US 2022/0140795 A1Published application

Transimpedance amplifiers with adjustable input range

AssigneeAnalog Devices International Unlimited Company

InventorsJoseph ADUT, Jeremy WONG, Eugene L. CHEUNG, Brian D. HAMILTON, Gregory A. FUNG

Life of this patent

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Abstract

A multi-stage transimpedance amplifier (TIA) with an adjustable input linear range is disclosed. The TIA includes a first stage, configured to convert a single-ended current signal from an optical sensor of a receiver signal chain to a single-ended voltage signal, and a second stage, configured to convert the single-ended voltage signal provided by the first stage to a differential signal. In such a TIA, the input linear range may be adjusted using a clamp that is programmable with an output offset current to keep the second stage of the TIA from overloading and to maintain a linear transfer function without compression.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A system for converting a single-ended current input to a differential voltage output, the system comprising:

an amplifier circuit, comprising a first transistor and a second transistor, the amplifier circuit to generate an output based on the single-ended current input and having an output terminal for providing the output;
and
a third transistor, coupled to the output terminal,
wherein:
each of the first transistor, the second transistor, and the third transistor includes a first terminal, a second terminal, and a third terminal,
the second terminal of the first transistor is coupled to the third terminal of the second transistor,
the amplifier circuit is to receive the single-ended current input at the third terminal of the first transistor,
the first terminal of the second transistor is coupled to the output terminal of the amplifier circuit,
the first terminal of the third transistor is coupled to the third terminal of the second transistor, and
the system is to generate the differential voltage output based on the output generated by the amplifier circuit.

7 more elements

A method for operating a system that includes a first amplifier circuit, a second amplifier circuit, a third amplifier circuit, and a clamp circuit, the method comprising:

operating the first amplifier circuit to generate a first amplifier output based on a single-ended current input;
providing a signal based on an output offset current to each of an input of second amplifier circuit and an input of the clamp circuit;
operating the second amplifier circuit to generate a second amplifier output based on the output offset current;
operating the clamp circuit, coupled to an output of the first amplifier circuit and to a control signal, to set one of a minimum voltage value or a maximum voltage value for the first amplifier output based on the signal provided to the input of the clamp circuit;
and
operating the third amplifier circuit to generate a differential output based on a signal based on the second amplifier output and a signal based on the first amplifier output that abides by the minimum voltage value or the maximum voltage value set for the first amplifier output by the clamp circuit.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 17/575,788Filed 14 Jan 2022
Priority: 25 Sep 2019
Published: 5 May 2022
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification19 codes

H03F 3/087
Controlled by light: with IC amplifier blocks
H03F 3/4517
Using bipolar transistors as the active amplifying circuit: complementary non-cross coupled types
G01S 7/4861
Receivers: circuits for detection, sampling, integration or read-out
G01S 17/10
For measuring distance only: using transmission of interrupted, pulse-modulated waves

Family

Application62/905,772Us provisional application · filed 25 Sep 2019
Application16/856,103Continuation · filed 23 Apr 2020
Application17/575,788Continuation
US 11,277,106 B2Related patent
US 11,575,355 B2Related patent
US 2021/0091734 A1Published application
US 2022/0140795 A1This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.