High-linearity complementary amplifier

• US 7,936,217 B2
• Filed: 11/29/2007
• Issued: 05/03/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/29/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Deng, Junxiong, Sahota, Gurkanwal Singh, Peng, Solti
• Primary Examiner(s): Mottola; Steven J
• Application Number:
  US11/947,570
• Publication Number:
  US 20090140812A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,251 Days
• Field of Search: 330/264, 330/267
• US Class Current: 330/264
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 1/0261 with control of the polarisation voltage or current, e.g. gliding Class A
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 1/086 with FET's
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 1/3205 in field-effect transistor amplifiers
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 1/3211 in differential amplifiers
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 1/56 Modifications of input or output impedances, not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 2200/18 the bias of the gate of a FET being controlled by a control signal
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 2200/294 the amplifier being a low noise amplifier [LNA]
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 2200/354 the amplifier comprising MOS which are biased in the moderate inversion region
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 2200/451 the amplifier being a radio frequency amplifier
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 3/19 with semiconductor devices only
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 3/3022 CMOS common source output SEPP amplifiers H03F3/3008 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 3/45179 using MOSFET transistors as the active amplifying circuit H03F3/45278 takes precedence

Abstract

A complementary amplifier includes an NMOS transistor coupled to a PMOS transistor in a stacked configuration. The NMOS transistor and the PMOS transistor receive and amplify an input signal. The NMOS and PMOS transistors operate as a linear complementary amplifier and provide an output signal. The NMOS and PMOS transistors may have separate bias voltages, which may be selected to overlap the low-to-high and high-to-low transitions of the transconductances of these transistors. The width and length dimensions of the NMOS and PMOS transistors may be selected to match the change in input capacitance and the change in transconductance of the NMOS transistor in moderate inversion region with the change in input capacitance and the change in transconductance of the PMOS transistor in moderate inversion region. The complementary amplifier may have an approximately constant total input capacitance and an approximately constant total transconductance over a range of voltages.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

an N-channel metal oxide semiconductor (NMOS) transistor configured to receive and amplify an input signal; and

a P-channel metal oxide semiconductor (PMOS) transistor coupled to the NMOS transistor and configured to receive and amplify the input signal, the NMOS and PMOS transistors operating as a linear complementary amplifier and providing an output signal, the NMOS and PMOS transistors having dimensions selected to keep a total transconductance for the NMOS and PMOS transistors approximately constant over a range of the input signal.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the NMOS and PMOS transistors have separate bias voltages, and wherein a gate of the NMOS transistor is biased with a first bias voltage and a gate of the PMOS transistor is biased with a second bias voltage.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein a gate of the NMOS transistor is biased with an external bias voltage and a gate of the PMOS transistor is self-biased.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a first resistor coupled to a gate of the NMOS transistor and configured to provide a bias voltage for the NMOS transistor; and

a second resistor coupled between a gate and a drain of the PMOS transistor and configured to provide self bias for the PMOS transistor.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the NMOS and PMOS transistors are biased to overlap a low-to-high transition of transconductance of the NMOS transistor with a high-to-low transition of transconductance of the PMOS transistor.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the NMOS and PMOS transistors both operate in moderate inversion region for a range of voltages for the input signal.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the NMOS and PMOS transistors have approximately equal areas.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein width and length dimensions of the NMOS and PMOS transistors are selected to obtain an approximately constant total input capacitance for the NMOS and PMOS transistors over a range of voltages for the input signal.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein width and length dimensions of the NMOS and PMOS transistors are selected to match change in input capacitance of the NMOS transistor in moderate inversion region with change in input capacitance of the PMOS transistor in moderate inversion region.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein sizes of the NMOS and PMOS transistors are selected to obtain an approximately constant total transconductance for the NMOS and PMOS transistors over a range of voltages for the input signal.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein sizes of the NMOS and PMOS transistors are selected to match change in transconductance of the NMOS transistor in moderate inversion region with change in transconductance of the PMOS transistor in moderate inversion region.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the NMOS transistor have a first transconductance and a first size and the PMOS transistor have a second transconductance and a second size, the second size being M times the first size and M being select such that the second transconductance matches the first transconductance.

13. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a second NMOS transistor configured to receive and amplify a second input signal; and

a second PMOS transistor coupled to the second NMOS transistor and configured to receive and amplify the second input signal, the second NMOS and PMOS transistors providing a second output signal, the input signal and the second input signal forming a differential input signal, the output signal and the second output signal forming a differential output signal, the NMOS and PMOS transistors and the second NMOS and PMOS transistors operating as a differential linear complementary amplifier.

14. An integrated circuit comprising:

an N-channel metal oxide semiconductor (NMOS) transistor configured to receive and amplify an input signal; and

a P-channel metal oxide semiconductor (PMOS) transistor coupled to the NMOS transistor and configured to receive and amplify the input signal, the NMOS and PMOS transistors operating as a linear complementary amplifier and providing an output signal, the NMOS and PMOS transistors having dimensions selected to keep a total transconductance for the NMOS and PMOS transistors approximately constant over a range of the input signal.

15. The integrated circuit of claim 14, wherein the NMOS and PMOS transistors have separate bias voltages, and wherein a gate of the NMOS transistor is biased with a first bias voltage and a gate of the PMOS transistor is biased with a second bias voltage.

16. The integrated circuit of claim 14, wherein width and length dimensions of the NMOS and PMOS transistors are selected to match change in input capacitance of the NMOS transistor in moderate inversion region with change in input capacitance of the PMOS transistor in moderate inversion region.

17. The integrated circuit of claim 14, wherein sizes of the NMOS and PMOS transistors are selected to match change in transconductance of the NMOS transistor in moderate inversion region with change in transconductance of the PMOS transistor in moderate inversion region.

18. An integrated circuit comprising:

a low noise amplifier (LNA) including

an N-channel metal oxide semiconductor (NMOS) transistor configured to receive and amplify a radio frequency (RF) input signal; and

a P-channel metal oxide semiconductor (PMOS) transistor coupled to the NMOS transistor and configured to receive and amplify the RF input signal, the NMOS and PMOS transistors operating as a linear complementary amplifier and providing an RF output signal, the NMOS and PMOS transistors having dimensions selected to keep a total transconductance for the NMOS and PMOS transistors approximately constant over a range of the input signal.

19. The integrated circuit of claim 18, wherein the LNA further includes

a first resistor coupled to a gate of the NMOS transistor and configured to provide a first bias voltage for the NMOS transistor;

and

a second resistor coupled between a gate and a drain of the PMOS transistor and configured to provide a second bias voltage for the PMOS transistor.

20. A method comprising:

amplifying an input signal with an N-channel metal oxide semiconductor (NMOS) transistor having a first transconductance;

amplifying the input signal with a P-channel metal oxide semiconductor (PMOS) transistor having a second transconductance and coupled to the NMOS transistor; and

providing an output signal at drains of the NMOS and PMOS transistors operating as a linear complementary amplifier, the NMOS and PMOS transistors having dimensions selected to keep a total transconductance for the NMOS and PMOS transistors approximately constant over a range of the input signal.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

biasing a gate of the NMOS transistor with a first bias voltage; and

biasing a gate of the PMOS transistor with a second bias voltage.

22. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

biasing the NMOS and PMOS transistors to overlap a low-to-high transition of the first transconductance of the NMOS transistor with a high-to-low transition of the second transconductance of the PMOS transistor.

23. An apparatus comprising:

means for amplifying an input signal with an N-channel metal oxide semiconductor (NMOS) transistor having a first transconductance;

means for amplifying the input signal with a P-channel metal oxide semiconductor (PMOS) transistor having a second transconductance and coupled to the NMOS transistor; and

means for providing an output signal at drains of the NMOS and PMOS transistors operating as a linear complementary amplifier, the NMOS and PMOS transistors having dimensions selected to keep a total transconductance for the NMOS and PMOS transistors approximately constant over a range of the input signal.

24. The apparatus of claim 23, further comprising:

means for biasing a gate of the NMOS transistor with a first bias voltage; and

means for biasing a gate of the PMOS transistor with a second bias voltage.

25. The apparatus of claim 23, further comprising:

means for biasing the NMOS and PMOS transistors to overlap a low-to-high transition of the first transconductance of the NMOS transistor with a high-to-low transition of the second transconductance of the PMOS transistor.