US 2017/0285675 A1Published application

Gate boosted low drop regulator

AssigneeQUALCOMM Incorporated

InventorsZhuo Gao, Bupesh Pandita

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Abstract

In certain aspects, a voltage regulator includes a pass transistor having a drain coupled to an input of the voltage regulator, a source coupled to an output of the voltage regulator, and a gate. The voltage regulator also includes an amplifier having a first input coupled to a reference voltage, a second input coupled to a feedback voltage, and an output, wherein the feedback voltage is approximately equal to or proportional to a voltage at the output of the voltage regulator. The voltage regulator further includes a voltage booster having an input coupled to the output of the amplifier and an output coupled to the gate of the pass transistor, wherein the voltage booster is configured to boost a voltage at the input of the voltage booster to generate a boosted voltage, and to output the boosted voltage at the output of the voltage booster.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A voltage regulator, comprising:

a pass transistor having a drain coupled to an input of the voltage regulator, a source coupled to an output of the voltage regulator, and a gate;
an amplifier having a first input coupled to a reference voltage, a second input coupled to a feedback voltage, and an output, wherein the feedback voltage is approximately equal to or proportional to a voltage at the output of the voltage regulator;
and
a voltage booster having an input coupled to the output of the amplifier and an output coupled to the gate of the pass transistor, wherein the voltage booster is configured to boost a voltage at the input of the voltage booster to generate a boosted voltage, and to output the boosted voltage at the output of the voltage booster, and wherein the voltage booster comprises:
a capacitor having a first terminal and a second terminal;
a first switch coupled between the input of the voltage booster and the first terminal of the capacitor;
a second switch coupled between the first terminal of the capacitor and the output of the voltage booster;
and
a charge pump controller configured to close the first switch during a first portion of a clock cycle, to apply a boosting voltage to the second terminal of the first capacitor during a second portion of the clock cycle, and to close the second switch during a third portion of the clock cycle.

6 more elements

A method for voltage regulation, comprising:

inputting a reference voltage to a first input of an amplifier;
inputting a feedback voltage to a second input of the amplifier, wherein the feedback voltage is approximately equal to or proportional to a voltage at an output of a voltage regulator;
boosting a voltage at an output of the amplifier to obtain a boosted voltage;
and
outputting the boosted voltage to a gate of a pass transistor, wherein a drain of the pass transistor is coupled to an input of the voltage regulator and a source of the voltage regulator is coupled to the output of the voltage regulator;
wherein boosting the voltage at the output of the amplifier comprises:
coupling a first terminal of a capacitor to the output of the amplifier to charge the capacitor;
decoupling the first terminal of the capacitor from the output of the amplifier;
and
applying a boosting voltage to a second terminal of the capacitor after the first terminal of the capacitor is decoupled from the output of the amplifier to obtain the boosted voltage at the first terminal of the capacitor;
wherein outputting the boosted voltage to the gate of the pass transistor comprises coupling the first terminal of the capacitor to the gate of the pass transistor during a time that the boosting voltage is applied to the second terminal of the capacitor.

8 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.