Sampler circuit
US8548111B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Aug 4, 2011 |
| Grant date | Oct 1, 2013 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Apr 5, 2032 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH03L2207/50
- WIPO fieldBasic communication processes
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A sampler circuit comprises a plurality of series-connected sampler cells and a detector circuit. Each successive stage comprises twice the number of sampler cells, in parallel, as the previous stage, and is clocked at half the sampling frequency of the previous stage. Each sampler cell comprises two parallel branches of series-connected clocked inverters. A clocked inverter is operative to invert an applied signal during one phase of an applied sampling clock, and to render a high impedance output during the other sampling clock phase. Successive clocked inverters are clocked with opposite (i.e., positive/negative) versions of the sampling clock. The detector circuit examines the outputs of the last stage of sampler cells, and may for example comprise an OR function to detect a state transition in an applied input signal. The sampler circuit exhibits immunity to metastability and low power consumption.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.