Series Switch Bias Circuit for Low Leakage and High Breakdown
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing semiconductor switch circuits face challenges in efficiently managing off-leak current and improving off-breakdown voltage, particularly when handling direct current and high-frequency signals.
Innovation Solution
The switch apparatus incorporates a control unit, switching unit, and a bias circuit with sensing buffer units and voltage dividing resistors to manage off-leak current and enhance off-breakdown voltage by dividing voltage potentials across multiple main switches, using operational amplifiers for current amplification and reducing signal interference.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If multiple main switches are connected in series to handle high voltage, then the off-breakdown voltage is improved, but the off-leak current increases due to cumulative leakage across multiple switches
Solution Approach 1:
A bias circuit is introduced as an intermediary component between the main switches and the control signals. This bias circuit actively compensates for the off-leak current by injecting equal and opposite current, thereby neutralizing the harmful leakage effect while maintaining the series switch configuration for high voltage handling capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the electrical parameters of the switching nodes by introducing bias voltages through the bias circuit. By adjusting these bias parameters, the gate-source voltage distribution across multiple switches is optimized to reduce cumulative off-leak current while maintaining sufficient off-breakdown voltage for high voltage applications.
2Object-generated harmful factors
If the gate-source voltage is divided across multiple switches to reduce off-leak current, then the off-leak current is reduced, but the control complexity increases due to precise voltage distribution requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The bias circuit is designed to automatically adjust and balance the gate-source voltage distribution across multiple switches without requiring external complex control mechanisms. The circuit self-regulates by using feedback from the switch configurations, thereby reducing off-leak current while maintaining simple control architecture.
3Measurement precision
If sensing buffer units with operational amplifiers are added to manage voltage potentials, then the voltage control precision is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The sensing buffer units with operational amplifiers serve multiple functions simultaneously: they buffer voltage potentials, provide precise measurement, and enable controlled distribution across switches. By making these components multi-functional, the patent achieves high voltage control precision without proportionally increasing device complexity, as single components perform multiple roles.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution effectively reduces off-leak current to approximately 1 nA to 10 nA and enhances the off-breakdown voltage by distributing voltage across switches, improving the overall performance and reliability of the switch apparatus.
Implementation Method 1
using operational amplifiers for current amplification
Implementation Method 2
dividing voltage potentials across multiple main switches
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a switch apparatus which electrically connects or disconnects across a first terminal and a second terminal, the switch apparatus including a plurality of main switches connected in series between the first terminal and the second terminal, a first sensing buffer unit to which a first voltage at the first terminal is input and which outputs a first sensing voltage in accordance with the first voltage, and a bias circuit which divides, according to a number of the plurality of main switches, a potential difference between a voltage in accordance with a second voltage at the second terminal and the first sensing voltage into voltages and applies each of the voltages divided to a corresponding one of the plurality of main switches.