Wideband regulator with fast transient suppression circuitry
First Claim
1. A voltage regulator configured for providing for the suppression of current transients, said voltage regulator comprising:
- a closed loop amplifier for determining a difference between a reference voltage and an output voltage;
a compensation capacitor coupled to said closed loop amplifier;
an output buffer amplifier coupled to said compensation capacitor, said output buffer amplifier being configured to provide an output for said voltage regulator comprising the output voltage;
a boosting circuit coupled to said closed loop amplifier and said compensation capacitor and being configured for providing a boosted voltage charge, said boosting circuit comprising at least one stored charge source and at least two switching devices; and
a sensing circuit configured for sensing a load transient event to permit said boosted voltage charge to be provided to an input of said output buffer amplifier, said sensing circuit comprising a threshold voltage and a control device for controlling operation of said at least two switching devices, and wherein said sensing circuit operates said at least two switching devices based on occurrence of the load transient event such that an accelerated response of said voltage regulator to a fast load transient beyond at least one of a closed loop bandwidth limited response and a slew rate limited response of said voltage regulator can be realized.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A wideband voltage regulator is configured to provide suppression of fast transients, which can include a boosting circuit and a sensing circuit. The boosting circuit can be suitably configured to boost the voltage regulator response, while the sensing circuit can determine when such a boost may be desired. Accordingly, the response of the voltage regulator can be accelerated to a fast load transient beyond the closed loop bandwidth limited response or the slew rate limited response of the voltage regulator. An exemplary voltage regulator can be configured with an active sensing circuit comprising a sensing amplifier with switch control outputs, and a boosting circuit comprising N stored charge sources, e.g.; boost capacitors, and (3N−1) switches that are configured to accelerate the voltage regulators response to a fast load transient beyond the closed loop bandwidth limited or slew rate limited response of the voltage regulator.
17 Citations
36 Claims
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1. A voltage regulator configured for providing for the suppression of current transients, said voltage regulator comprising:
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a closed loop amplifier for determining a difference between a reference voltage and an output voltage;
a compensation capacitor coupled to said closed loop amplifier;
an output buffer amplifier coupled to said compensation capacitor, said output buffer amplifier being configured to provide an output for said voltage regulator comprising the output voltage;
a boosting circuit coupled to said closed loop amplifier and said compensation capacitor and being configured for providing a boosted voltage charge, said boosting circuit comprising at least one stored charge source and at least two switching devices; and
a sensing circuit configured for sensing a load transient event to permit said boosted voltage charge to be provided to an input of said output buffer amplifier, said sensing circuit comprising a threshold voltage and a control device for controlling operation of said at least two switching devices, and wherein said sensing circuit operates said at least two switching devices based on occurrence of the load transient event such that an accelerated response of said voltage regulator to a fast load transient beyond at least one of a closed loop bandwidth limited response and a slew rate limited response of said voltage regulator can be realized. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. An integrated circuit configured for the suppression of current transients occurring within said integrated circuit, said integrated circuit comprising:
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an input power supply terminal for receiving an input power supply;
a reference voltage terminal for receiving a reference voltage; and
a voltage regulator coupled to said input power supply terminal and said reference voltage terminal and configured for providing an output voltage, said voltage regulator comprising;
a closed loop amplifier configured for minimizing a difference in voltage between the reference voltage and the output voltage;
a compensation capacitor coupled to said closed loop amplifier;
an output buffer amplifier having an input terminal coupled to said compensation capacitor, said output buffer amplifier having an output terminal coupled to the output voltage of said voltage regulator;
a boosting circuit coupled to said closed loop amplifier and said compensation capacitor and being configured for providing a boosted voltage charge, said boosting circuit comprising at least one stored charge source and at least two switching devices; and
a sensing circuit comprising a threshold voltage and a control device for controlling operation of said at least two switching devices, said sensing circuit being configured for providing an accelerated response of said voltage regulator by permitting said boosted voltage charge to be provided to an input of said output buffer amplifier upon determination that the output voltage falls below said threshold voltage. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27)
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28. A method for suppressing current transients in a voltage regulator, said method comprising the steps of:
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determining a voltage difference between a reference voltage and an output voltage in said voltage regulator;
minimizing said voltage difference between the reference voltage and the output voltage with a closed loop amplifier through use of a compensation capacitor;
charging a stored charge source in a boosting circuit to provide a boosted charge voltage, said boosting capacitor coupled between a bias voltage and ground;
determining when the output voltage falls below a difference between the reference voltage and a threshold voltage through use of a sensing circuit; and
boosting the output voltage through operation of said sensing circuit until a desired voltage level is obtained. - View Dependent Claims (29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36)
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Specification