Voltage ramp rate control circuit

• US 5,945,870 A
• Filed: 01/16/1997
• Issued: 08/31/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 07/18/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Altera Corporation (Intel Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Altera Corporation (Intel Corporation)
• Inventors: Liang, Gwen G., Chu, Michael H., Costello, John, Turner, John, Wong, Myron W.
• Primary Examiner(s): LE, DINH THANH
• Application Number:
  US08/783,751
• Time in Patent Office: 957 Days
• Field of Search: 327/170, 327/536, 327/537, 327/131, 327/390, 327/172, 327/291, 327/140, 327/540, 331/57
• US Class Current: 327/536
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 16/12 Programming voltage switching circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 16/30 Power supply circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 5/145 Applications of charge pumps; Boosted voltage circuits; Clamp circuits therefor G11C5/141 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 3/07 using capacitors charged and discharged alternately by semiconductor devices with control electrode , e.g. charge pumps

Abstract

Various embodiments for controlling a ramp rate of a high voltage generator circuit such as a charge pump circuit are disclosed. In one embodiment the ramp rate of the output signal is controlled by modulating an amplitude of the oscillating signal at the input of the charge pump circuit. In another embodiment, the ramp rate is controlled by modulating the current loading at the output of the charge pump circuit. In yet another embodiment, the ramp rate of the output signal is controlled by modulating the frequency of the oscillating signal at the input of the charge pump circuit.

Claims

1. A voltage generator control circuit comprising:

an amplitude modulation circuit having a first input coupled to receive an input oscillating signal, and a second input coupled to receive an amplitude control signal, said amplitude modulation circuit is designed to generate at an output an oscillating signal having a modulated amplitude in response to the amplitude control signal; and

a charge pump circuit having an input coupled to the output of the amplitude modulation circuit, and an output,

whereby, ramp rate of a signal at the output of the charge pump circuit is controlled by the oscillating signal having a modulated amplitude.

2. The voltage generator control circuit of claim 1 wherein the amplitude modulation circuit comprises:

a variable voltage reference generator designed to supply the amplitude control signal at an output;

a timing control circuit coupled to the variable voltage reference generator; and

a modulator having an amplitude control input coupled to the output of the variable voltage reference generator.

3. The voltage generator control circuit of claim 2 wherein the variable voltage reference generator comprises:

a chain of resistive elements coupled between a power supply terminal and a ground terminal, the chain of resistive elements providing a plurality of reference voltages at a corresponding plurality of taps between pairs of resistive elements; and

a plurality of switch elements respectively coupling the plurality of taps to a common node at the output of the variable voltage reference generator.

4. The voltage generator control circuit of claim 3 wherein the modulator comprises:

a logic gate coupled between a first node and ground, and having an input coupled the input of the amplitude modulation circuit, and an output coupled to the output of the amplitude modulation circuit; and

an amplitude control element coupling the first node to the power supply terminal, and having a control input coupled to the modulator amplitude control input.

5. The voltage generator control circuit of claim 3 wherein the timing control circuit comprises a shift register having a clock input, and a plurality of outputs respectively coupled to the plurality of switch elements.

6. The voltage generator control circuit of claim 3 wherein the chain of resistive elements comprises a serial chain of identically sized unit resistors, and the plurality of switch elements comprise MOS pass transistors.

7. The voltage generator control circuit of claim 4 wherein the logic gate comprises an inverter, and the amplitude control element comprises an MOS transistor.

8. The voltage generator control circuit of claim 6 wherein each switch in a first group of the plurality of switch elements comprises a single MOS pass transistor, and each switch in a second group of the plurality of switch elements comprises a CMOS transmission gate.

9. The voltage generator control circuit of claim 6 wherein the chain of resistive elements includes a serial chain of resistors wherein a first resistor coupled to the ground terminal is of larger value than the remaining resistors which are of identical value.

10. The voltage generator control circuit of claim 3 further comprising a switch element coupled between the chain of resistive elements and the power supply terminal, and a switch element coupled between the common node and the ground terminal.

11. The voltage generator control circuit of claim 4 further comprising a second modulator, the second modulator comprising:

a logic gate having an input for receiving a second oscillating signal and an output coupled to a second input of the charge pump circuit; and

an amplitude control element coupling the logic gate of the second modulator to the power supply terminal, the amplitude control element of the second modulator having a control input coupled to the modulator amplitude control input.

12. The voltage generator control circuit of claim 11 wherein the amplitude control element in each of the modulators comprises a first MOS transistor and a second MOS transistor coupling each logic gate to the power supply terminal.

13. The voltage generator control circuit of claim 12 wherein a gate terminal of the first MOS transistor in each modulator couples to the modulator amplitude control input, and a gate terminal of the second MOS transistor in each modulator couples to an output of a control logic block.

14. The voltage generator control circuit of claim 13 wherein the control logic block comprises a plurality of logic gates generating control signals for a second plurality of switch elements that couple to the common node.

15. A method for controlling the ramp rate of an output voltage of a charge pump circuit comprising the steps of:

receiving an oscillating signal;

modulating an amplitude of the oscillating signal to obtain an amplitude modulated oscillating signal in response to a control signal; and

applying the amplitude modulated oscillating signal to an input of the charge pump circuit.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the step of modulating comprises the steps of:

generating a plurality of reference voltages in predefined increments; and

multiplying the plurality of reference voltages with the oscillating signal, starting from a low reference voltage and gradually incrementing to higher reference voltages at a controlled rate of time.

17. A voltage generator control circuit comprising:

a charge pump circuit having an input for receiving an oscillating signal; and

a variable current loading circuit coupled to an output of the charge pump circuit and having a control input coupled to receive a current loading control signal,

whereby, a ramp rate of a signal at the output of the charge pump circuit is controlled by varying a current loading at the output of the charge pump circuit in response to the current loading control signal.

18. The voltage generator control circuit of claim 17 wherein the variable current loading circuit comprises:

a plurality of current source devices coupled in parallel at the output of the charge pump circuit; and

a timing control circuit having an input coupled to the control input, the timing control circuit coupled to the plurality of current source devices for controlling a state of each current source device in response to the current loading control signal.

19. The voltage generator control circuit of claim 18 wherein the plurality of current source devices comprises a respective plurality of switches, and wherein the timing control circuit comprises a serial shift register having an input coupled to receive the current loading control signal, and a plurality of outputs respectively controlling a state of the plurality of switches.

20. A voltage ramp rate control circuit comprising:

an oscillator designed to generate an oscillating signal at an output;

a variable reference voltage generator designed to generate at an output a reference voltage that varies in predefined increments in response to a control signal;

a modulator having an input coupled to receive the oscillating signal, and a control input coupled to the output of the variable reference voltage generator, wherein the modulator is designed to generate at an output an oscillating signal with modulated amplitude in response to the reference voltage; and

a charge pump circuit having an input coupled to the output of the modulation circuit, and an output,

whereby, ramp rate of a signal at the output of the charge pump circuit is controlled by the oscillating signal with modulated amplitude.