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US 11,146,269 B1Granted
Low power cryogenic switch
AssigneeRambus Inc.
InventorsFrederick A. Ware, Carl W. Werner
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An signal switching integrated-circuit die includes an array of switch cells, control signal contacts, data input contacts and data output contacts. Switch control signals are received from an external control-signal source via respective control signal contacts, inbound data signals are received from one or more external data-signal sources via respective data input contacts and outbound data signals are conveyed to one or more external data-signal destinations via respective data output contacts. The array of switch cells receives the control signals directly from the control signal contacts and response to the control signals by switchably interconnecting the data input contacts with selected ones of the data output contacts.
Claims11
An integrated-circuit die comprising:
- control signal contacts to receive respective control signals from a control-signal source external to the integrated-circuit die;
- data input contacts to receive inbound data signals from one or more data-signal sources external to the integrated-circuit die;
- data output contacts to convey outbound data signals to one or more data-signal destinations external to the integrated circuit die;
- and
- an array of switch cells that (i) is coupled between the data input contacts and the data output contacts, (ii) is coupled directly to the control signal contacts to receive the control signals and (iii) switchably couples the data input contacts to selected ones of the data output contacts according to the control signals;
- wherein the array of switch cells comprises switch cells arranged in N rows and M columns, where N and M are integers that may be equal or unequal, and wherein the control signal contacts comprise a quantity of contacts corresponding to a sum of M and N.
3 more elements
An intergrated-circuit die comprising;
- control signal contacts to receive respective control signals from a control-signal source external to the intergrated-circuit die;
- data input contacts to receive respective control signals from a control-signal sources external to the intergrated-circuit die;
- data output contacts to convey outbound data signals to one or ore data-signal destinations external to the intergrated-circuit die;
- and
- an array of switch cells that (i) is coupled between the data input contacts and the data output contacts, (ii) is coupled directly to the control signal contacts to receive the control signals and (iii) switchably couples the data input contacts to selected ones of the data output contacts according to the control signals;
- wherein the control signal contacts to receive respective control signals comprise row-select contacts to receive respective row-select signals and column-select contacts to receive respective column-select signals, and wherein a first switch cell within the array of switch cells comprises:
- a first field-effect transistor coupled drain-to-source between one of the data output contacts and one of the data input contacts;
- and
- a second field-effect transistor coupled drain-to-source between (i) a gate terminal of the first field-effect transistor and (ii) one of the row-select contacts or one of the column-select contacts, the second field-effect effect transistor having a gate terminal coupled to whichever of the one of the row-select contacts or the one of the column-select contacts is not otherwise coupled to the second field-effect transistor.
6 more elements
A method of operation within an integrated-circuit die, the method comprising:
- receiving control signals from a control-signal source external to the integrated-circuit die;
- conducting the control signals directly to an array of switch cells to configure the array of switch cells to switchably interconnect a plurality of inbound data contacts to a plurality of outbound data contacts;
- and
- after configuring the array of switch cells, receiving, at the plurality of inbound data contacts from one or more external data-signal sources, inbound data signals that propagate through the array of switch cells to the plurality of outbound data contacts for conveyance to external data-signal destinations;
- wherein the array of switch cells comprises a plurality of sub-array each constituted by a plurality of switch cells, and wherein receiving control signals comprises receiving (i) a respective sub-array-select signal for each of the plurality of sub-arrays, rceiving row-select signals for each row of switch cells within one of the subarrays and receiving column-select signals for each column of switch cells within the one of the sub-arrays.
2 more elements
A method of operation within an intergrated-circuit die, the method comprising:
- receiving control signals from a control-signal source external to the integrated-circuit die;
- conducting the control signals directly to an array of switch cells to configure the array of switch cells to switchably interconnect a plurality of inbound data contacts to a plurality of outbound data contacts;
- and
- after configuring the array of switch cells, receiving, at the plurality of inbound data contacts from one or more external data-signal sources, inbound data signals that propagate through the array of switch cells to the plurality of outbound data contacts for conveyance to the external data-signal destinations;
- wherein the integrated-circuit die is disposed in a first temperature domain sufficiently cold to enable superconduction.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.