Non-linear transimpedance amplifier
US5061865A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 23, 1990 |
| Grant date | Oct 29, 1991 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jul 23, 2010 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH03F3/087
- WIPO fieldBasic communication processes
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A non-linear transimpedance amplifier utilizing a reset integrator and having a broad dyamic range for amplifying an input signal over an extended range of levels is disclosed. The non-linear transimpedance amplifier comprises an accumulator for accumulating a charge representative of the input signal, a comparator for comparing the output of the first circuit to a reference voltage, a sample and hold for providing a voltage representative of the level of a time varying waveform at the instant during which the accumulator saturates, and a summer for summing a signal representative of the accumulated charge and the signal representative of the level of the time varying waveform. The output signal is representative of the input signal when the accumulator is unsaturated as well as when the accumulator is saturated. The present invention may also be operated as a linear amplifier. It finds particular application in the input circuits of infrared detector elements.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.