/T0)=VNL5. To estimate the value of the non-linear voltage, in this embodiment, let the resistor R501 across between the emitter of the BJT transistor B501 and the emitter of the BJT transistor B503. Therefore, the voltage drop across the resistor R501 (and the resistor R502) is the non-linear voltage VNL5.
Therefore, the following equation is obtained by rearranging the equations described above,
The definition of η and VBE0 are as described above. By selecting appropriate resistance of R504 and R502, the (η−1) is made to be equal to or very close to the ratio of (R504/R502), thus the equation (13) can be simplified into the following equation.
As known from equation 14, after being compensated by the non-linearity compensation circuit 510, the non-linear effect of the reference voltage VBG5 is well compensated, and can be considered as almost temperature independent.
The non-linearity compensation circuit 510 generates the temperature independent current IBG5 by using the fed back reference voltage VBG5 that can be considered as temperature independent. In addition, the two resistors R501 and R502 in the non-linearity compensation circuit 510 are across the transistors B501/B502 (α=1, biased by the current proportional to absolute temperature) and the temperature independent transistor B503(α=0, biased by the temperature independent current), so as to estimate the non-linear voltage VNL5.
With the concept of
In
As known from the architectures shown in
To sum up, the non-linearity compensation circuit according to the present invention can improve the precision of the reference voltage. In addition, the circuit cost of the non-linearity compensation circuit is not high, thus it can be widely applied.
It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the structure of the present invention without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. In view of the foregoing, it is intended that the present invention cover modifications and variations of this invention provided they fall within the scope of the following claims and their equivalents.
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