HIGH PERFORMANCE CURRENT SOURCE POWER SUPPLY

• US 20140306671A1
• Filed: 04/12/2013
• Published: 10/16/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/12/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tektronix Incorporated (Fortive Corp.), Keithley Instruments, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Keithley Instruments, Inc.
• Inventors: Cawley, Kevin, Goeke, Wayne, Sobolewski, Gregory
• Granted Patent: US 10,802,520 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 323/265
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/31721 Power aspects, e.g. power supplies for test circuits, power saving during test for scan test G01R31/318575
• CPC Class Codes: G05F 1/575 characterised by the feedback circuit
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/24 Arrangements for testing

Abstract

A system can include a device under test (DUT) having a DUT voltage, a cable connected to the DUT, the cable having a cable inductance, and a power supply configured as a current source to provide a wide bandwidth voltage source to the DUT, wherein the DUT voltage is independent of the cable inductance.

Claims

1. A system for sourcing a voltage, comprising:

a remote capacitor;

a voltage-control-current-source having a deterministic transconduction;

a first cable connecting an output of the voltage-controlled-current-source to the remote capacitor;

a second cable connecting an input of the voltage-controlled-current-source to the remote capacitor, wherein the remote capacitor is of a size such that it dominates the open loop gain frequency roll-off though a gain of one.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the voltage-controlled-current-source comprises:

a voltage-controlled-voltage-source connected to a resistance to a reference point as the current output; and

a differential amplifier referencing said reference point to its voltage output, wherein the output of said differential amplifier is connected to the input of said voltage-controlled-voltage-source.

3. The system of claim 1, further comprising a means to set and/or change the voltage sourced across the remote capacitor and device under test (DUT).

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the remote capacitor is positioned in close proximity to the DUT.

5. The system of claim 3, wherein the remote capacitor is incorporated as part of the DUT.

6. The system of claim 3, wherein the means to set and/or change the voltage sourced across the remote capacitor and DUT can be varied with time to produce an arbitrary voltage waveform on the remote capacitor within a limitation of the system bandwidth.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the transconductance of the voltage-controlled-current-source can be adjusted.