Semiconductor device and IC label, IC tag, and IC card having the same

• US 8,810,375 B2
• Filed: 03/11/2013
• Issued: 08/19/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/31/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Koyama, Jun
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Benjamin C
• Assistant Examiner(s): PHAM, QUANG
• Application Number:
  US13/792,969
• Publication Number:
  US 20130193916A1
• Time in Patent Office: 526 Days
• Field of Search: 340/572.1, 340/10.51, 340/539.3, 340/10.1, 340/10.2, 340/10.34, 320/166
• US Class Current: 340/10.51
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/263 Arrangements for using multiple switchable power supplies, e.g. battery and AC G06F1/30 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0702 the arrangement including a battery
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0723 the record carrier comprising an arrangement for non-contact communication, e.g. wireless communication circuits on transponder cards, non-contact smart cards or RFIDs
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07749 the record carrier being capable of non-contact communication, e.g. constructional details of the antenna of a non-contact smart card
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/84 the substrate being other than a semiconductor body, e.g. being an insulating body
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/12 the substrate being other than a semiconductor body, e.g. an insulating body
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/10 using inductive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/80 involving the exchange of data, concerning supply or distribution of electric power, between transmitting devices and receiving devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/79 for data transfer in combination with power transfer

Abstract

The present invention provides a power supply circuit provided with a battery as a power source for supplying power to an RFID, and the battery of the power supply circuit is charged with a wireless signal. Then, a switching circuit is provided in the power supply circuit that supplies power to a signal control circuit which transmits and receives individual information to and from the outside to intermittently control supply of power to the signal control circuit by a signal from a low-frequency signal generation circuit.

Claims

1. A semiconductor device comprising:

an antenna circuit;

a power supply circuit; and

a signal control circuit,

wherein the power supply circuit comprises;

a rectifier circuit which rectifies signals from the antenna circuit;

a battery which is charged by the rectified signals;

a control circuit connected at one end to the rectifier circuit and the other end to the battery;

a switching circuit connected between the control circuit at said one end and a power source circuit to selectively provide power to the power source circuit; and

a low-frequency signal generation circuit connected to the control circuit at said one end and selectively controls the switching state of the switching circuit,

wherein the low-frequency signal generation circuit comprises;

a ring oscillator that outputs an oscillation signal at a frequency;

a divider circuit configured to divide the oscillation signal and provide a plurality of outputs from 1 to n (n is an integer) as sequentially output signals from the divider circuit; and

an AND circuit configured to generate an output signal whose duty ratio of the output signal is 1;

n, from the sequentially output signals of the divider circuit;

wherein the control circuit is configured to selectively supply power from the rectifier circuit and/or the battery to the power source circuit through the switching circuit,

wherein power supplied by the control circuit is selected by the switching circuit to be supplied to the power source circuit when the output signal is a high signal,

wherein the power supplied by the control circuit is selected by the switching circuit to be not supplied to the power source circuit when the output signal is a low signal,

wherein the power source circuit comprises a circuit configured to generate a reference voltage, and

wherein the power source circuit outputs the same potential as a potential of the reference voltage in a period depending on the duty ratio of the output signal when the power is supplied to the power source circuit by the switching circuit.

2. The semiconductor device according to claim 1,

wherein the control circuit is configured to connect the battery and the switching circuit when power from the rectifier circuit is less than power from the battery, and is configured not to connect the battery and the switching circuit when power from the battery is less than power from the rectifier circuit.

3. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein the battery is one selected from the group consisting of a lithium battery, a nickel-metal-hydride battery, a nickel-cadmium battery, an organic-radical battery and a capacitor.

4. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein the battery includes an anode active material layer, a solid electrolyte layer over the anode active material layer, a cathode active material layer over the solid electrolyte layer, and a collector thin film over the cathode active material layer.

5. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, further comprising a booster antenna, and the antenna circuit receives a signal from the outside through the booster antenna.

6. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein the antenna circuit includes a first antenna circuit for receiving power to charge the battery and a second antenna circuit for transmitting and receiving signals to and from the signal control circuit.

7. The semiconductor device according to claim 6, wherein the first antenna circuit includes a plurality of antenna circuits.

8. The semiconductor device according to claim 6, wherein one of the first antenna circuit and the second antenna circuit receives a signal by using electromagnetic induction.

9. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein the signal control circuit includes an amplifier circuit, a modulation circuit, a demodulation circuit, a logic circuit, and a memory control circuit.

10. A semiconductor device comprising:

an antenna circuit;

a power supply circuit; and

a signal control circuit,

wherein the power supply circuit comprises;

a rectifier circuit which rectifies signals from the antenna circuit;

a battery which is charged by the rectified signals;

a control circuit connected at one end to the rectifier circuit and the other end to the battery;

a switching circuit connected between the control circuit at said one end and a power source circuit;

a low-frequency signal generation circuit which receives the rectified signals; and

the power source circuit,

wherein the control circuit is configured to selectively supply power from the rectifier circuit and the battery to the power source circuit;

wherein the control circuit is configured to supply power from the battery to the power supply circuit via the switching circuit when power from the rectifier circuit is less than power from the battery, and is configured not to supply power from the battery to the power supply circuit via the switching circuit when power from the battery is less than power from the rectifier circuit;

wherein the low-frequency signal generation circuit comprises;

a ring oscillator that outputs an oscillation signal at a frequency;

a divider circuit configured to divide the oscillation signal and provide a plurality of outputs from 1 to n (n is an integer) as sequentially output signals from the divider circuit; and

an AND circuit configured to generate an output signal whose duty ratio of the output signal is 1;

n, from the sequentially output signals of the divider circuit;

wherein the switching circuit controls the power supplied from the battery to the power source circuit and the power outputted from the rectifier circuit to the power source circuit via the control circuit, by the output signal from the low-frequency signal generation circuit;

wherein power supplied by the control circuit is supplied to the power source circuit when the output signal is a low signal, and

wherein the power supplied by the control circuit is not supplied to the power source circuit when the output signal is a high signal,

wherein the power source circuit comprises a circuit configured to generate a reference voltage, and

wherein the power source circuit outputs the same potential as a potential of the reference voltage in a period depending on the duty ratio of the output signal when the power is supplied to the power source circuit by the switching circuit.

11. The semiconductor device according to claim 10, wherein the battery is one selected from the group consisting of a lithium battery, a nickel-metal-hydride battery, a nickel-cadmium battery, an organic-radical battery and a capacitor.

12. The semiconductor device according to claim 10, wherein the battery includes an anode active material layer, a solid electrolyte layer over the anode active material layer, a cathode active material layer over the solid electrolyte layer, and a collector thin film over the cathode active material layer.

13. The semiconductor device according to claim 10, further comprising a booster antenna, and the antenna circuit receives a signal from the outside through the booster antenna.

14. The semiconductor device according to claim 10, wherein the antenna circuit includes a first antenna circuit for receiving power to charge the battery and a second antenna circuit for transmitting and receiving signals to and from the signal control circuit.

15. The semiconductor device according to claim 14, wherein the first antenna circuit includes a plurality of antenna circuits.

16. The semiconductor device according to claim 14, wherein one of the first antenna circuit and the second antenna circuit receives a signal by using electromagnetic induction.

17. The semiconductor device according to claim 10, wherein the signal control circuit includes an amplifier circuit, a modulation circuit, a demodulation circuit, a logic circuit, and a memory control circuit.