Charge pump with reduced energy consumption through charge sharing and clock boosting suitable for high voltage word line in flash memories
US8339183B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 24, 2009 |
| Grant date | Dec 25, 2012 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jul 24, 2029 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH02M3/073
- WIPO fieldElectrical machinery, apparatus, energy
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A charge pump circuit for generating an output voltage is described. Charge pump circuits typically have two branches. As the clocks supplying the branches of a charge pump circuit alternate, the output of each branch will alternately provide an output voltage, which are then combined to form the pump output. The techniques described here allow charge to be transferred between the two branches, so that as the capacitor of one branch discharges, it is used to charge up the capacitor in the other branch. An exemplary embodiment using a voltage doubler-type of circuit, with the charge transfer between the branches accomplished using a switch controller by a boosted version of the clock signal, which is provided by a one-sided voltage doubler.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.