Voltage Regulator Using Load Replica for Stable Memory Supply
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Solution Overview
Problem
Voltage regulators struggle to maintain stable output supply voltage when current loads abruptly change, leading to potential voltage drops and instability in semiconductor memory devices.
Innovation Solution
A voltage regulator design that includes an amplifier, voltage feedback unit, current load replica unit, and transfer unit, which amplifies the difference between reference and feedback voltages to maintain a target output voltage level, even when current loads change, using a network of PMOS and NMOS transistors and capacitors to manage current flow.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a conventional voltage regulator is used, then the circuit structure is simple, but the output supply voltage becomes unstable when current load changes abruptly
Solution Approach 1:
The current load replica unit is configured to consume a first current that replicates the current consumption pattern of the actual current load unit. This preliminary current consumption allows the voltage regulator to anticipate and prepare for load changes before they occur, maintaining stable output voltage by pre-adjusting the transfer unit's current provision based on the replica unit's behavior
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a simplified copy of the current load unit called the current load replica unit. This replica unit mirrors the electrical characteristics and current consumption of the actual load unit but operates at a smaller scale. By monitoring and responding to the replica unit's current consumption, the voltage regulator can maintain stable output voltage without directly sensing the actual load, effectively using the copy to control the system response to load changes
2Reliability
If the amplifier bandwidth is increased to maintain stable output voltage during abrupt current load changes, then the voltage stability improves, but the device complexity and bandwidth requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The current load replica unit performs preliminary current consumption that mimics the actual load's behavior. This allows the amplifier to work with smaller, more predictable signal variations since the replica unit has already established the current consumption pattern, reducing the need for high bandwidth to handle abrupt load transitions
Solution Approach 2:
By using the current load replica unit as an intermediary, the amplifier only needs to respond to the replica's current consumption rather than directly handling the full range of actual load variations. This copying approach reduces the amplifier's bandwidth requirements while maintaining voltage stability, as the replica unit absorbs and smooths out the abrupt changes
Data Source
AI summary
A voltage regulator and a semiconductor memory device having the same are disclosed. The voltage regulator includes an amplifier configured to amplify a difference between a reference voltage and a feedback voltage to generate an amplifier output voltage, a voltage feedback unit connected between an output supply voltage generation node and a ground voltage and configured to generate the feedback voltage, a first transfer gate unit connected between an input supply voltage and the voltage generation node and driven in response to the amplifier output voltage to provide first current, a current load replica unit connected between the voltage generation node and the ground voltage and configured to consume the first current, and a transfer unit connected between the input supply voltage and the voltage generation node and driven in response to the amplifier output voltage when the current load unit performs an operation, to provide second current.