Yen-Jen Chen

Bio: Yen-Jen Chen is an academic researcher from TSMC. The author has contributed to research in topics: Phase-locked loop & Signal. The author has an hindex of 7, co-authored 13 publications receiving 193 citations.

A divider-less sub-harmonically injection-locked PLL with self-adjusted injection timing

Abstract: A low-phase-noise phase-locked loop (PLL) is widely used in clock generation, frequency synthesis, and data conversion. In a PLL using a sub-sampling phase detector (SSPD) achieves not only low phase noise, but also low power. In a low-phase-noise sub-harmonically injection-locked PLL (SIPLL) is presented. The injection timing of a SIPLL is sensitive to the process, voltage, and temperature (PVT) variations. In addition, the divider of a SIPLL [3-5] cannot be powered down to save the power as in [1, 2]. In this paper, a divider-less SIPLL with self-adjusted injection timing is presented.

Circuit and operating method of pll

Abstract: A phase locked loop (PLL) includes a voltage controlled oscillator (VCO), a loop filter, and a feedback control unit. The VCO is configured to generate a first oscillating signal and a second oscillating signal according to a VCO control signal. The loop filter is configured to output the VCO control signal by low-pass filtering a signal at an input node of the loop filter. The feedback control unit has an output node coupled to the input node of the loop filter, the feedback control unit is configured to apply a first predetermined amount of current, along a first current direction, to the first feedback control output node during a variable period of time; and to apply one of K second predetermined amounts of current, along a second current direction opposite the first current direction, to the first feedback control output node during a predetermined period of time.

Phase-locked loops that share a loop filter

Abstract: A die stack of an integrated circuit includes a plurality of dies. Each die in the die stack includes a phase lock loop (PLL). The PLLs in each of the dies share a loop filter and other corresponding circuits.

Interposer and semiconductor package with noise suppression features

Abstract: Interposer and semiconductor package embodiments provide for the isolation and suppression of electronic noise such as EM emissions in the semiconductor package. The interposer includes shield structures in various embodiments, the shield structures blocking the electrical noise from the noise source, from other electrical signals or devices. The shields include solid structures and some embodiments and decoupling capacitors in other embodiments. The coupling structures includes multiple rows of solder balls included in strips that couple the components and surround and contain the source of electrical noise.

Auto frequency calibration for a phase locked loop and method of use

Abstract: A phase locked loop includes a phase difference detector configured to receive a reference frequency and a divider frequency and output a phase difference signal. The phase locked loop includes a code generator configured to receive the reference frequency and the phase difference signal, and output a coarse tuning signal and a reset signal. The phase locked loop includes a digital loop filter configured to receive the phase difference signal and output a fine tuning signal. The phase locked loop includes a voltage control oscillator configured to receive the coarse and fine tuning signals, and output an output frequency. The phase locked loop includes a divider configured to receive the reset signal, a divider number control signal and the output frequency, and output the divider frequency. The phase locked loop includes a delta-sigma modulator configured to receive a divisor ratio and the reset signal, and output divider number control signal.

Methods and apparatus for measuring analytes using large scale fet arrays

Abstract: An apparatus may include a semiconductor chip and a fluidics assembly. The semiconductor chip has an array of wells and an array of sensors and each sensor of the array of sensors is in fluid communication with a well of the array of wells. The fluidics assembly is located on top of the semiconductor chip and is configured to deliver fluids to the semiconductor chip. The fluidics assembly includes a flow expansion chamber configured to introduce the fluids, an outlet portion configured to pipe out the fluids, and a flow chamber portion. The flow chamber portion is configured to allow the fluids to flow from the flow expansion chamber to the outlet portion and to allow the fluids to interact along the way with material in the array of wells. The flow expansion chamber has a curved wall at the top or bottom so that the height of the flow expansion chamber at the center is less than at the walls that restrict the fluids to the left and right.

A Compact, Low-Power and Low-Jitter Dual-Loop Injection Locked PLL Using All-Digital PVT Calibration

Abstract: This paper presents a low-jitter, low-power and a small-area injection-locked all-digital PLL (IL-ADPLL). It consists of a dual-loop and a dual-VCO architecture in which one VCO (Replica) is placed in a TDC-less synthesizable ADFLL to provide continuous tracking of voltage and temperature variations. The other VCO (main) shares the control voltage with the replica VCO but is placed outside the loop and is injection-locked to lower its jitter and accurately set its frequency to the desired one. This approach avoids timing problems in the conventional ILPLL since the injection-locked VCO is placed outside the feedback loop. It also achieves a low power and a small area, due to the absence of a power hungry TDC and an area-consuming loop filter, while tracking any PVT variations. The IL-ADPLL is implemented in a 65 nm CMOS process and measurement results show that it achieves a 0.7ps RMS jitter at 1.2 GHz while having 1.6 mW and 0.97 mW power consumption with and without intermittent operation resulting in an FOM of -243 dB. It also consumes an area of only 0.022 mm2 resulting in the best performance-area trade-off system presented up-to-date.

A PVT-Robust and Low-Jitter Ring-VCO-Based Injection-Locked Clock Multiplier With a Continuous Frequency-Tracking Loop Using a Replica-Delay Cell and a Dual-Edge Phase Detector

Abstract: A low-jitter, ring-type voltage-controlled oscillator (VCO)-based injection-locked clock multiplier (ILCM) with a continuous frequency-tracking loop (FTL) for process-voltage-temperature (PVT)-calibration is presented. Using a single replica-delay cell of the VCO that provides the intrinsic phase information of the free-running VCO, the proposed FTL can continuously track and correct frequency drifts. Therefore, the proposed ILCM can calibrate real-time frequency drifts due to voltage or temperature variations as well as static frequency deviations due to process variations. Since the FTL provided an additional filtering of in-band VCO noise, the ILCM was able to achieve excellent jitter performance over the PVT variations, while it was based on a ring-VCO. The proposed ILCM was fabricated in a 65 nm CMOS process. When injection locked, the RMS-jitter integrated from 10 kHz to 40 MHz of the 1.20 GHz output signal was 185 fs. The proposed PVT-calibrator regulated the degradations of jitter to less than 5% and 7% over temperatures and supply voltages, respectively. The active area was $\text {0.06 mm}^{2}$ and total power consumption was 9.5 mW.

Chemically sensitive sensor with lightly doped drains

Abstract: A chemically sensitive sensor with a lightly doped region that affects an overlap capacitance between a gate and an electrode of the chemical sensitive sensor The lightly doped region extends beneath and adjacent to a gate region of the chemical sensitive sensor Modifying the gain of the chemically sensitive sensor is achieved by manipulating the lightly doped region under the electrodes

Ion-sensing charge-accumulation circuits and methods

Abstract: An ion-sensitive circuit can include a charge accumulation device, to accumulate a plurality of charge packets as a function of an ion concentration of a fluid, and at least one control and readout transistor, to generate an output signal as a function of the accumulated plurality of charge packets, the output signal representing the ion concentration of the solution. The charge accumulation device can include a first charge control electrode above a first electrode semiconductor region, an electrically floating gate structure above a gate semiconductor region and below an ion-sensitive passivation surface, a second charge control electrode above a second electrode semiconductor region, and a drain diffusion region. The first control electrode can control entry of charge into a gate semiconductor region in response to a first control signal. The ion-sensitive passivation surface can be configured to receive the fluid. The second charge control electrode can control transmission of the plurality of charge packets out of the gate semiconductor region and into the drain diffusion region in response to a second control signal. The drain diffusion region can receive the plurality of charge packets from the gate semiconductor region via the second electrode semiconductor region.