Semiconductor circuit device having hierarchical power supply structure
AssigneeMitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorsTsukasa Ooishi, Hideto Hidaka
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Abstract
Resistance elements are inserted into a main power supply line and a main ground line so that offset differential amplifiers receive voltages developed across the same. The differential amplifiers control transistors connected to a sub power supply line and a sub ground line. Thus, a leakage current flowing from the sub power supply line to the main ground line and that flowing from the main power supply line to the sub ground line are regularly kept constant. Consequently, it is possible to prevent an operation delay in an initial stage of a standby state while keeping an effect of reducing a subthreshold leakage current in a semiconductor circuit device having a hierarchical power supply structure.
Claims4
A semiconductor circuit device including a first hierarchical block and a plurality of second hierarchical blocks,
- said first hierarchical block including:
- a first power supply system disposed to supply a voltage to an internal circuit in said first hierarchical block,
- a first receiving circuit disposed to receive an externally supplied first request signal and activate said first power supply system, and
- a plurality of transmission circuits corresponding to said plurality of second hierarchical blocks, each disposed to transmit a second request signal to corresponding said second hierarchical block, wherein
- said first receiving circuit returns a first response signal to an external device after said first power supply system is activated, and said internal circuit in said first hierarchical block activates/inactivates said second request signal in response to an externally supplied first command signal,
- each said second hierarchical block including:
- a second power supply system disposed to supply a voltage to an internal circuit in said second hierarchical block, and
- a second receiving circuit disposed to receive said second request signal and activate said second power supply system.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.