High-speed clock-enabled latch circuit
First Claim
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1. A latch circuit comprising:
- first and second transistors coupled to each other at a first junction and in series between a first voltage source and a controllable enable switch coupled to a second voltage source, a gate of said second transistor coupled to a first controllable input switch receiving a first input signal;
third and fourth transistors coupled to each other at a second junction and in series between the first voltage source and the controllable enable switch, a gate of said fourth transistor coupled to a second controllable input switch receiving a corresponding second input signal, gates of said first and third transistors coupled to said second and first junctions, respectively; and
a controllable initialization switch coupled between the first and second junctions, the switches being controllable by a clock signal, wherein when the clock signal is at a first signal level, said controllable enable switch electrically connects the second and fourth transistors to the second voltage source and wherein when the clock signal is at a second signal level, the first and second controllable input switches provide the input signals to the gates of the second and fourth transistors and the controllable initialization switch electrically connects the first and second junctions.
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Abstract
A novel latch circuit configuration that substantially reduces inverter-based setup and hold times. The latch circuit includes first and second input switches connected to an effective sense amplifier configuration. It is possible for the input switches to receive complementary signals of a balanced input signal. The latch circuit operates in initialization and output modes based on the signal level of an alternating clock signal. The output mode produces an output signal having a first or second signal magnitude based on the magnitude of the input signal at the end of the initialization mode. Also, disclosed is a high-speed serial-to-parallel converter based on this latch circuit.
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15 Claims
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1. A latch circuit comprising:
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first and second transistors coupled to each other at a first junction and in series between a first voltage source and a controllable enable switch coupled to a second voltage source, a gate of said second transistor coupled to a first controllable input switch receiving a first input signal; third and fourth transistors coupled to each other at a second junction and in series between the first voltage source and the controllable enable switch, a gate of said fourth transistor coupled to a second controllable input switch receiving a corresponding second input signal, gates of said first and third transistors coupled to said second and first junctions, respectively; and a controllable initialization switch coupled between the first and second junctions, the switches being controllable by a clock signal, wherein when the clock signal is at a first signal level, said controllable enable switch electrically connects the second and fourth transistors to the second voltage source and wherein when the clock signal is at a second signal level, the first and second controllable input switches provide the input signals to the gates of the second and fourth transistors and the controllable initialization switch electrically connects the first and second junctions. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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Specification