Eee-Vii-Vlsi Circuits and Design (10ee764) - Notes

VLSI Circuit and Design
10EE764
VLSI CIRCUITS AND DESIGN

Subject Code
: 10EE764
IA Marks
25
No. of Lecture Hrs./

Week
: 04
Exam
Hours
03
Total No. of Lecture

Hrs.
: 52
Exam
Marks
: 100
PART - A
UNIT - 1
A REVIEW OF MICROELECTRONIC 3 AND AN INTRODUCTION TO MOS TECHNOLOGY:
Introduction to integrated circuit technology, Production of E-beam masks. Introduction, VLSI technologies,
MOS transistors, fabrication, thermal aspects, production of E-beam masks.
6 Hours
UNIT - 2
BASIC ELECTRICAL PROPERTIES OF MOS AN BICMOS CIRCUIT: Rain to source current Ids
versus
Vds relationships-BICMOS latch up susceptibility. MOS transistor characteristics, figure of merit,
pass transistor NMOS and COMS inverters, circuit model, latch up.
8 Hours
UNIT - 3
MOS AND BICMOS CIRCUIT DESIGN PROCESSES: Mass layers, strick diagrams, design, symbolic
diagrams
8 Hours
UNIT - 4
BASIC CIRCUIT CONCEPTS: Sheet resistance, capacitance layer inverter delays, wiring capacitance,
choice of layers.
6 Hours
Department of EEE, SJBIT
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PART - B
UNIT - 5
SCALING OF MOS CIRCUITS: Scaling model and scaling factors- Limit due to current density.
8 Hours
UNIT - 6
SUBSYSTEM DESIGN AND LAYOUT: Some architecture issues- other systems considerations.
Examples of structural design, clocked sequential circuits
8 Hours
UNIT - 7
SUBSYSTEM DESIGN PROCESSES: Some general considerations, an Illustration of design process,
Observations.
4 Hours
UNIT - 8
ILLUSTRATION OF THE DESIGN PROCESS: Observation on the design process, Regularity Design
of an ALU subsystem. Design of 4-bit adder, implementing ALU functions.
4 Hours
TEXT BOOKS:
1. Basic VLSI Design -3rd Edition, PHI
2. Fundamentals of Modern VLSI Devices-Yuan Taun Tak H Ning Cambridge Press, South Asia Edition
2003,
3. ModernVLSI Design Wayne wolf, Pearson Education Inc. 3rd edition-Wayne wolf 2003.
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Contents
Unit 1: A Review of Microelectronic 3 and An
Introduction to MOS Technology:
Introduction to integrated circuit technology,
Introduction, VLSI technologies
Production of E-beam masks.
MOS transistors
fabrication
thermal aspects
Production of E-beam masks.
Unit 2: Basic Electrical Properties of MOS an
BiCMOS Circuit:
Drain to source current Ids versus Vds relationshipsBICMOS latch up susceptibility.
figure of merit.
MOS transistor characteristics.
Pass Transistor NMOS and COMS Inverters
Circuit model, latch up.
Unit 3: MOS AND BICMOS CIRCUIT DESIGN
PROCESSES
Mass layers,
stick diagrams,
design,
symbolic diagrams
Unit 4: BASIC CIRCUIT CONCEPTS
Sheet resistance.
Capacitance layer inverter delays.
Wiring capacitance.
Choice of layers.
Unit 5: Scaling of MOS Circuits
Page No
5-19
20-75
76-90
91-120
121-145
Scaling model and scaling factors.

Limit due to current density.
6
Unit 6: Subsystem Design and Layout
146-170
Some architecture issues- other systems considerations.

Examples of structural design.
clocked sequential circuits.
7
UNIT 7: SUBSYSTEM DESIGN PROCESSES:
171-195
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Some general considerations.

an Illustration of design process.
Observations.
8
UNIT 8 Illustration of the Design Process
196-210
Observation on the design process.

Regularity Design of an ALU subsystem.
Design of 4-bit adder.
Implementing ALU functions.
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Unit 1
Basic MOS Technology
Transistor was first invented by William.B.Shockley, Walter Brattain and John
Bardeen of Bell Labratories. In 1961, first IC was introduced.
Levels
of
Integration:i)
SSI:- (10-100) transistors => Example:
Logic gates ii) MSI:- (100-1000) => Example:
counters
iii)
LSI:- (1000-20000) => Example:8-bit chip
iv)
VLSI:- (20000-1000000) => Example:16 & 32 bit up
v)
ULSI:- (1000000-10000000) => Example: Special processors, virtual
reality machines, smart sensors
Moore
s
Law:The number of transistors embedded on the chip doubles after every one and
a half years. The number of transistors is taken on the y-axis and the years in
taken on the x- axis. The diagram also shows the speed in MHz. the graph given
in figure also shows the variation of speed of the chip in MHz.
Figure 1. Moores law
The graph in figure2 compares the various technologies available in ICs.

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Figure 2.Comparison of available technologies
From the graph we can conclude that GaAs technology is better but still
it is not used because of growing difficulties of GaAs crystal. CMOS
looks to be a better option compared to nMOS since it consumes a lesser
power. BiCMOS technology is also used in places where high driving
capability is required and from the graph it confirms that, BiCMOS
consumes more power compared to CMOS.
Levels of Integration:i)
Small Scale Integration:- (10-100) transistors => Example:
Logic gates ii) Medium Scale Integration:- (100-1000) => Example:
counters
iii)
Large Scale Integration:- (1000-20000) => Example:8-bit chip
iv)
Very Large Scale Integration:- (20000-1000000) => Example:16 & 32 bit up
v)
Ultra Large Scale Integration:- (1000000-10000000) => Example:
Special processors, virtual reality machines, smart sensors
Basic MOS Transistors:
Why the name MOS?
We should first understand the fact that why the name Metal
Oxide Semiconductor transistor, because the structure consists of a layer of
Metal (gate), a layer of oxide (Sio2) and a layer of semiconductor. Figure 3
below clearly tell why the name MOS.
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.
Figure 3.cross section of a MOS structure
We have two types of FETs. They are Enhancement mode and

depletion mode transistor. Also we have PMOS and NMOS transistors.
In Enhancement mode transistor channel is going to form after giving
a proper positive gate voltage. We have NMOS and PMOS enhancement
transistors.
In Depletion mode transistor channel will be present by the implant.
It can be removed by giving a proper negative gate voltage. We have
NMOS and PMOS depletion mode transistors.
N-MOS enhancement mode transistor:This transistor is normally off. This can be made ON by giving a positive gate
voltage. By giving a +ve gate voltage a channel of electrons is formed
between source drain.
P-Mos enhancement mode transistors:This is normally on. A Channel of Holes can be performed by giving a ve gate
voltage. In P-Mos current is carried by holes and in N-Mos its by electrons.
Since the mobility is of holes less than that of electrons P-Mos is slower.
N-MOS depletion mode transistor:This transistor is normally ON, even with Vgs=0. The channel will be implanted
while fabricating, hence it is normally ON. To cause the channel to cease to exist, a
ve voltage must be applied between gate and source.
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NOTE: Mobility of electrons is 2.5 to 3 times faster than holes. Hence P-MOS
devices will have more resistance compared to NMOS.
Enhancement mode Transistor action:-
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Figure 8(a)(b)(c) Enhancement mode transistor with different Vds values
To establish the channel between the source and the drain a minimum
voltage (Vt) must be applied between gate and source. This minimum voltage is
called as Threshold Voltage. The complete working of enhancement mode
transistor can be explained with the help of diagram a, b and c.
a) Vgs > Vt
Vds = 0
Since Vgs > Vt and Vds = 0 the channel is formed but no current flows
between drain and source.
b) Vgs > Vt
Vds < Vgs - Vt
This region is called the non-saturation Region or linear region where
the drain current increases linearly with Vds. When Vds is increased the drain
side becomes more reverse biased(hence more depletion region towards the
drain end) and the channel starts to pinch. This is called as the pinch off point.
c) Vgs > Vt
Vds > Vgs - Vt
This region is called Saturation Region where the drain current remains
almost constant. As the drain voltage is increased further beyond (Vgs-Vt) the
pinch off point starts to move from the drain end to the source end. Even if the
Vds is increased more and more, the increased voltage gets dropped in the
depletion region leading to a constant current.
The typical threshold voltage for an enhancement mode transistor is given by Vt
= 0.2 * Vdd.
Depletion mode Transistor
action:Department of EEE, SJBIT
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We can explain the working of depletion mode transistor in the same manner,
as that of the enhancement mode transistor only difference is, channel is
established due to the implant even when Vgs = 0 and the channel can be cut
off by applying a ve voltage between the gate and source. Threshold voltage
of depletion mode transistor is around
NMOS
Fabrication:
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Figure 9 NMOS Fabrication process steps
The process starts with the oxidation of the silicon substrate (Fig. 9(a)), in which a
relatively thick silicon dioxide layer, also called field oxide, is created on the surface
(Fig. 9(b)). Then, the field oxide is selectively etched to expose the silicon surface on
which the MOS transistor will be created (Fig. 9(c)). Following this step, the surface
is covered with a thin, high-quality oxide layer, which will eventually form the gate
oxide of the MOS transistor (Fig. 9(d)). On top of the thin oxide, a layer of
polysilicon (polycrystalline silicon) is deposited (Fig. 9(e)). Polysilicon is used both
as gate electrode material for MOS transistors and also as an interconnect medium in
silicon integrated circuits. Undoped polysilicon has relatively high resistivity. The
resistivity of polysilicon can be reduced, however, by doping it with impurity atoms.
After deposition, the polysilicon layer is patterned and etched to form the
interconnects and the MOS transistor gates (Fig. 9(f)). The thin gate oxide not
covered by polysilicon is also etched away, which exposes the bare silicon surface on
which the source and drain junctions are to be formed (Fig. 9(g)). The entire silicon
surface is then doped with a high concentration of impurities, either through diffusion
or ion implantation (in this case with donor atoms to produce n-type doping). Figure
9(h) shows that the doping penetrates the exposed areas on the silicon surface,
ultimately creating two n-type regions (source and drain junctions) in the p-type
substrate. The impurity doping also penetrates the polysilicon on the surface,
reducing its resistivity. Note that the polysilicon gate, which is patterned before
doping actually defines the precise location of the channel region and, hence, the
location of the source and the drain regions. Since this procedure allows very precise
positioning of the two regions relative to the gate, it is also called the self-aligned
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process. Once the source and drain regions are completed, the entire surface is again
covered with an insulating layer of silicon dioxide (Fig. 9 (i)). The insulating oxide
layer is then patterned in order to provide contact windows for the drain and source
junctions (Fig. 9 (j)). The surface is covered with evaporated aluminum which will
form the interconnects (Fig. 9 (k)). Finally, the metal layer is patterned and etched,
completing the interconnection of the MOS transistors on the surface (Fig. 9 (l)).
Usually, a second (and third) layer of metallic interconnect can also be added on top
of this structure by creating another insulating oxide layer, cutting contact (via) holes,
depositing, and patterning the metal.
CMOS fabrication: When we need to fabricate both nMOS and pMOS
transistors on the same substrate we need to follow different processes. The three
different processes are,P-well process ,N-well process and Twin tub process.
P-WELL PROCESS:
Figure 10 CMOS Fabrication (P-WELL) process steps
The p-well process starts with a n type substrate. The n type substrate can be used
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to implement the pMOS transistor, but to implement the nMOS transistor we

need to provide a p-well, hence we have provided he place for both n and pMOS
transistor on the same n-type substrate.
Mask sequence.
Mask 1:
Mask 1 defines the areas in which the deep p-well diffusion takes place.
Mask 2:
It defines the thin oxide region (where the thick oxide is to be removed or
stripped and thin oxide grown)
Mask 3:
Its used to pattern the polysilicon layer which is deposited after thin oxide.
Mask 4:
A p+ mask (anded with mask 2) to define areas where p-diffusion is to take
place.
Mask 5:
We are using the ve form of mask 4 (p+ mask) It defines where n-diffusion is
to take place.
Mask 6:
Contact cuts are defined using this mask.
Mask 7:
The metal layer pattern is defined by this mask.
Mask 8:
An overall passivation (overglass) is now applied and it also defines openings
for accessing pads.
The cross section below shows the CMOS pwell inverter.
.
Figure 11 CMOS inverter (P-WELL)
N-WELL PROCESS:
In the following figures, some of the important process steps involved in the
fabrication of a CMOS inverter will be shown by a top view of the lithographic masks
and a cross-sectional view of the relevant areas.
The n-well CMOS process starts with a moderately doped (with impurity
concentration typically less than 1015 cm-3) p-type silicon substrate. Then, an initial
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oxide layer is grown on the entire surface. The first lithographic mask defines the n-well
region. Donor atoms, usually phosphorus, are implanted through this window in the
oxide. Once the n-well is created, the active areas of the nMOS and pMOS transistors can
be defined. Figures 12.1 through 12.6 illustrate the significant milestones that occur
during the fabrication process of a CMOS inverter.
Figure-12.1: Following the creation of the n-well region, a thick field oxide is grown in
the areas surrounding the transistor active regions, and a thin gate oxide is grown on top
of the active regions. The thickness and the quality of the gate oxide are two of the most
critical fabrication parameters, since they strongly affect the operational characteristics of
the MOS transistor, as well as its long-term reliability.
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Figure-12.2: The polysilicon layer is deposited using chemical vapor deposition (CVD)
and patterned by dry (plasma) etching. The created polysilicon lines will function as the
gate electrodes of the nMOS and the pMOS transistors and their interconnects. Also, the
polysilicon gates act as self-aligned masks for the source and drain implantations that
follow this step.
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Figure-12.3: Using a set of two masks, the n+ and p+ regions are implanted into the
substrate and into the n- well, respectively. Also, the ohmic contacts to the substrate and
to the n-well are implanted in this process step.
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Figure-12.4: An insulating silicon dioxide layer is deposited over the entire wafer using
CVD. Then, the contacts are defined and etched away to expose the silicon or polysilicon
contact windows. These contact windows are necessary to complete the circuit
interconnections using the metal layer, which is patterned in the next step.
Figure-12.5: Metal (aluminum) is deposited over the entire chip surface using metal
evaporation, and the metal lines are patterned through etching. Since the wafer surface is
non-planar, the quality and the integrity of the metal lines created in this step are very
critical and are ultimately essential for circuit reliability.
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Figure-12.6: The composite layout and the resulting cross-sectional view of the chip,
showing one nMOS and one pMOS transistor (built-in n-well), the polysilicon and metal
interconnections. The final step is to deposit the passivation layer (for protection) over
the chip, except for wire-bonding pad areas.
Twin-tub process:
Here we will be using both p-well and n-well approach. The starting point is a n-type
material and then we create both n-well and p-well region. To create the both well we
first go for the epitaxial process and then we will create both wells on the same substrate.
Figure 13 CMOS twin-tub inverter
NOTE: Twin tub process is one of the solutions for latch-up problem.
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Bi-CMOS technology: - (Bipolar CMOS)

The driving capability of MOS transistors is less because of limited current
sourcing and sinking capabilities of the transistors. To drive large capacitive loads we can
think of Bi-Cmos technology.
This technology combines Bipolar and CMOS transistors in a single integrated
circuit, by retaining benefits of bipolar and CMOS, BiCMOS is able to achieve VLSI
circuits with speed-power-density performance previously unattainable with either
technology individually.
Characteristics of CMOS Technology
Lower static power dissipation
Higher noise margins
Higher packing density lower manufacturing cost per device
High yield with large integrated complex functions
High input impedance (low drive current)
Scaleable threshold voltage
High delay sensitivity to load (fan-out limitations)
Low output drive current (issue when driving large capacitive loads)
Low transconductance, where transconductance, gm Vin
Bi-directional capability (drain & source are interchangeable)
A near ideal switching device
Characteristics of Bipolar Technology
Higher switching speed
Higher current drive per unit area, higher gain
Generally better noise performance and better high frequency characteristics
Better analogue capability
Improved I/O speed (particularly significant with the growing importance of
package limitations in high speed systems).
high power dissipation
lower input impedance (high drive current)
low voltage swing logic
low packing density
low delay sensitivity to load
high gm (gm Vin)
high unity gain band width (ft) at low currents
essentially unidirectional
From the two previous paragraphs we can get a comparison between bipolar and
CMOS technology.
The diagram given below shows the cross section of the BiCMOS process which
uses an npn transistor.
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Figure 14 Cross section of BiCMOS process
The figure below shows the layout view of the BiCMOS process.
Fig.15. Layout view of BiCMOS process
The graph below shows the relative cost vs. gate delay.
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Fig.16. cost versus delay graph
Production of e-beam masks:

In this topic we will understand how we are preparing the masks using e-beam
technology. The following are the steps in production of e-beam masks.
Starting materials is chromium coated glass plates which are coated with e-beam
sensitive resist.
E-beam machine is loaded with the mask description data.
Plates are loaded into e-beam machine, where they are exposed with the patterns
specified by mask description data.
After exposure to e-beam, plates are introduced into developer to bring out
patterns.
The cycle is followed by a bake cycle which removes resist residue.
The chrome is then etched and plate is stripped of the remaining e-beam resist.
We use two types of scanning, Raster scanning and vector scanning to map the
pattern on to the mask.
In raster type, e-beam scans all possible locations and a bit map is used to turn the ebeam on and off, depending on whether the particular location being scanned is to be
exposed or not.
Advantages e-beam masks:
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Tighter layer to layer registration;

Small feature sizes.
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UNIT - 2
BASIC ELECTRICAL PROPERTIES OF MOS AN BICMOS CIRCUIT: Rain to source current Ids versus
Vds relationships-BICMOS latch up susceptibility. MOS transistor characteristics, figure of merit, pass transistor
NMOS and COMS inverters, circuit model, latch up.
Introduction
The present chapter first develops the fundamental physical characteristics of the MOS transistor, in which the
electrical currents and voltages are the most important quantities. The link between physical design and logic
networks can be established. Figure 2.1 depicts various symbols used for the MOS transistors. The symbol shown
in Figure 2.1(a) is used to indicate only switch logic, while that in Figure 2.1(b) shows the substrate connection.
Figure 2.1 Various symbols for MOS transistors

This chapter first discusses about the basic electrical and physical properties of the Metal Oxide Semiconductor (MOS) transistors.
The structure and operation of the nMOS and pMOS transistors are addressed, following which the concepts of threshold voltage
and body effect are explained. The current-voltage equation of a MOS device for different
regions of operation is next established.
It is based on considering the effects of external bias conditions on charge distribution in MOS system and on conductance of
free carriers on one hand, and the fact that the current flow depends only on the majority carrier flow between the two device
terminals. Various second-order effects observed in MOSFETs are next dealt with. Subsequently, the complementary MOS
(CMOS) inverter is taken up. Its DC characteristics, noise margin and the
small-signal characteristics are discussed. Various load configurations of MOS inverters including passive resistance as well as
transistors are presented. The differential inverter involving double-ended inputs and outputs are discussed. The complementary
switch or the transmission gate, the tristate inverter and the bipolar devices are briefly dealt with.
2.1.1 nMOS and pMOS Enhancement Transistors
Figure 2.2 depicts a simplified view of the basic structure of an n-channel enhancement mode transistor, which is
formed on a p-type substrate of moderate doping level. As shown in the figure, the source and the drain regions
made of two isolated islands of n+-type diffusion. These two diffusion regions are connected via metal to the
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external conductors. The depletion regions are mainly formed in the more lightly doped p-region. Thus, the source
and the drain are separated from each other by two diodes, as shown in Figure 2.2. A useful device can, however,
be made only be maintaining a current between the source and the drain. The region between the two diffused
islands under the oxide layer is called the channel region. The channel provides a path for the majority carriers
(electrons for example, in the n-channel device) to flow between the source and the drain.
The channel is covered by a thin insulating layer of silicon dioxide (SiO2). The gate electrode, made of
polycrystalline silicon (polysilicon or poly in short) stands over this oxide. As the oxide layer is an insulator, the
DC current from the gate to the channel is zero. The source and the drain regions are indistinguishable due to the
physical symmetry of the structure. The current carriers enter the device through the source terminal while they
leave the device by the drain.
The switching behaviour of a MOS device is characterized by an important parameter called the threshold voltage (Vth),
which is defined as the minimum voltage, that must be established between the gate and the source (or between the
gate and the substrate, if the source and the substrate are shorted together), to enable the device to conduct (or "turn
on"). In the enhancement mode device, the channel is not established and the device is in a non-conducting (also called
cutoff or sub-threshold) state, for
. If the gate is connected to a suitable positive voltage with respect to the
source, then the electric field established between the gate and the source will induce a charge inversion region,
whereby a conducting path is formed between the source and the drain. In the enhancement mode device, the
formation of the channel is enhanced in the presence of the gate voltage.
Figure 2.2: Structure of an nMOS enhancement mode transistor. Note that VGS > Vth , and VDS =0.
By implanting suitable impurities in the region between the source and the drain before depositing the insulating oxide
and the gate, a channel can also be established. Thus the source and the drain are connected by a conducting channel
even though the voltage between the gate and the source, namely
VGS=0 (below the threshold voltage). To make the channel disappear, one has to apply a suitable negative voltage on
the gate. As the channel in this device can be depleted of the carriers by applying a negative voltage Vtd say, such a
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device is called a depletion mode device. Figure 2.3 shows the arrangement in a depletion mode MOS device. For an
n-type depletion mode device, penta-valent impurities like phosphorus is used.
Figure 2.3 Structure of an nMOS depletion mode transistor

To describe the operation of an nMOS enhancement device, note that a positive voltage is applied between the source
and the drain (VDS ). No current flows from the source and the drain at a zero gate bias (that is, VGS= 0). This is because
the source and the drain are insulated from each other by the two reverse-biased diodes as shown in Figure
2.2.However, as a voltage, positive relative to the source and the substrate, is applied to the gate, an electric field is
produced across the p-type substrate, This electric field attracts the electrons toward the gate and repels the holes. If
the gate voltage is adequately high, the region under the gate changes from p-type to n-type, and it provides a
conduction path between the source and the drain. A very thin surface of the p-type substrate is then said to be
inverted, and the channel is said to be an n-channel.
To explain in more detail the electrical behaviour of the MOS structure under external bias, assume that the substrate
voltage VSS = 0, and that the gate voltage VG is the controlling parameter. Three distinct operating regions, namely
accumulation, depletion and inversion are identified based on polarity and magnitude of VG .
If a negative voltage VG is applied to the gate electrode, the holes in the p-type substrate are attracted towards the
oxide-semiconductor interface. As the majority carrier (hole) concentration near the surface is larger than the
equilibrium concentration in the substrate, this condition is referred to as the carrier accumulation on the surface. In this
case, the oxide electric field is directed towards the gate electrode. Although the hole density increases near the
surface in response to the negative gate bias, the minority carrier (electron) concentration goes down as the electrons
are repelled deeper into the substrate.
Consider next the situation when a small positive voltage VG. is applied to the gate. The direction of the electric field
across the oxide will now be towards the substrate. The holes (majority carriers) are now driven back into the substrate,
leaving the negatively charged immobile acceptor ions. Lack of majority carriers create a depletion region near the
surface. Almost no mobile carriers are found near the semiconductor-oxide interface under this bias condition.
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Next, let us investigate the effect of further increase in the positive gate bias. At a voltage VGS = Vth , the region near the
semiconductor surface acquires the properties of n-type material. This n-type surface layer however, is not due to any
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doping operation, but rather by inversion of the originally p-type semiconductor owing to the applied voltage. This
inverted layer, which is separated from the p-type substrate by a depletion region, accounts for the MOS transistor
operation. That is, the thin inversion layer with a large mobile electron concentration, which is brought about by a
sufficiently large positive voltage between the gate and the source, can be effectively used for conducting current
between the source and the drain terminals of the MOS transistor. Strong inversion is said to occur when the
concentration of the mobile electrons on the surface equals that of the holes in the underlying p-type substrate.
As far as the electrical characteristics are concerned, an nMOS device acts like a voltage-controlled switch that starts to
conduct when VG (or, the gate voltage with respect to the source) is at least equal to Vth (the threshold voltage of the
device). Under this condition, with a voltage VDS applied between the source and the drain, the flow of current across
the channel occurs as a result of interaction of the electric fields due to the voltages VDS and VGS. The field due to VDS
sweeps the electrons from the source toward the drain.As the voltage VDS increases, a resistive drop occurs across the
channel. Thus the voltage between the gate and the channel varies with the distance along the channel. This changes
the shape of the channel, which becomes tapered towards the drain end.
Figure 2.4: An nMOS enhancement mode transistor in non-saturated (linear or resistive) mode. Note that VGS >
Vth , and VDS < VGS - Vth .
Operating Principles of MOS Transistors

Operating Principles of MOS Transisitors
However, under the circumstance VDS > VGS - Vth , when the gate voltage relative to drain voltage is insufficient to form
the channel (that is, VGD< Vth ), the channel is terminated before the drain end. The channel is then said to be pinched
off. This region of operation, known as saturated or pinch-off condition, is portrayed in Figure 2.5. The effective channel
length is thus reduced as the inversion layer near the drain end vanishes. As the majority carriers (electrons) reach the
end of the channel, they are swept to the drain by the drift action of the field due to the drain voltage. In the saturated
state, the channel current is controlled by the gate voltage and is almost independent of the drain voltage.
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In short, the nMOS transistor possesses the three following regions of operation :
Cutoff, sub-threshold or non-conducting zone

Non-saturation or linear zone
Saturation region
Figure 2.5: An nMOS enhancement mode transistor in saturated (pinch-off) mode. Note that VGS > Vth , and VDS >
VGS - Vth .
Thus far, we have dealt with principle of operation of an nMOS transistor. A p-channel transistor can be realized by
interchanging the n-type and the p-type regions, as shown in Figure 2.6. In case of an pMOS enhancement-mode
transistor, the threshold voltage Vth is negative. As the gate is made negative with respect to the source by at least |Vth|,
the holes are attracted into the thin region below the gate, crating an inverted p-channel . Thus, a conduction path is
created for the majority carriers (holes) between the source and the drain. Moreover, a negative drain voltage V DS
draws the holes through the channel from the source to the drain.
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Figure 2.6 Structure of an pMOS enhancement mode transistor. Note that VGS < Vth , and VDS =0.
2.1.2. Threshold Voltage and Body Effect

The threshold voltage Vth for a nMOS transistor is the minimum amount of the gate-to-source voltage VGS necessary to
cause surface inversion so as to create the conducting channel between the source and the drain. For VGS< Vth , no
current can flow between the source and the drain. For VGS> Vth , a larger number of minority carriers (electrons in case
of an nMOS transistor) are drawn to the surface, increasing the channel current. However, the surface potential and the
depletion region width remain almost unchanged as VGS is increased beyond the threshold voltage.
The physical components determining the threshold voltage are the following.
work function difference between the gate and the substrate.

gate voltage portion spent to change the surface potential.
gate voltage part accounting for the depletion region charge.
gate voltage component to offset the fixed charges in the gate oxide and the silicon-oxide boundary.
Although the following analysis pertains to an nMOS device, it can be simply modified to reason for a p-channel device.
The work function difference
between the doped polysilicon gate and the p-type substrate, which depends on the
substrate doping, makes up the first component of the threshold voltage. The externally applied gate voltage must also
account for the strong inversion at the surface, expressed in the form of surface potential 2 , where
denotes the
distance between the intrinsic energy level EI and the Fermi level EF of the p-type semiconductor substrate.
The factor 2 comes due to the fact that in the bulk, the semiconductor is p-type, where EI is above EF by
, while at the
inverted n-type region at the surface EI is below EF by
. This is the
, and thus the amount of the band bending is 2
second component of the threshold voltage. The potential difference
between EI and EF is given as
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where k: Boltzmann constant, T: temperature, q : electron charge NA : acceptor concentration in the p-substrate and n i :
intrinsic carrier concentration. The expression kT/q is 0.02586 volt at 300 K.
The applied gate voltage must also be large enough to create the depletion charge. Note that the charge per unit area
in the depletion region at strong inversion is given by
where
is the substrate permittivity. If the source is biased at a potential VSB with respect to the substrate, then the
depletion charge density is given by
The component of the threshold voltage that offsets the depletion charge is then given by -Qd /Cox , where Cox is the gate
oxide capacitance per unit area, or Cox =
(ratio of the oxide permittivity and the oxide thickness).
A set of positive charges arises from the interface states at the Si-SiO2 interface. These charges, denoted as Qi , occur
from the abrupt termination of the semiconductor crystal lattice at the oxide interface. The component of the gate
voltage needed to offset this positive charge (which induces an equivalent negative charge in the semiconductor) is -Qi
/Cox. On combining all the four voltage components, the threshold voltage VTO, for zero substrate bias, is expressed as
For non-zero substrate bias, however, the depletion charge density needs to be modified to include the effect of VSB on
that charge, resulting in the following generalized expression for the threshold voltage, namely
The generalized form of the threshold voltage can also be written as
Note that the threshold voltage differs from VTO by an additive term due to substrate bias. This term, which depends on
the material parameters and the source-to-substrate voltage VSB , is given by
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Thus, in its most general form, the threshold voltage is determined as
........................... (2.1)
in which the parameter
, known as the substrate-bias (or body-effect ) coefficient is given by
.................................... (2.2)
The threshold voltage expression given by (1.1) can be applied to n-channel as well as p-channel transistors. However,
some of the parameters have opposite polarities for the pMOS and the nMOS transistors. For example, the substrate
bias voltage VSB is positive in nMOS and negative in pMOS devices. Also, the substrate potential difference
is
negative in nMOS, and positive in pMOS. Whereas, the body-effect coefficient is positive in nMOS and negative in
pMOS. Typically, the threshold voltage of an enhancement mode n-channel transistor is positive, while that of a pchannel transistor is negative.
Example 2.1 Given the following parameters, namely the acceptor concentration of p-substrate NA =1016 cm-3 ,
16
polysilicon gate doping concentration N D =10 cm-3 , intrinsic concentration of Si, ni =1.45 X 1010 cm-3 , gate oxide
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thickness tox =500 and oxide-interface fixed charge density Nox =4 X 1010cm-2 , calculate the threshold voltage VTO at
VSB=0.
Ans:
The potential difference between EI and EF for the p-substrate is
For the polysilicon gate, as the doping concentration is extremely high, the heavily doped n-type gate material can be
assumed to be degenerate. That is, the Fermi level EF is almost coincident with the bottom of the conduction band E C .
Hence, assuming that the intrinsic energy level EI is at the middle of the band gap, the potential difference between EI
and EF for the gate is
= (energy band gap of Si) = 1/2 X 1.1 = 0.55 V.
Thus, the work function difference

-0.90 V.
between the doped polysilicon gate and the p-type substrate is -0.35 V - 0.55 V =
The depletion charge density at VSB =0 is
The oxide-interface charge density is
The gate oxide capacitance per unit area is (using dielectric constant of SiO2 as 3.97)
Combining the four components, the threshold voltage can now be computed as
Body Effect : The transistors in a MOS device seen so far are built on a common substrate. Thus, the substrate
voltage of all such transistors are equal. However, while one designs a complex gate using MOS transistors, several
devices may have to be connected in series. This will result in different source-to-substrate voltages for different
devices. For example, in the NAND gate shown in Figure 1.5, the nMOS transistors are in series, whereby the sourceto-substrate voltage VSB of the device corresponding to the input A is higher than that of the device for the input B.
Under normal conditions ( VGS > Vth ), the depletion layer width remains unchanged and the charge carriers are drawn
into the channel from the source. As the substrate bias VSB is increased, the depletion layer width corresponding to the
source-substrate field-induced junction also increases. This results in an increase in the density of the fixed charges in
the depletion layer. For charge neutrality to be valid, the channel charge must go down. The consequence is that the
substrate bias VSB gets added to the channel-substrate junction potential. This leads to an increase of the gate-channel
voltage drop.
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Example 2.2 Consider the n-channel MOS process in Example 2.1. One may examine how a non-zero source-tosubstrate voltage VSB influences the threshold voltage of an nMOS transistor.
One can calculate the substrate-bias coefficient
using the parameters provided in Example 2.1 as follows :
One is now in a position to determine the variation of threshold voltage VT as a function of the source-to-substrate
voltage VSB . Assume the voltage VSB to range from 0 to 5 V.
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Figure 2.7 Variation of Threshold voltage in response to change in source-to-substrate voltage VSB
Figure 2.7 depicts the manner in which the threshold voltage Vth varies as a function of the source-to-substrate voltage
VSB . As may be seen from the figure, the extent of the variation of the threshold voltage is nearly 1.3 Volts in this range.
In most of the digital circuits, the substrate bias effect (also referred to as the body effect) is inevitable. Accordingly,
appropriate measures have to be adopted to compensate for such variations in the threshold voltage.
2.2 MOS Device Current -Voltage Equations
This section first derives the current-voltage relationships for various bias conditions in a MOS transistor. Although the
subsequent discussion is centred on an nMOS transistor, the basic expressions can be derived for a pMOS transistor
by simply replacing the electron mobility
by the hole mobility
and reversing the polarities of voltages and currents.
As mentioned in the earlier section, the fundamental operation of a MOS transistor arises out of the gate voltage VGS
(between the gate and the source) creating a channel between the source and the drain, attracting the majority carriers
from the source and causing them to move towards the drain under the influence of an electric field due to the voltage
VDS (between the drain and the source). The corresponding current IDS depends on both VGS and VDS .
2.2.1 Basic DC Equations
Let us consider the simplified structure of an nMOS transistor shown in Figure 2.8, in which the majority carriers
electrons flow from the source to the drain.
The conventional current flowing from the drain to the source is given by
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Now, transit time
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= ( length of the channel) / (electron velocity) = L / v
where velocity is given by the electron mobility and electric field; or,
Now, EDS = VDS/ L, so that velocity
Thus, the transit time is
At room temperature (300 K), typical values of the electron and hole mobility are given by
, and
We shall derive the current-voltage relationship separately for the linear (or non-saturated) region and the saturated
region of operation.
Fig 2.8: Simplified geometrical structure of an nMOS transistor

Linear region : Note that this region of operation implies the existence of the uninterrupted channel between the
source and the drain, which is ensured by the voltage relation VGS - Vth > VDS .
In the channel, the voltage between the gate and the varies linearly with the distance x from the source due to the IR
drop in the channel. Assume that the device is not saturated and the average channel voltage is VDS /2.
The effective gate voltage VG,eff = Vgs - Vth
Charge per unit area =
where Eg average electric field from gate to channel,
: relative permittivity of oxide between gate and channel (~4.0
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for SiO2 ), and
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: free space permittivity (8.85 x 10 -14 F/cm). So, induced charge
where W: width of the gate and L : length of channel.
Thus, the current from the drain to the source may be expressed as
Thus, in the non-saturated region, where
...........................(2.2)
where the parameter
Writing
, where W/L is contributed by the geometry of the device,
.......................................(2.3)
Since, the gate-to-channel capacitance is
(parallel plate capacitance), then
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, so that (2.2) may be written as
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.........................(2.4)
Denoting CG = C0 WL where C0 : gate capacitance per unit area,
...................... (2.5)
Saturated region : Under the voltage condition VGS - Vth = VDS , a MOS device is said to be in saturation region of
operation. In fact, saturation begins when VDS = VGS - Vth , since at this point, the resistive voltage drop (IR drop) in the
channel equals the effective gate-to-channel voltage at the drain. One may assume that the current remains constant
as VDS increases further. Putting VDS = VGS - Vth , the equations (2.2-2.5) under saturation condition need to be modified
as
...................................(2.6)
...................................................(2.7)
.....................................(2.8)
.......................................(2.9)
The expressions in the last slide derived for IDS are valid for both the enhancement and the depletion mode devices.
However, the threshold voltage for the nMOS depletion mode devices (generally denoted as Vtd ) is negative .
Figure 2.9 depicts the typical current-voltage characteristics for nMOS enhancement as well as depletion mode
transistors. The corresponding curves for a pMOS device may be obtained with appropriate reversal of polarity. For an
n -channel device with
= 600 cm2/ V.s, C0 = 7 X 10-8 F/cm2 , W = 20 m, L = 2
examine the relationship between the drain current and the terminal voltages.
m and Vth = VT0 = 1.0 V, let us
Now, the current-voltage equation (2.2) can be written as follows.
If one plots IDS as a function of VDS , for different (constant) values of VGS , one would obtain a characteristic similar to
the one shown in Figure 2.9. It may be observed that the second-order current-voltage equation given above gives rise
to a set of inverted parabolas for each constant VGS value.
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Figure 2.9 Typical current-voltage characteristics for (a) enhancement mode and (b)
depletion
mode nMOS
transistors
F
i
g
u
r
e
i
n
t
h
e
p
r
e
v
i
o
u
s
2.2.2
Secon
d
Order
Effects
The current-voltage equations in the previous section however are ideal in nature. These have
been derived keeping various secondary effects out of consideration.
Threshold voltage and body effect : as has been discussed at length in Sec. 2.1.6, the
threshold voltage Vth does vary with the voltage difference Vsb between the source and the
body (substrate). Thus including this difference, the generalized expression for the threshold
voltage is reiterated as
...............
...............
.......
(2.10)
in which the parameter
, known as the substrate-bias (or body-effect ) coefficient is given by
s
l
i
d
e
:
Page 39

.Typical values of
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range from 0.4 to 1.2. It may also be written as
Example 2.3:
Then, at Vsb = 2.5 volts
As is clear, the threshold voltage increases by almost half a volt for the above process parameters when the source is
higher than the substrate by 2.5 volts.
Drain punch-through : In a MOSFET device with improperly scaled small channel length and too low channel doping,
undesired electrostatic interaction can take place between the source and the drain known as drain-induced barrier
lowering (DIBL) takes place. This leads to punch-through leakage or breakdown between the source and the drain, and
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loss of gate control. One should consider the surface potential along the channel to understand the punch-through
phenomenon. As the drain bias increases, the conduction band edge (which represents the electron energies) in the
drain is pulled down, leading to an increase in the drain-channel depletion width.
In a long-channel device, the drain bias does not influence the source-to-channel potential barrier, and it depends on
the increase of gate bias to cause the drain current to flow. However, in a short-channel device, as a result of increase
in drain bias and pull-down of the conduction band edge, the source-channel potential barrier is lowered due to DIBL.
This in turn causes drain current to flow regardless of the gate voltage (that is, even if it is below the threshold voltage
Vth). More simply, the advent of DIBL may be explained by the expansion of drain depletion region and its eventual
merging with source depletion region, causing punch-through breakdown between the source and the drain. The punchthrough condition puts a natural constraint on the voltages across the internal circuit nodes.
Sub-threshold region conduction : the cutoff region of operation is also referred to as the sub-threshold region, which
is mathematically expressed as IDS =0
VGS < Vth
However, a phenomenon called sub-threshold conduction is observed in small-geometry transistors. The current flow in
the channel depends on creating and maintaining an inversion layer on the surface. If the gate voltage is inadequate to
invert the surface (that is, VGS< VT0 ), the electrons in the channel encounter a potential barrier that blocks the flow.
However, in small-geometry MOSFETs, this potential barrier is controlled by both VGS and VDS . If the drain voltage is
increased, the potential barrier in the channel decreases, leading to drain-induced barrier lowering (DIBL). The lowered
potential barrier finally leads to flow of electrons between the source and the drain, even if VGS < VT0 (that is, even when
the surface is not in strong inversion). The channel current flowing in this condition is called the sub-threshold current .
This current, due mainly to diffusion between the source and the drain, is causing concern in deep sub-micron designs.
The model implemented in SPICE brings in an exponential, semi-empirical dependence of the drain current on VGS in
the weak inversion region. Defining a voltage V on as the boundary between the regions of weak and strong inversion,
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where Ion is the current in strong inversion for VGS =Von .

Channel length modulation : so far one has not considered the variations in channel length due to the changes in drainto-source voltage VDS . For long-channel transistors, the effect of channel length variation is not prominent. With the
decrease in channel lenghth, however, the variation matters. Figure 2.5 shows that the inversion layer reduces to a
point at the drain end when VDS = VDSAT = VGS -Vth . That is, the channel is pinched off at the drain end. The onset of
saturation mode operation is indicated by the pinch-off event. If the drain-to-source voltage is increased beyond the
saturation edge (VDS > VDSAT ), a still larger portion of the channel becomes pinched off. Let the effective channel (that is,
the length of the inversion layer) be
where L : original channel length (the device being in non-saturated mode), and
: length of the channel segment
where the inversion layer charge is zero. Thus, the pinch-off point moves from the drain end toward VDS the source with
increasing drain-to-source voltage . The remaining portion of the channel between the pinch-off point and the drain end
will be in depletion mode. For the shortened channel, with an effective channel voltage of VDSAT , the channel current is
given by
...................... (2.11)
The current expression pertains to a MOSFET with effective channel length Leff, operating in saturation. The above
equation depicts the condition known as channel length modulation , where the channel is reduced in length. As the
effective length decreases with increasing VDS , the saturation current IDS(SAT) will consequently increase with increasing
VDS . The current given by (2.11) can be re-written as
.......................... (2.12)
The second term on the right hand side of (2.12) accounts for the channel modulation effect. It can be shown that the
factor channel length
is expressible as
One can even use the empirical relation between
and VDS given as follows.
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The parameter
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is called the channel length modulation coefficient, having a value in the range 0.02V -1 to 0.005V -1 .
Page 43
Assuming that
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, the saturation current given in (2.11) can be written as
The simplified equation (2.13) points to a linear dependence of the saturation current on the drain-to-source voltage.
The slope of the current-voltage characteristic in the saturation region is determined by the channel length modulation
factor
Impact ionization :An electron traveling from the source to the drain along the channel gains kinetic energy at the cost
of electrostatic potential energy in the pinch-off region, and becomes a hot electron. As the hot electrons travel
towards the drain, they can create secondary electron-hole pairs by impact ionization. The secondary electrons are
collected at the drain, and cause the drain current in saturation to increase with drain bias at high voltages, thus leading
to a fall in the output impedance. The secondary holes are collected as substrate current. This effect is called impact
ionization . The hot electrons can even penetrate the gate oxide, causing a gate current. This finally leads to
degradation in MOSFET parameters like increase of threshold voltage and decrease of transconductance. Impact
ionization can create circuit problems such as noise in mixed-signal systems, poor refresh times in dynamic memories,
or latch-up in CMOS circuits. The remedy to this problem is to use a device with lightly doped drain. By reducing the
doping density in the source/drain, the depletion width at the reverse-biased drain-channel junction is increase and
consequently, the electric filed is reduced. Hot carrier effects do not normally present an acute problem for p -channel
MOSFETs. This is because the channel mobility of holes is almost half that of the electrons. Thus, for the same filed,
there are fewer hot holes than hot electrons. However, lower hole mobility results in lower drive currents in p -channel
devices than in n -channel devices.
Complementary CMOS Inverter - DC Characteristics
A complementary CMOS inverter is implemented as the series connection of a p-device and an n-device, as shown in
Figure 2.10. Note that the source and the substrate (body) of the p -device is tied to the VDD rail, while the source and
the substrate of the n-device are connected to the ground bus. Thus, the devices do not suffer from any body effect. To
derive the DC transfer characteristics for the CMOS inverter, which depicts the variation of the output voltage (Vout) as a
function of the input voltage (Vin), one can identify five following regions of operation for the n -transistor and p transistor.
Figure 2.10 A CMOS inverter shown with substrate Connections
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Let Vtn and Vtp denote the threshold voltages of the n and p-devices respectively. The following voltages at the gate and
the drain of the two devices (relative to their respective sources) are all referred with respect to the ground (or VSS),
which is the substrate voltage of the n -device, namely
Vgsn =Vin , Vdsn =Vout, Vgsp =Vin -VDD , and Vdsp =Vout -VDD .
The voltage transfer characteristic of the CMOS inverter is now derived with reference to the following five regions of
operation :
Region 1 : the input voltage is in the range
in linear region (as
. In this condition, the n -transistor is off, while the p -transistor is

).
Figure 2.11: Variation of current in CMOS inverter with Vin

No actual current flows until Vin crosses Vtn , as may be seen from Figure 2.11. The operating point of the p -transistor
moves from higher to lower values of currents in linear zone. The output voltage is given by
from Figure 2.12.
, as may be seen
Region 2 : the input voltage is in the range

. The upper limit of Vin is Vinv , the logic threshold voltage of the
inverter. The logic threshold voltage or the switching point voltage of an inverter denotes the boundary of "logic 1" and
"logic 0". It is the output voltage at which Vin = Vout . In this region, the n-transistor moves into saturation, while the ptransistor remains in linear region. The total current through the inverter increases, and the output voltage tends to drop
fast.
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Figure 2.12 Transfer characteristics of the CMOS inverter

Region 3 : In this region,
. Both the transistors are in saturation, the drain current attains a maximum value,
and the output voltage falls rapidly. The inverter exhibits gain. But this region is inherently unstable. As both the
transistors are in saturation, equating their currents, one gets (as
).
................................(2.14)
where
Note that if
and
and
. Solving for the logic threshold voltage Vinv , one gets
, then Vinv =0.5 VDD .
2.15)
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. As the input voltage Vin is increased beyond Vinv , the n -transistor
leaves saturation region and enters linear region, while the p -transistor continues in saturation. The magnitude of both
the drain current and the output voltage drops.
. At this point, the p -transistor is turned off, and the n -transistor is in
linear region, drawing a small current, which falls to zero as Vin increases beyond VDD -| Vtp|, since the p -transistor turns
off the current path. The output in this region is
As may be seen from the transfer curve in Figure 2.12, the transition from "logic 1" state (represented by regions 1 and
2) to logic 0 state (represented by regions 4 and 5) is quite steep. This characteristic guarantees maximum noise
immunity.
ratio : One can explore the variation of the transfer characteristic as a function of the ratio
. As noted
from (2.15), the logic threshold voltage Vinv depends on the ratio
. The CMOS inverter with the ratio
=1
allows a capacitive load to charge and discharge in equal times by providing equal current-source and current-sink
capabilities. Consider the case of
>1. Keeping
fixed, if one increases
, then the impedance of the pulldown n -transistor decreases. It conducts faster, leading to faster discharge of the capacitive load. This ensures quicker
fall of the output voltage Vout , as Vin increases from 0 volt onwards. That is, the transfer characteristic shifts leftwards.
Similarly, for a CMOS inverter with
<1, the transfer curve shifts rightwards. This is portrayed in Figure 2.13.
Noise margin : is a parameter intimately related to the transfer characteristics. It allows one to estimate the allowable
noise voltage on the input of a gate so that the output will not be affected. Noise margin (also called noise immunity) is
specified in terms of two parameters - the low noise margin NML , and the high noise margin NMH . Referring to Figure
2.14, NMl is defined as the difference in magnitude between the maximum LOW input voltage recognized by the driven
gate and the maximum LOW output voltage of the driving gate. That is,
NML =| VILmax - VOLmax |
Similarly, the value of NMH is the difference in magnitude between the minimum HIGH output voltage of the driving gate
and the minimum HIGH input voltage recognizable by the driven gate. That is,
NMH =| VOHmin - VIHmin |
Where VIHmin : minimum HIGH input voltage
VILmax : maximum LOW input voltage
VOHmin : minimum HIGH output voltage
VOLmax : maximum LOW output voltage
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Figure 2.13 Variation of shape of transfer characteristic of the CMOS inverter with the ratio
Figure 2.14 Definition of noise margin
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Amplifiers with Active Loads CMOS Amplifiers

Section 3.1 Amplifiers with Active Loads
In the last chapter, we noticed that the load RL
here: (1) For IC design, this is not desirable because it is not cost effective to fabricate a
desired resistor, not mentioning a large resistor will require a rather large space in the IC.
(2) A large resistor may easily drive the transistor out of saturation as shown in Fig. 3.11.
Fig. 3.1-1 A large

It will be desirable if we have a load curve, instead of a load line as shown in Fig.
3.1-2 below:
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Fig. 3.1-2 A desirable load curve
To achieve this desirable load curve, we may use an active load, instead of a passive
load, such as a resistor.
Let us consider the following PMOS and its I-V curve as shown in Fig. 3.1-3.
Fig. 3.1-3 A PMOS transistor and its I-V curve
Fig. 3.1-4 A PMOS transistor circuit with its I-V diagrams

From Fig. 3.1-4, we can see that a PMOS circuit can be used as a load for an NMOS
amplifier, as shown in Fig. 3.1-5.
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Fig. 3.1-6 Different VGS1 s for a fixed VSG 2

Fig. 3.1-7 Different VSG 2 s for a fixed VGS1
Note that so far as Q1 is concerned, Q2 is its load and vice versa, as shown in the
above figures. Since NMOS and PMOS are complementary to each other, we call this
kind of circuits CMOS circuits.
For the CMOS amplifier shown in Fig. 3.1-5, let us assume that the circuit is
properly biased. Fig. 3.1-8 shows the diagram of the I-V curves of Q1 and its load curve,
which is the I-V curve of Q2.
2 A
behaves as an amplifier..
VDD
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I2
VSG2
Q2
VB
Vop
(ideal)
VA
Vout = VDS1
Vout = VDS1
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(b) I-V curves of Q1 and the load curve of Q1

VA
vin
AC
VGS1
Vout
(a) A CMOS amplifier
VB
VGS1
(c)
Fig. 3.1-9 The amplification of input signal

The small signal equivalent circuit of the CMOS amplifier is shown in Fig. 3.1-
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mm
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10. The impedances

For ro1 and ro 2 , refer to Section 2.4.
Fig. 3.1-10 A CMOS transistor circuit and its small signal equivalent circuit
As can be seen,
v out = g m vin (r01 // r02 )
(3.1-1)
If r01 r02 , which is often the case, we have

AV =
v out
1
= g m r01
2
vin
(3.1-2)
If a passive load is used, AV = g m R L . Since r01 is much larger than RL which can be
used, we have obtained a larger gain. By passive loads, we mean loads such as resistors,
inductors and capacitors which do not require power supplies.
Section 3.2 Some Experiments about CMOS Amplifiers

The following circuit shown in Fig. 3.2-1 will be used in our SPICE simulation
experiments.
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Fig. 3.2-1 The CMOS amplifier circuit for the Experiments in Section 3.2
Experiment 3.2-1. The I-V Curve of Q1 and the its Load Curve.
In Table 3.2-1, we display the SPICE simulation program of the experiment and in Fig.
3.2-2, we show the I-V curve of Q1 and its load curve. Note that the load curve of Q1 is
the I-V curve of Q2.
Table 3.2-1 Program of Experiment 3.2-1
simple
.protect
.lib 'c:\mm0355v.l' TT
.unprotect
.op
.options nomod post
VDD 11
0
3.3v
R1
111
0k VSG2
11
2
0.9v
V3
3
0
0v
.param W1=5u
M1
3
4
0
0
+nch L=0.35u W='W1' m=1
+AD='0.95u*W1' PD='2*(0.95u+W1)'
+AS='0.95u*W1' PS='2*(0.95u+W1)'
M2
3
2
1
1
+pch L=0.35u W='W1' m=1
+AD='0.95u*W1' PD='2*(0.95u+W1)'
+AS='0.95u*W1' PS='2*(0.95u+W1)'
Page 55

VGS1 4
0
.DC V3 0 3.3v 0.1v
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0.65v
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.PROBE I(M2) I(M1) I(R1)

.end
IDS
I-V curve of Q2(load curve of Q1)
Operating point
I-V curve of Q1
Vout=VDS1
Fig. 3.2-2 The operating points of the circuit in Fig 3.2-1
Experiment 3.2-2 The Operating Point with the Same VGS1 and a Smaller VSG2.
In this experiment, we lowered VSG 2 from 0.9V to 0.8V. The program is shown in
Table 3.2-2 and the resulting operating point can be seen in Fig. 3.2-3. In fact, this
operating point is close to the ohmic region, which is undesirable.
simple
.protect
.unprotect
.op
.options nomod post
VDD 11
0
3.3v
R1
111
0k VSG2
11
2
0.8v
V3
3
0
0v
.param W1=5u
M1
3
4
0
0
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+nch L=0.35u W='W1' m=1
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+AD='0.95u*W1' PD='2*(0.95u+W1)'
+AS='0.95u*W1' PS='2*(0.95u+W1)'
M2
3
2
1
1
+pch L=0.35u W='W1' m=1
+AD='0.95u*W1' PD='2*(0.95u+W1)'
+AS='0.95u*W1' PS='2*(0.95u+W1)'
VGS1 4
0
0.65v
.DC V3 0 3.3v 0.1v
.end
IDS
I-V curve of Q1

Vout=VDS1
Fig. 3.2-3 The operating points of the amplifier circuit in Fig 3.2-1 with a smaller VSG 2
Experiment 3.2-3 The Operating Point with the Same VGS1 and a Higher VSG2
In this experiment, we increased VSG 2 from 0.9V to 1.0V. The program is displayed in
Table 3.2-3 and the result is in Fig. 3.2-4. Again, as can be seen, this new operating point
is not ideal either.
.unprotect
simple
.protect
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Table 3.2-3 Program of Experiment 3.23
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.op
.options nomod post
VDD 11
0
3.3v
R1
111
0k VSG2
11
2
1v
V3
3
0
0v
.param W1=5u
M1
3
4
0
0
+nch L=0.35u W='W1' m=1
+AD='0.95u*W1' PD='2*(0.95u+W1)'
+AS='0.95u*W1' PS='2*(0.95u+W1)'
M2
3
2
1
1
+pch L=0.35u W='W1' m=1
+AD='0.95u*W1' PD='2*(0.95u+W1)'
+AS='0.95u*W1' PS='2*(0.95u+W1)'
VGS1 4
0
0.65v
.DC V3 0 3.3v 0.1v
.end

IDS
I-V curve of Q1
Vout=VDS1
Fig. 3.2-4 The operating points of the amplifier circuit in Fig 3.2-1 with a higher VSG 2
From the above experiments, we first conclude that to achieve an appropriate
operating point, we must be careful in setting VGS1 and VSG 2 . We also note that the I-V
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curves are not so flat as we wished. Therefore, we cannot expect a very high gain with
this kind of simple CMOS circuits. As we shall learn in later chapters, the gain can be
higher if we use a cascode design.
Experiment 3.2-4 The Gain
We used a signal with magnitude 0.001V and frequency 500kHz. The gain was
found to be 30. The program is shown in Table 3.2-4 and the result is shown in Fig. 3.25.
simple
.protect
.unprotect
.op
.options nomod post
VDD 11
0
3.3v
R1
11
1
0k
VSG 11
2
0.9v
.param W1=5u
M1
3
4
0
0
+nch L=0.35u W='W1' m=1
+AD='0.95u*W1' PD='2*(0.95u+W1)'
+AS='0.95u*W1' PS='2*(0.95u+W1)'
M2
3
2
1
1
+pch L=0.35u W='W1' m=1
+AD='0.95u*W1' PD='2*(0.95u+W1)'
+AS='0.95u*W1' PS='2*(0.95u+W1)'
VGS 4
5
0.65v
Vin 5
0
sin(0 0.001v 500k)
.tran
0.001us
15us
.end
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Vin
Vout
Fig. 3.2-5 The gain of the CMOS amplifier for input signal with 500KHz
Section 3.3 A Desired Current Source

In a CMOS circuit, a VSG 2 has to be used, as shown in Fig. 3.3-1. In practice, it is not
desirable to have many such power supplies all over the integrated circuit. In this section,
we shall see how this can be replaced by a desired current source and a current mirror.
Fig. 3.3-1 A CMOS amplifier with VSG 2
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The purpose of VSG 2 is to produce a desired load curve of Q1 as shown in Fig. 3.32.
Fig. 3.3-2 A CMOS amplifier, its I-V curves and load lines
The load curve of Q1, which corresponds to a particular I-V curve of Q2, is shown in
Fig. 3.3-3. This load curve is determined by VSG 2 .
VDD
VSG2
G
S
D
Q2
ISD2
I
for a particular VSG2
D
Q1
S
AC
Vout
VGS1
Vout
(a) A CMOS amplifier with a VSG2
(b) ISD2 vs Vout for the fixed VSG2
Fig. 3.3-3 A CMOS amplifier with a fixed VSG 2 and its I-V curves
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It is natural for us to think that a proper VSG 2 is the only way to produce the desired
load curve for Q1. Actually, there is another way. Note each load curve almost
corresponds to a desired I SD 2 = I DS1 , as shown in Fig. 3.3-4. In other words, we may
think of a way to produce a desired current in Q2, which of course is also the current in
Q1.
Fig. 3.3-4 An illustration of how a desired current determines the I-V curve
There are two problems here: (1) How can we generate a desired current? (2)
How can we force Q2 to have the desired current?
To answer the first question, let us consider a typical NMOS circuit with a
resistive load as shown in Fig. 3.3-5.
VDD
IDS
RL
D
S
Vout
VGS
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Fig. 3.3-5 An NMOS circuit with a resistive load

In the ohmic region, the relationship between the current I DS and different voltages
is expressed as below:
W
I DS = k n ' ((V
1
Vt )V DS VDS 2 )
2
GS
L
I DS =
(3.3-1)
V DD VDS
(3.3-2)
RL
Suppose we want to have a desired current I DS . We may think that I DS is a constant.

But, from the above equations, we still have three variables, namely VGS , VDS and RL .
Since there are only two equations, we cannot find these three variables for a given
desired I DS .
In the boundary between ohmic and saturation regions where VDS = VGS Vt , the
two equations governing current and voltages in the transistor are as follows:
I
=
DS
and
I DS =
1
2
VDD V DS
W
k ' (V
n
V )2
GS
(3.3-3)
(3.3-4)
RL
As can be seen, there are still three variables and only two equations.
There is a trick to solve the above problem. We may connect the drain to gate as
shown in Fig. 3.3-6.
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After this is done, we have

(3.3-5)
VGS = V DS
We have successfully eliminated one variable. Besides,

VGS Vt = VDS Vt
(3.3-6)
From Equation (3.3-6), we have

V DS > VGS Vt
(3.3-7)
Thus, this connection makes sure that the transistor is in saturation region. Since it is in
the saturation region, we have
I
=
DS
and
I DS =
1
2
VDD VGS
W
k ' (V
n
V )2
GS
(3.3-8)
(3.3-9)
RL
Although we often say that a transistor is in saturation if its drain is connected to

its gate, we must understand it is in a very peculiar situation. Traditionally, a transistor
has a family of IV -curves, each of which corresponds to a specified gate bias voltage
VGS and besides, the VDS can be any value as illustrated in Fig. 3.3-2. Once the drain is
connected to the gate, we note the following:
(1) We have lost VDS because it is always equal to VGS . Therefore, we do not have the
traditional IV -curves any more.
(2) For each VGS , since VDS = VGS , we have VDS > VGS Vt . This transistor is in
saturation. But it is rather close to the boundary between the ohmic region and the
saturation region.
(3) Because of the above point, the relationship between current I DS and voltage VGS is
the dotted line illustrated in Fig. 3.3-7.
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VDS VGS Vt
10EE764
VDS VGS
Vt
Fig. 3.3-7
(4) We may safely say that the transistor is no longer a transistor. It can be now viewed
as a diode with only two terminals. The relationship between current I DS and voltage
VGS is hyperbolic expressed in Equation 3.3-8.
(5) For a traditional transistor, VGS is supplied by a bias voltage. Since there is no
bias voltage, how do we determine VGS . Note that the desired current is related to VGS .
This will be discussed in below.
Given a certain desired I DS , VGS can be determined by using Equations (3.3-8).
Thus R L can be found by using Equation (3.3-9). We can also determine VGS and RL
graphically as shown in Fig. 3.3-8. This means that we can design a desired current
source by using the circuit shown in Fig. 3.3-6. By adjusting the value of RL , we can get
the desired current.
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Fig. 3.3-8 The generation of a desired current

Let us examine Fig. 3.3-6 again. We do not have to provide a bias voltage VGS
any more. This is a very desirable property which will become clear as we introduce
current mirror. But, the reader should note that a VGS does exist and it is produced.
In this section, we have discussed how to generate a desired current. In the next
section, we shall show how we can force Q2 to have this desired current. This is done by
the current mirror.
Section 3.4 The Current Mirror

Let us consider the circuit in Fig. 3.4-1.
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Fig. 3.4-1 A current mirror

Suppose Q1 and Q2 have the same Vt . Note that Q1 is in the saturation region and
has a desired current I d in it. Assume Q2 is also in the saturation region. Since
VGS 1 = VGS 2 by using Equation (3.3-3), we have
I2
=
Id
W2
L2
W1
L1
(3.4-1)
If W1 = W2 and L1 = L2 , from Equation (3.4-1), we have I 2 = I d . Q1 is called a current

mirror for Q2.
As indicated before, Q2 must be in the saturation region. So our question is:
Under what condition would Q2 be out of saturation I 2 = I d . Note that Q2 must be
connected to a load. If the load is too high, this will cause it to be out of saturation as
illustrated in Fig. 3.4-2.
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Fig. 3.4-2 The out of saturation of Q2

The reader may be puzzled about one thing. We know that if an NMOS
transistor is in the saturation region, its current is determined by VGS . Is this still true in
this case? Our answer is Yes. That is, for the circuit in Fig. 3.4-1, I (Q2 ) is still
determined by VGS 2 . But, we shall now show that VGS 2 is determined by I (Q1 ) .
VGS 1
Note that VGS 2 = VGS 1 . Consider Q1.

= VDS 1 . But
VDS1 = VDD I DS1 RL
The special connection of Q1 makes
(3.4-2)
Thus, from Equation (3.4-2), we conclude that VGS 2 , which is equal to VGS1 , which is in
turn equal to VDS1 , is determined by I (Q1 ) .
The advantage of using the current mirror is that no biasing voltage is needed to
give a proper VGS 2 . There is still a VGS 2 . But this VGS 2 is equal to VGS1 which is in turn
determined by I (Q1 ) . I (Q1 ) is determined by selecting a proper RL , as illustrated in
Fig. 3.4-3.
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Fig. 3.4-3 The determination of the biasing voltage in a current mirror

A current mirror can be based upon a PMOS transistor as in the CMOS amplifier
case. Fig. 3.4-4 shows a CMOS amplifier with a current mirror.
VDD
VDD
I2
Q3
Id
Q2
RL
Q1
vinAC
Vout
VGS1
Fig. 3.4-4 A PMOS current mirror

We must remember that the purpose of using a current mirror is to generate a proper
I-V curve of Q2. This I-V curve serves as a load curve for Q1 as shown in Fig. 3.4-5.
From Equation (3.3-8) and (3.3-9), we know that by adjusting the value of RL , we can
obtain different current values in Q3, which mean different I-V curves in Q2. In other
words, if we want a different load curve of Q1, we may simply change the value of RL .
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Fig. 3.4-5 The obtaining of different I-V curves for an NMOS transistor through a
current mirror
Section 3.5 Experiments for the CMOS Amplifiers with

Current Mirrors
In this set of experiments, we used the circuit shown in Fig. 3.5-1.
Fig. 3.5-1 The current mirror used in the experiments of Section 3.5
Experiment 3.5-1 The Operating Points of M1 and M3.
In this experiment, we like to find out whether I(M1) is equal to I(M3) or not. We
first try to find the characteristics of M1. The program is shown in Table 3.5-1. We then
do the same thing to M3. The program is shown in Table 3.5-2. The curves related to
M1 are shown in Fig. 3.5-2. The curves related to M3 are shown in Fig. 3.5-3. Note the
I-V curve of M3 is not a typical one for a transistor because the gate of M3 is connected
to the drain of M3.
.protect
Ex3.5-11
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Table 3.5-1 Program for

Experiment 3.5-1
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.lib 'C:\model\tsmc\MIXED035\mm0355v.l' TT
.unprotect
.op
.options nomod post
VDD 1
0
3.3v
R4
4
0
30k
Rdm 1
1_1
0
.param W1=10u W2=10u W3=10u W4=10u
M1
2
3
0
0
+nch L=0.35u W='W1' m=1 AD='0.95u*W1'
+PD='2*(0.95u+W1)' AS='0.95u*W1' PS='2*(0.95u+W1)'
M2
2
4
1_1
1
+pch L=0.35u
+W='W2' m=1AD='0.95u*W2' PD='2*(0.95u+W2)'
+AS='0.95u*W2' PS='2*(0.95u+W2)'
M3
4
4
1
1
+pch L=0.35u
+W='W3' m=1AD='0.95u*W3' PD='2*(0.95u+W3)'
+AS='0.95u*W3' PS='2*(0.95u+W3)'
V2
2
VGS1 3
Vin
5
0
5
0
0v
0.7v
0v
.DC V2 0 3.3v 0.1v

.PROBE I(M1) I(Rdm)
.end
Table 3.5-2 Another program for Experiment 3.5-1
Ex3.5-12
.protect
.unprotect
.op
.options nomod post
VDD 1
R4
4
Rdm 1
0
0
1_1
3.3v
30k
0
.param W1=10u W2=10u W3=10u W4=10u

M1
2
3
0
0
+nch L=0.35u W='W1' m=1 AD='0.95u*W1'
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+PD='2*(0.95u+W1)' AS='0.95u*W1' PS='2*(0.95u+W1)'
Page 76
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M2
2
4
1
1
+pch L=0.35u
+W='W2' m=1AD='0.95u*W2' PD='2*(0.95u+W2)'
+AS='0.95u*W2' PS='2*(0.95u+W2)'
M3
4
4
1_1
1
+pch L=0.35u
+W='W3' m=1AD='0.95u*W3' PD='2*(0.95u+W3)'
+AS='0.95u*W3' PS='2*(0.95u+W3)'
V3
4
VGS1 3
Vin
5
0
5
0
0v
0.7v
0v
.DC V3 0 3.3v 0.1v

.PROBE I(R4) I(Rdm)
.end
IDS1
Load Curve of M1(I-V Curve of M2)
7.9x10-5
I-V Curve of M1
Vout
Fig. 3.5-2 I-V curve and load curve for M1
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I-V Curve of M3
7.6x10-5
Load Line of R4
Fig. 3.5-3 I-V curve and load line for M3 of the circuit in Fig 3.5-1
From this experiment, we conclude that I(M3)=I(M1) as expected.
Experiment 3.5-2 The Operating Point of M2
The I-V curve of M2 is the load curve of M1. The I-V curve of M2 is determined
by the current mirror mechanism. We were told that the current mirror works only when
M2 is in the saturation region. In this experiment, we first show the characteristics of
M1. The program is shown in Table 3.5-3. The I-V curve of M2 and its load curve (M1
is the load of M2) are shown in Fig. 3.5-4.
Table 3.5-3 Program for Experiment 3.5-2
Ex3.5-2
.protect
.unprotect
.op
.options nomod post
VDD 1
R4
4
0
0
3.3v
30k
Page 78
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.param W1=10u W2=10u W3=10u W4=10u
Page 79
10EE764
M1
2
3
0
0
+nch L=0.35u W='W1' m=1 AD='0.95u*W1'
+PD='2*(0.95u+W1)' AS='0.95u*W1' PS='2*(0.95u+W1)'
M2
2
4
1_1
1
+pch L=0.35u
+W='W2' m=1AD='0.95u*W2' PD='2*(0.95u+W2)'
+AS='0.95u*W2' PS='2*(0.95u+W2)'
M3
4
4
1
1
+pch L=0.35u
+W='W3' m=1AD='0.95u*W3' PD='2*(0.95u+W3)'
+AS='0.95u*W3' PS='2*(0.95u+W3)'
V2
2
VGS1 3
Vin
5
0
5
0
0v
0.7v
0v
.DC V2 0 3.3v 0.1v

.PROBE I(M1) I(Rdm)
Rdm 1
1_1
0
.end
IDS2
I-V Curve of M2
Vout
Fig. 3.5-4 Operating points of M2 of the circuit in Fig 3.5-1

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As shown in Fig. 3.5-4, M2 is in the saturation region.

To drive M2 out of the saturation region, we lowered VGS1 from 0.7V to 0.6V.
The program is shown in Table 3.5-4 and the curves are shown in Fig. 3.5-5.
Table 3.5-4 The program to drive M2 out of saturation
Ex3.5-2b
.protect
.unprotect
.op
.options nomod post
VDD 1
R4
4
0
0
3.3v
30k
.param W1=10u W2=10u W3=10u W4=10u

M1
2
3
0
0
+nch L=0.35u W='W1' m=1 AD='0.95u*W1'
+PD='2*(0.95u+W1)' AS='0.95u*W1' PS='2*(0.95u+W1)'
M2
2
4
1_1
1
+pch L=0.35u
+W='W2' m=1AD='0.95u*W2' PD='2*(0.95u+W2)'
+AS='0.95u*W2' PS='2*(0.95u+W2)'
M3
4
4
1
1
+pch L=0.35u
+W='W3' m=1AD='0.95u*W3' PD='2*(0.95u+W3)'
+AS='0.95u*W3' PS='2*(0.95u+W3)'
V2
2
VGS1 3
Vin
5
0
5
0
0v
0.6v
0v
.DC V2 0 3.3v 0.1v

.PROBE I(M1) I(Rdm)
Rdm 1
1_1
0
.end
Page 81
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IDS2
I-V Curve of M2
A smaller VGS1.
Vout
Fig. 3.5-5 The out of saturation of M2

From Fig. 3.5-5, we can see that M2 is now out of saturation. We then printed the
essential data by using the SPICE simulation program in Table 3.5-5. We can see that
I(M2) is quite different from I(M3) now. This is due to the fact that M2 is out of
saturation.
Table 3.5-5 Experimental data for Experiment 3.5-2
subckt
element 0:m1
0:m2
0:m3
model 0:nch.3 0:pch.3 0:pch.3
region Saturati Linear Saturati
id
25.4028u -26.2672u -75.8881u
ibs -3.880e-17 6.373e-18 1.832e-17
ibd -864.4522n 1.0916f 1.1504f
vgs 600.0000m -1.0234 -1.0234
vds
3.2166 -83.3759m -1.0234
vbs
0.
0.
0.
vth 545.8793m -719.8174m -688.8560m
vdsat 85.3814m -293.2779m -318.3382m
beta
6.7003m 1.3100m 1.3166m
gam eff 591.1171m 485.8319m 485.8388m
gm
441.4749u 97.6517u 411.0201u
gds
8.7037u 268.5247u 18.5395u
Page 82

gmb
10EE764
111.6472u 22.6467u 87.7975u
Page 83
cdtot
cgtot
cstot
cbtot
cgs
cgd
10EE764
11.3338f
10.2012f
21.1660f
27.1028f
5.6263f
2.0774f
28.6456f
16.2693f
31.1152f
38.9009f
8.8368f
7.2706f
14.4251f
12.7341f
30.5144f
33.8541f
9.9096f
1.8392f
Experiment 3.5-3 The DC Input-Output Relationship of M1.

In this experiment, weplotted VDS1 versus VGS1 . The program is in Table 3.5-6
and the DC input-output relationship is shown in Fig. 3.5-6.
.protect
.unprotect
.op
.options nomod post
VDD 1
R4
4
0
0
3.3v
30k
.param W1=10u W2=10u W3=10u W4=10u

M1
2
3
0
0
+nch L=0.35u W='W1' m=1 AD='0.95u*W1'
+PD='2*(0.95u+W1)' AS='0.95u*W1' PS='2*(0.95u+W1)'
M2
2
4
1
1
+pch L=0.35u
+W='W2' m=1AD='0.95u*W2' PD='2*(0.95u+W2)'
+AS='0.95u*W2' PS='2*(0.95u+W2)'
M3
4
4
1
1
+pch L=0.35u
+W='W3' m=1AD='0.95u*W3' PD='2*(0.95u+W3)'
+AS='0.95u*W3' PS='2*(0.95u+W3)'
VGS1 3
0v
.DC VGS1 0 3.3v 0.1v

.PROBE I(M1)
.end
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VDS1
VGS1
Fig. 3.5-6 VDS1 vs VGS1
Section 3.6 The Current Mirror with an Active Load

In the above sections, the current mirror has a resistive load. As we indicated before, a
resistive load is not practical in VLSI design. Therefore, it can be replaced by an active
load, namely a transistor. Fig. 3.6-1 shows a typical CMOS amplifier whose current
mirror has an active load.
Page 85
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Fig. 3.6-1 A current mirror with an active load

In the above circuit, Q3 is a current mirror while Q4 is its load. Note that the main
purpose of having a current mirror is to produce a desired basing current in Q2 which is
equal to the current in Q3. To generate such a desired current, we use the I-V curve of Q3
and its load curve, which is the I-V curve of Q4. These curves are shown in Fig. 3.6-2.
I
IQ3
IQ4 for a fixed VGS4
Vop4
VDS4
Idesired
Fig. 3.6-2 The determination of operating point for M4 in Fig. 3.6-1

Note that we have a desired current in our mind. So we just have to adjust VGS 4
such that its corresponding I-V curve intersects the I-V curve of Q3 at the proper place
which gives us the desired current in Q4, which is also the current in Q3.
We indicated before that we like to use current mirrors because we do not like to
have two biases as required in a CMOS circuit shown in Fig. 3.1-5. One may wonder at
this point that we need two power supplies (constant voltage sources) for this current
mirror circuit in the circuit shown in Fig. 3.6-1. Note that in this circuit, although there
are two biases, they can be designed to be the same. Thus, actually, we only need one
bias. If no current mirror is used in a CMOS circuit, we must need two different biases.
Besides, it will be shown in the next chapter that the current mirror actually has an
entirely different function. That is, it provides a feedback in the differential amplifier
which gives us a high gain.
Section 3.7 Experiments with the Current Mirror with an

Active Load
In the experiments, we used the amplifier circuit shown in Fig. 3.7-1.
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Fig. 3.7-1 The current mirror circuit for experiments in Section 3.7
Experiment 3.7-1 The Operating Point of M4.
The program for this experiment is shown in Table 3.7-1. The curves are shown in
Fig. 3.7-2. We like to point out again that the load curve of M4 is the I-V curve of M3.
This I-V curve of M3is hyperbola because the gate of M3 is connected to the drain of
M3. The result shows that the current is 100u, a quite small value.
Table 3.7-1 Program for Experiment 3.7-1
.protect
.unprotect
.op
.options nomod post
VDD
3.3v
.param W1=10u W2=10u W3=10u W4=10u

M1
2
3
0
0
+nch L=0.35u W='W1' m=1 AD='0.95u*W1'
+PD='2*(0.95u+W1)' AS='0.95u*W1' PS='2*(0.95u+W1)'
M2
2
4
1_1
1
+pch L=0.35u
+W='W2' m=1 AD='0.95u*W2' PD='2*(0.95u+W2)'
+AS='0.95u*W2' PS='2*(0.95u+W2)'
M3
4
4
3_1
1
+pch L=0.35u
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10EE764
+W='W3' m=1 AD='0.95u*W3' PD='2*(0.95u+W3)'

+AS='0.95u*W3' PS='2*(0.95u+W3)'
M4
4
5
0
0
+nch L=0.35u
+W='W4' m=1 AD='0.95u*W4' PD='2*(0.95u+W4)'
+AS='0.95u*W4' PS='2*(0.95u+W4)'
V4
4
0
0v
VGS1 3
6
VGS4 5
0
Vin 6
0
0v
.DC V4 0 3.3v 0.1v
.PROBE I(M4) I(Rm3)
Rdm
1
1_1
Rm3
1
3_1
0.7v
0.7v
0
0
.end
Fig. 3.7-2 Operating point of M4
Section 4.5 The Small Signal Analysis of the Differential

Amplifier with Active Loads
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Let us redraw the differential amplifier circuit in Fig. 4.5-1.
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VDD
VDD
Q3
Q4
V out
Q1
Q2
Vin
Fig. 4.5-1 A differential amplifier with active loads for AC analysis

To find its small signal equivalent circuit, we first note that Q3 is a specially
connected PMOS transistor. Its small signal equivalent circuit, as discussed in Section
4.3, is now shown in Fig. 4.5-2.
1
gm
Fig. 4.5-2 A small signal equivalent circuit for a PMOS transistor with gate and drain
connected together
The small signal equivalent circuit of the differential amplifier with active loads is
shown in Fig. 4.5-3.
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VDD
VDD
Q3
Q4
+
vsg3
1
g m3
ro3
ro4
ro1
ro2
Vout
gm4vsg3
Q1
Q2
vo'
vin = v g
s vg
1
g m1
vo
Vin
2s
vin
2
gm 2
vin
2
C
Fig. 4.5-3 The small signal equivalent circuit for the circuit in Fig. 4.5-1
Consider Node A. We have
v 0 'v s
r01
Since r01 is much larger than 1
g m1
2
g m3
v0 'v s g m1
+
vin + g m3 v0 ' = 0
r01
2
v in +
v0 '
1
// r01
g m3
=0
(4.5-1)
, we have
(4.5-2)
Consider Node B.
v 0 v0 v s
v
+
= g m 4 v sg 3 + g m 2 m
r04
r02
2
Since v sg 3 = v 0 ' , we have:
v 0 v0 v s
v
= g m 4 v0 '+ g m 2 m
+
r04
r02
2
(4.5-3)
Consider Node C.
v0 v0 '
v s v0
vin
vin
(4.5-4)
g
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r01
r02
m1
m2
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To simplify
the
discussion,
we
assume
that
g m1 = g m 2 = g m3 = g m 4 = g m and
r01 = r02 = r03 = r04 = r0 . Thus, we have
v0 'v s g m
+
vin + g m v0 ' = 0
r0
2
(4.5-5)
v0 v0 v s
v
+
+ gm v 0 ' gm m = 0
r0
r0
2
(4.5-6)
v0 v0 ' v s v 0
+
=0
r0
r0
(4.5-7)
(4.5-5)+(4.5-6)+(4.5-7):
2g m v 0 '+
v0
=0
r0
v0 ' =
v0
2g m r0
vs =
v 0 + v0 '
2
vs =
v
1
(v0 0 )
2
2g m r0
(4.5-8)
(4.5-9)
Substituting (4.5-8) and (4.5-9) into (4.5-5), we have:
v0
v
v0
v
1 v0
+ gm (
) + g m in = 0
(
) 0 +
2
2r0 4 g m r0
2
r0 2 g m r0
2 g m r0
v0 (
1
4 g m r0
v0 (
1 + 4g mr 0
4 g m r0
g
1
1
) = m vin
+
2r0 2r0
2
)=
gm
2
vin
(4.5-10)
(4.5-11)
(4.5-12)
Since 4 g m r0 >> 1 , we have
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Gain =
v0 1
= g m r0
vin 2
(4.5-13)
Thus the gain is quite large.

Let us find v 0 ' . Using Equations (4.5-13) and (4.5-8), we have:
v0 ' =
v0
1 g m r0
1
=
vin = vin
2g m ro 4 g m r0
4
Note that vin is very small.
(4.5-14)
The above equation confirms our statement made
before that the small signal voltage at the drain of M 3 can be ignored.
Cascode Current Mirror
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In order to suppress the effect of channel-length modulation, a cascode

current source can be used.
If Vb is chosen such that Vy = Vx, then Iout closely tracks IREF. This is because
the cascode device shields the bottom transistor from variations in VP.
Remember, as long as the drain current is constant, the drain voltage will not
change.
While L1 must be equal to L2, the length of M3 need not be equal to L1 and L2.
To ensure VY = VX , we must ensure that
Vb - VGS3 = VY or Vb - VGS3 =VX or Vb = VGS3 + VX
This can be done by adding another diode-connected device M0 that will have
Vb = VGS0 + VX
Connecting node N to the gate M3, we have
VGS0 + VX = VGS3 + VY
Thus, if
(W L ) 3 (W L ) 2
, then VGS0 = VGS3
=
(W L )0 (W L )1
and VX = VY
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The concept of shielding property of

cascodes The high output impedance of a
cascode means that if the output node
voltage is changed by V , the resulting
change at the source of the cascode is
much less. In a sense, the cascode
transistor shileds the input device from
voltage variations at the output.
The shielding property of cascodes diminishes if the cascode device enters the
triode region.
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Wide Swing Cascode Current Mirror
Because the voltage at the gate of Q3 is 2Vt+2VOV, the minimum voltage

permitted at the output (while Q3 remains saturated) is Vt+2VOV, hence the extra
Vt.
VDS = VGS Vt
VD VS = VG VS Vt
VD = VG Vt
VD = (2Vt+2VOV ) Vt
VD = Vt+2VOV
Also observe that Q1 is operating with a drain-to-source voltage Vt+VOV , which is
Vt volts greater than it needs to operate in saturation.
To permit the output voltage at the drain of Q3 to swing as low as 2VOV , we must
lower the voltage at the gate of Q3 from 2Vt+2VOV to Vt+2VOV .
VDS = VGS Vt
VD VS = VG VS Vt
VD = VG Vt
VD = (Vt+2VOV ) Vt
VD = 2VOV
However we can no longer connect the gate of Q2 to its drain. Rather, it is
connected to the drain of Q4. This establishes a voltage of Vt+VOV at the drain of
Q4 which is sufficient to operate Q4 is saturation.
VGS4 = VG4 VS4 = (Vt+2VOV ) VOV = Vt+VOV
VGS4 = VDS4 , this makes Q4 always in saturation
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In order to get 2VOD, the drain

current must be 4Iin.
V REF = 2VOD + Vtn
= 2(VGS Vtn ) + Vtn

= 2VGS Vtn
I REF =
kn W
(VGS Vtn )2
2 L
kn W
(VREF Vtn )2
2 L
k W
= n
(2VGS Vtn Vtn )2
2 L
k W
= n
(2VGS 2Vtn ) 2
2 L
k W
2
= n
4(VGS Vtn )
2 L
= 4I in
I REF =
I REF
VOD =
4I in L
kn / 2 W
VOD =
I in
4L
kn / 2 W
OR
Thus,
LMB = 4L1
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Layout Concerns
When we go to layout the long L device, we might simply layout
a single MOSFET with the appropriate length. However, the
threshold voltage can vary significantly with the length of the
device.
Solution for this problem is by connecting MOSFETs in series with
the same widths and their gates tied together behave like a single
MOSFET with the sum of the individual MOSFETs lenghts.
Because each device is identical. Changes in the threshold voltage
shouldnt affect the biasing circuit.
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UNIT - 3
MOS AND BICMOS CIRCUIT DESIGN PROCESSES: Mass layers, strick diagrams, design, symbolic diagrams
8 Hours
3.1 Introduction
In this chapter, the basic mask layout design guidelines for CMOS logic gates will be presented. The
design of physical layout is very tightly linked to overall circuit performance (area, speed, power
dissipation) since the physical structure directly determines the transconductances of the transistors, the
parasitic capacitances and resistances, and obviously, the silicon area which is used for a certain
function. On the other hand, the detailed mask layout of logic gates requires a very intensive and timeconsuming design effort, which is justifiable only in special circumstances where the area and/or the
performance of the circuit must be optimized under very tight constraints. Therefore, automated layout
generation (e.g., standard cells + computer-aided placement and routing) is typically preferred for the
design of most digital VLSI circuits. In order to judge the physical constraints and limitations, however,
the VLSI designer must also have a good understanding of the physical mask layout process.
Mask layout drawings must strictly conform to a set of layout design rules as described in Chapter 2,
therefore, we will start this chapter with the review of a complete design rule set. The design of a simple
CMOS inverter will be presented step-by-step, in order to show the influence of various design rules on
the mask structure and on the dimensions. Also, we will introduce the concept of stick diagrams, which
can be used very effectively to simplify the overall topology of layout in the early design phases. With
the help of stick diagrams, the designer can have a good understanding of the topological constraints,
and quickly test several possibilities for the optimum layout without actually drawing a complete mask
diagram.
The physical (mask layout) design of CMOS logic gates is an iterative process which starts with the
circuit topology (to realize the desired logic function) and the initial sizing of the transistors (to realize
the desired performance specifications). At this point, the designer can only estimate the total parasitic
load at the output node, based on the fan-out, the number of devices, and the expected length of the
interconnection lines. If the logic gate contains more than 4-6 transistors, the topological graph
representation and the Euler-path method allow the designer to determine the optimum ordering of the
transistors. A simple stick diagram layout can now be drawn, showing the locations of the transistors,
the local interconnections between the transistors and the locations of the contacts.
After a topologically feasible layout is found, the mask layers are drawn (using a layout editor tool)
according to the layout design rules. This procedure may require several small iterations in order to
accommodate all design rules, but the basic topology should not change very significantly. Following
the final DRC (Design Rule Check), a circuit extraction procedure is performed on the finished layout
to determine the actual transistor sizes, and more importantly, the parasitic capacitances at each node.
The result of the extraction step is usually a detailed
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Figure-3.1: The typical design flow for the production of a mask layout.
SPICE input file, which is automatically generated by the extraction tool. Now, the actual performance
of the circuit can be determined by performing a SPICE simulation, using the extracted net-list. If the
simulated circuit performance (e.g., transient response times or power dissipation) do not match the
desired specifications, the layout must be modified and the whole process must be repeated. The layout
modifications are usually concentrated on the (W/L) ratios of the transistors (transistor re-sizing), since
the width-to-length ratios of the transistors determine the device transconductance and the parasitic
source/drain capacitances. The designer may also decide to change parts or all of the circuit topology in
order to reduce the parasitics. The flow diagram of this iterative process is shown in Fig. 3.1.
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3.2 CMOS Layout Design Rules
As already discussed in Chapter 2, each mask layout design must conform to a set of layout design
rules, which dictate the geometrical constraints imposed upon the mask layers by the technology and by
the fabrication process. The layout designer must follow these rules in order to guarantee a certain yield
for the finished product, i.e., a certain ratio of acceptable chips out of a fabrication batch. A design
which violates some of the layout design rules may still result in a functional chip, but the yield is
expected to be lower because of random process variations.
The design rules below are given in terms of scaleable lambda-rules. Note that while the concept of
scaleable design rules is very convenient for defining a technology-independent mask layout and for
memorizing the basic constraints, most of the rules do not scale linearly, especially for sub-micron
technologies. This fact is illustrated in the right column, where a representative rule set is given in real
micron dimensions. A simple comparison with the lambda- based rules shows that there are significant
differences. Therefore, lambda-based design rules are simply not useful for sub-micron CMOS
technologies.
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Figure-3.2: Illustration of CMOS layout design rules.

3.3 CMOS Inverter Layout Design
In the following, the mask layout design of a CMOS inverter will be examined step-by-step. The circuit
consists of one nMOS and one pMOS transistor, therefore, one would assume that the layout topology
is relatively simple. Yet, we will see that there exist quite a number of different design possibilities even
for this very simple circuit.
First, we need to create the individual transistors according to the design rules. Assume that we attempt
to design the inverter with minimum-size transistors. The width of the active area is then determined by
the minimum diffusion contact size (which is necessary for source and drain connections) and the
minimum separation from diffusion contact to both active area edges. The width of the polysilicon line
over the active area (which is the gate of the transistor) is typically taken as the minimum poly width
(Fig. 3.3). Then, the overall length of the active area is simply determined by the following sum:
(minimum poly width) + 2 x (minimum poly-to- contact spacing) + 2 x (minimum spacing from contact
to active area edge). The pMOS transistor must be placed in an n-well region, and the minimum size of
the n- well is dictated by the pMOS active area and the minimum n-well overlap over n+. The distance
between the nMOS and the pMOS transistor is determined by the minimum separation between the n+
active area and the n-well (Fig. 3.4). The polysilicon gates of the nMOS and the pMOS transistors are
usually aligned. The final step in the mask layout is the local interconnections in metal, for the output
node and for the VDD and GND contacts (Fig. 3.5). Notice that in order to be biased properly, the nwell region must also have a VDD contact.
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Figure-3.3: Design rule constraints which determine the dimensions of a minimum-size transistor.
Figure-3.4: Placement of one nMOS and one pMOS transistor.
Figure-3.5: Complete mask layout of the CMOS inverter.

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The inital phase of layout design can be simplified significantly by the use of stick diagrams - or socalled symbolic layouts. Here, the detailed layout design rules are simply neglected and the main
features (active areas, polysilicon lines, metal lines) are represented by constant width rectangles or
simple sticks. The purpose of the stick diagram is to provide the designer a good understanding of the
topological constraints, and to quickly test several possibilities for the optimum layout without actually
drawing a complete mask diagram. In the following, we will examine a series of stick diagrams which
show different layout options for the CMOS inverter circuit.
The first two stick diagram layouts shown in Fig. 3.6 are the two most basic inverter configurations,
with different alignments of the transistors. In some cases, other signals must be routed over the
inverter. For instance, if one or two metal lines have to be passed through the middle of the cell from
left to right, horizontal metal straps can be used to access the drain terminals of the transistors, which in
turn connect to a vertical Metal-2 line. Metal-1 can now be used to route the signals passing through the
inverter. Alternatively, the diffusion areas of both transistors may be used for extending the power and
ground connections. This makes the inverter transistors transparent to horizontal metal lines which may
pass over.
The addition of a second metal layer allows more interconnect freedom. The second- level metal can be
used for power and ground supply lines, or alternatively, it may be used to vertically strap the input and
the output signals. The final layout example in Fig. 3.6 shows one possibility of using a third metal
layer, which is utilized for routing three signals on top.
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Figure-3.6: Stick diagrams showing various CMOS inverter layout options.

3.4 Layout of CMOS NAND and NOR Gates
The mask layout designs of CMOS NAND and NOR gates follow the general principles examined
earlier for the CMOS inverter layout. Figure 3.7 shows the sample layouts of a two- input NOR gate
and a two-input NAND gate, using single-layer polysilicon and single-layer metal. Here, the p-type
diffusion area for the pMOS transistors and the n-type diffusion area for the nMOS transistors are
aligned in parallel to allow simple routing of the gate signals with two parallel polysilicon lines running
vertically. Also notice that the two mask layouts show a very strong symmetry, due to the fact that the
NAND and the NOR gate are have a symmetrical circuit topology. Finally, Figs 3.8 and 3.9 show the
major steps of the mask layout design for both gates, starting from the stick diagram and progressively
defining the mask layers.
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Figure-3.7: Sample layouts of a CMOS NOR2 gate and a CMOS NAND2 gate.
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Figure-3.8: Major steps required for generating the mask layout of a CMOS NOR2 gate.
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Figure-3.9: Major steps required for generating the mask layout of a CMOS NAND2 gate.
3.5 Complex CMOS Logic Gates
The realization of complex Boolean functions (which may include several input variables and several
product terms) typically requires a series-parallel network of nMOS transistors which constitute the socalled pull-down net, and a corresponding dual network of pMOS transistors which constitute the pullup net. Figure 3.10 shows the circuit diagram and the corresponding network graphs of a complex
CMOS logic gate. Once the network topology of the nMOS pull- down network is known, the pull-up
network of pMOS transistors can easily be constructed by using the dual-graph concept.
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Figure-3.10: A complex CMOS logic gate realizing a Boolean function with 5 input variables.
Now, we will investigate the problem of constructing a minimum-area layout for the complex CMOS
logic gate. Figure 3.11 shows the stick-diagram layout of a first-attempt, using an arbitrary ordering
of the polysilicon gate columns. Note that in this case, the separation between the polysilicon columns
must be sufficiently wide to allow for two metal-diffusion contacts on both sides and one diffusiondiffusion separation. This certainly consumes a considerable amount of extra silicon area.
If we can minimize the number of active-area breaks both for the nMOS and for the pMOS transistors,
the separation between the polysilicon gate columns can be made smaller. This, in turn, will reduce the
overall horizontal dimension and the overall circuit layout area. The number of active-area breaks can
be minimized by changing the ordering of the polysilicon columns, i.e., by changing the ordering of the
transistors.
Figure-3.11: Stick diagram layout of the complex CMOS logic gate, with an arbitrary ordering of the
polysilicon gate columns.
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A simple method for finding the optimum gate ordering is the Euler-path method: Simply find a Euler
path in the pull-down network graph and a Euler path in the pull-up network graph with the identical
ordering of input labels, i.e., find a common Euler path for both graphs. The Euler path is defined as an
uninterrupted path that traverses each edge (branch) of the graph exactly once. Figure 3.12 shows the
construction of a common Euler path for both graphs in our example.
Figure-3.12: Finding a common Euler path in both graphs for the pull-down and pull-up net provides a
gate ordering that minimizes the number of active-area breaks. In both cases, the Euler path starts at (x)
and ends at (y).
It is seen that there is a common sequence (E-D-A-B-C) in both graphs. The polysilicon gate columns
can be arranged according to this sequence, which results in uninterrupted active areas for nMOS as
well as for pMOS transistors. The stick diagram of the new layout is shown in Fig. 3.13. In this case,
the separation between two neighboring poly columns must allow only for one metal-diffusion contact.
The advantages of this new layout are more compact (smaller) layout area, simple routing of signals,
and correspondingly, smaller parasitic capacitance.
Figure-3.13: Optimized stick diagram layout of the complex CMOS logic gate.
It may not always be possible to construct a complete Euler path both in the pull-down and in the pullup network. In that case, the best strategy is to find sub-Euler-paths in both graphs, which should be as
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long as possible. This approach attempts to maximize the number of transistors which can be placed in a
single, uninterrupted active area.
Finally, Fig. 3.14 shows the circuit diagram of a CMOS one-bit full adder. The circuit has three inputs,
and two outputs, sum and carry_out. The corresponding mask layout of this circuit is given in Fig. 3.15.
All input and output signals have been arranged in vertical polysilicon columns. Notice that both the
sum-circuit and the carry-circuit have been realized using one uninterrupted active area each.
Figure-3.14: Circuit diagram of the CMOS one-bit full adder.
Figure-3.15: Mask layout of the CMOS full adder circuit..
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The preceding lectures have already given you the information of the different layers, their
representation (colour,hatching)etc. When the devices are represented using these layers, we call
it physical design. The design is carried out using the design tool, which requires to follow certain
rules. Physical structure is required to study the impact of moving from circuit to layout.
When we draw the layout from the schematic, we are taking the first step towards the physical
design.
Physical design is an important step towards fabrication. Layout is representation of a schematic
into layered diagram. This diagram reveals the different layers like ndiff, polysilicon etc that go
into formation of the device.
At every stage of the physical design simulations are carried out to verify whether the design is as
per requirement. Soon after the layout design the DRC check is used to verify minimum
dimensions and spacing of the layers. Once the layout is done, a layout versus schematic check
carried out before proceeding further. There are different tools available for drawing the layout
and simulating it.
The simplest way to begin a layout representation is to draw the stick diagram. But as the
complexity increases it is not possible to draw the stick diagrams. For beginners it easy to draw the
stick diagram and then proceed with the layout for the basic digital gates . We will have a look at
some of the things we should know before starting the layout.
In the schematic representation lines drawn between device terminals represent
interconnections and any no planar situation can be handled by crossing over. But in layout
designs a little more concern about the physical interconnection of different layers. By simply
drawing one layer above the other it not possible to make interconnections, because of the
different characters of each layer. Contacts have to be made whenever such interconnection is
required. The power and the ground connections are made using the metal and the common
gate connection using the polysilicon. The metal and the diffusion layers are connected using
contacts. The substrate contacts are made for same source and substrate voltage. which are not
implied in the schematic. These layouts are governed by DRCs and have to be atleast of the
minimum size depending on the technology used . The crossing over of layers is another aspect
which is of concern and is addressed next.
1.Poly crossing diffusion makes a transistor
2.Metal of the same kind crossing causes a short.
3.Poly crossing a metal causes no interaction unless a contact is
made.
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Different design tricks need to be used to avoid unknown creations. Like a combination of
metal1 and metal2 can be used to avoid short. Usually metat2 is used for the global vdd and vss lines
and metal1 for local connections.
SCHEMATIC AND LAYOUT OF BASIC GATES

1.CMOS INVERTERNOT GATE) SCHEMATIC
TOWARDS THE LAYOUT
VIN
VOUT
Figure2: Stick diagram of inverter
The diagram shown here is the stick diagram for the CMOS inverter. It consists of a Pmos and a
Nmos connected to get the inverted output. When the input is low, Pmos (yellow)is on and pulls the
output to vdd, hence it is called pull up device. When Vin
=1,Nmos (green)is on it pulls Vout to Vss, hence Nmos is a pull down device. The red lines are the
poly silicon lines connecting the gates and the blue lines are the metal lines for VDD(up) and VSS
(down).The layout of the cmos inverter is shown below. Layout also gives the minimum dimensions
of different layers, along with the logical connections and main thing about layouts is that can be
simulated and checked for errors which cannot be done with only stick diagrams.
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Figure 3: Layout of an inverter

The layout shown above is that of a CMOS inverter. It consists of a pdiff (yellow colour)
forming the pmos at the junction of the diffusion and the polysilicon(red colour)shown
hatched
ndiff(green) forming the nmos(area hatched).The different layers drawn
are checked for their dimensions using the DRC rule check of the tool used for drawing. Only
after the DRC(design rule check) is passed the design can proceed further. Further the design
undergoes Layout Vs Schematic checks and finally the parasitic can be extracted.
Figure 4:Schematic diagrams of nand and nor gate

We can seen that the nand gate consists of two pmos in parallel which forms the pull up logic and
two nmos in series forming the pull down logic.It is the complementary for the nor gate. We get
inverted logic from cmos structures. The series and parallel connections are for getting the right
logic output. The pull up and the pull down devices must be placed to get high and low outsputs
when required.
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Figure 5: Stick diagram of nand gate
Figure 6: Layout of a nand gate
Figure 7:Stick diagram of nor gate
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Figure 8: Layout of nor gate
TRANSMISSION GATE
Figure 9 :Symbol and schematic of transmission gate

Layout considerations of transmission gate. It consist of drains and the sources of the P&N devices
paralleled. Transmission gate can replace the pass transistors and has the advantage of giving both a
good one and a good zero.
Figure 10: Layout of transmissuion gate
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Figure 11:TG with nmos switches

CMOS STANDARD CELL DESIGN
Geometric regularity is very important to maintain some common electrical characteristics
between the cells in the library. The common physical limitation is to fix the height and vary the
width according to the required function. The Wp and Wn are fixed considering power dissipation,
propagation delay, area and noise immunity. The best thing to do is to fix a required objective
function and then fix Wn and Wp to obtain the required objective
Usually in CMOS Wn is made equal to Wp . In the process of designing these gates techniques
may be employed to automatically generate the gates of common size. Later optimization can be
carried out to achieve a specific feature. Gate array layout and sea of gate layout are constructed
using the above techniques. The gate arrays may be customized by having routing channels in
between array of gates. The gate array and the sea of gates have some special layout
considerations. The gate arrays use fixed image of the under layers i.e the diffusion and poly are
fixed and metal are programmable. The wiring layers are discretionary and providing the
personalization of the array. The rows of transistors are fixed and the routing channels are provided
in between them. Hence the design issues involves size of transistors, connectivity of poly and the
number of routing channels required.
Sea of gates in this style continuous rows of n and p diffusion run across the master chip and are
arranged without regard
to the routing channel. Finally the routing is done across unused
transistors saving space.
GENERAL LAYOUT GUIDELINES

1.The electrical gate design must be completed by checking the following a.Right power
and ground supplies
b.Noise at the gate input
c.Faulty connections and transistors d.Improper
ratios
c.Incorrect clocking and charge sharing
2.VDD and the VSS lines run at the top and the bottom of the design
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3.Vertical poysilicon for each gate input

4.Order polysilicon gate signals for maximal connection between transistors
5.The connectivity requires to place nmos close to VSS and pmos close to VDD
6.Connection to complete the logic must be made using poly,metal and even metal2
The design must always proceeds towards optimization. Here optimization is at transistor
level rather then gate level. Since the density of transistors is large ,we could obtain smaller
and faster layout by designing logic blocks of 1000 transistors instead of considering a single at
a time and then putting them together. Density improvement can also be made by considering
optimization of the other factors in the layout
The factors are
1.Efficient routing space usage. They can be placed over the cells or even in multiple layers.
2.Source drain connections must be merged better.
3.White (blank) spaces must be minimum
4.The devices must be of optimum sizes.
5.Transperent routing can be provided for cell to cell interconnection, this reduces global wiring
problems
LAYOUT OPTIMIZATION FOR PERFORMANCE
1.Vary the size of the transistor according to its position in series. The transistor closest to the
output is the smallest. The transistor nearest to the VSS line is the largest. This helps in
increasing the performance by 30 %. A three input nand gate with the varying size is shown
next.
Figure 12 :Layout optimization with varying diffusion areas

2. Less optimized gates could occur even in the case of parallel connected
transistors.This is usually seen in parallel inverters, nor & nand.When drains are
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connected in parallel ,we must try and reduce the number of drains in parallel ie wherever
possible we must try and connect drains in series at least at the output.This arrangement could
reduce the capacitance at the output enabling good voltage levels. One example is as shown
next.
Figure 13 Layout of nor gate showing series and parallel drains
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UNIT - 4
BASIC CIRCUIT CONCEPTS: Sheet resistance, capacitance layer inverter delays, wiring capacitance, choice
of layers.
BASIC CIRCUIT DESIGN CONCEPTS

INTRODUCTION
We have already seen that MOS structures are formed by the super imposition of a number
conducting ,insulating and transistor forming material. Now each of these layers have
their own characteristics like capacitance and resistances.
These fundamental
components are required to estimate the performance of the system. These layers also
have inductance characteristics that are important for I/O behaviour but are usually neglected
for on chip devices.
The issues of prominence are
1.Resistance, capacitance and inductance calculations.
2.Delay estimations
3.Determination of conductor size for power and clock distribution
4.Power consumption
5.Charge sharing
6.Design margin
7.Reliabiltiy
8.Effects and extent of scaling
RESISTANCE ESTIMATION
The concept of sheet resistance is being used to know the resistive behavior of the layers
that go into formation of the MOS device. Let us consider a uniform slab of
conducting material of the following characteristics .
Resistivity-
Width
W Thickness t
Length between faces L as shown next
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Figure 24:A slab of semiconductor

We know that the resistance is given by RAB= L/A . The area of the slab considered
above is given by A=Wt. There fore RAB= L/Wt . If the slab is considered as a square then
L=W. therefore RAB=/t which is called as sheet resistance represented by Rs.The unit of sheet
resistance is ohm per square. It is to be noted that Rs is independent of the area of the slab. Hence we
can conclude that a
1um per side square has the same resistance as that of 1cm per side square of the same
material.
The resistance of the different materials that go into making of the MOS device depend
on the resistivity and the thickness of the material. For a diffusion layer the depth
defines the thickness and the impurity defines the resistivity. The table of values for a 5u
technology is listed below.5u technology means minimum line width is 5u and =
2.5u.The diffusion mentioned in the table is n diffusion, p diffusion values are
2.5 times of that of n. The table of standard sheet resistance value follows.
Layer
Rs per square
Metal
0.03
Diffusion n(for 2.5

times the n )
10 to 50
Silicide
2 to 4
Polysilicon
15 to 100
N transistor gate
104
P transistor gate
2.5x 104
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SHEET RESISTANCE OF MOS TRANSISTORS
Figure 25 Min sized inverter
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The N transistor above is formed by a 2 wide poly and n diffusion. The L/W ratio is
1. Hence the transistor is a square, therefore the resistance R is 1sqxRs ohm/sq i.e. R=1x104.
If L/W ratio is 4 then R = 4x104. If it is a P transistor then for L/W =1,the value of R is
2.5x104.
Pull up to pull down ratio = 4.In this case when the nmos is on, both the devices are on
simultaneously, Hence there is an on resistance Ron = 40+10 =50k. It is this
resistance that leads the static power consumption which is the disadvantage of nmos
depletion mode devices
Figure 27: Cmos inverter

Since both the devices are not on simultaneously there is no static power dissipation
The resistance of non rectangular shapes is a little tedious to estimate. Hence it is easier to
convert the irregular shape into regular rectangular or square blocks and then estimate the
resistance. For example
Figure 28:Irregular rectangular shapes

CONTACT AND VIA RESISTANCE
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The contacts and the vias also have resistances that depend on the contacted materials and the
area of contact. As the contact sizes are reduced for scaling ,the associated resistance
increases. The resistances are reduced by making ohmic contacts which are also called
loss less contacts. Currently the values of resistances vary from .25ohms to a few tens of
ohms.
SILICIDES
The connecting lines that run from one circuit to the other have to be optimized. For this
reason the width is reduced considerably. With the reduction is width the sheet
resistance increases, increasing the RC delay component. With poly silicon the sheet
resistance values vary from 15 to 100 ohm. This actually effects the extent of scaling
down process. Polysilicon is being replaced with silicide. Silicide is obtained by
depositing metal on polysilicon and then sintering it. Silicides give a sheet resistance of
2 to 4 ohm. The reduced sheet resistance makes silicides a very attractive
replacement for poly silicon. But the extra processing steps is an offset to the
advantage.
A Problem
A particular layer of MOS circuit has a resistivity of 1 ohm cm. The section is
55um long,5um wide and 1 um thick. Calculate the resistance and also find Rs
R= RsxL/W, Rs= /t Rs=1x10-2/1x106=104ohm
R=
104x55x10-
6/5x106=110k
CAPACITANCE ESTIMATION
Parasitics capacitances are associated with the MOS device due to different layers that go into
its formation. Interconnection capacitance can also be formed by the metal, diffusion
and polysilicon (these are often called as runners) in addition with the transistor
and conductor resistance. All these capacitances actually define the switching
speed of the MOS device.
Understanding the source of parasitics and their variation becomes a very essential part of
the design specially when system performance is measured in terms of the speed. The
various capacitances that are associated with the CMOS device are
1.Gate capacitance - due to other inputs connected to output of the device
2.Diffusion capacitance - Drain regions connected to the output
3.Routing capacitance- due to connections between output and other inputs
The fabrication process illustrates that the conducting layers are apparently seperated from the
substrate and other layers by the insulating layer leading to the formation of parallel
capacitors. Since the silicon dioxide is the insulator knowing its thickness we can
calculate the capacitance
C= oinsA
farad
D
o= permittivity of free space- 8.854x1014f/cm
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ins= relative permitivity of sio2=4.0

D= thickness of the dioxide in cm
A = area of the plate in cm2
The gate to channel capacitance formed due to the sio2 separation is the most
profound of the mentioned three types. It is directly connected to the input and the output.
The other capacitance like the metal, poly can be evaluated against the substrate. The
gate capacitance is therefore standardized so as to enable to move from one technology to the
other conveniently.
The standard unit is denoted by Cg. It represents the capacitance between gate to channel
with W=L=min feature size. Here is a figure showing the different capacitances that
add up to give the total gate capacitance
Cgd, Cgs = gate to channel capacitance lumped at the source and drain
Csb, Cdb = source and drain diffusion capacitance to substrate
Cgb = gate to bulk capacitance
Total gate capacitance Cg = Cgd+Cgs+Cgb
Since the standard gate capacitance has been defined, the other capacitances like
polysilicon, metal, diffusion can be expressed in terms of the same standard units so that the
total capacitance can be obtained by simply adding all the values. In order to express in
standard values the following steps must be followed
1. Calculate the areas of area under consideration relative to that of standard gate i.e.42.
(standard gate varies according to the technology)
2. Multiply the obtained area by relative capacitance values
tabulated .
3. This gives the value of the capacitance in the standard unit of
capacitance Cg.
Table 1:Relative value of Cg
layer
Relative
Gate to channel
technology
1
Diffusion
0.25
Poly to sub
0.1
M1 to sub
0.075
M2 to sub
0.05
value
for5u
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M2 to M1
0.1
M2 to poly
0.075
For a 5u technology the area of the minimum sized transistor is 5uX5u=25um2 ie =2.5u,
hence,area of minimum sized transistor in lambda is 2 X 2 = 4 2.Therefore for 2u or
1.2u or any other technology the area of a minimum sized transistor in lambda is 4
2. Lets solve a few problems to get to know the things better.
The figure above shows the dimensions and the interaction of different layers, for
evaluating the total capacitance resulting so.
Three capacitance to be evaluated metal Cm,polysilicon Cp and gate capacitance Cg
Area of metal = 100x3=3002
Relative area = 300/4=75
Cm=75Xrelative cap=75X0.075=5.625 Cg
Polysilicon capacitance Cp
Area of poly=(4x4+1x2+2X2)=222
Relative area = 222/4 2=5.5
Cp=5.5Xrelative cap=5.5x.1=0.55 Cg
Gate capacitance Cg= 1 Cg because it is a min size gate
Ct=Cm+Cp+Cg=5.625+0.55+1=7.2 Cg
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Figure 29:Mos structure
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The input capacitance is made of three components metal capacitance Cm, poly
capacitance Cp, gate capacitance Cg i.e Cin= Cm+Cg+Cp
Relative area of metal =(50x3)X2/4=300/4=75
Cm=75x0.075=5.625 Cg
Relative area of poly = (4x4+2x1+2x2)/4 =22/4 =5.5
Cp=5.5X0.1=0.55 Cg
Cg=1 Cg
Cin=7.175 Cg
Cout = Cd+Cperi. Assuming Cperi to be negligible. Cout = Cd.
Relative area of diffusion=51x2/4=102/4=25.5
Cd=25.5x0.25=6.25 Cg.
The relative values are for the 5um technology
DELAY
The concept of sheet resistance and standard unit capacitance can be used to calculate the
delay. If we consider that a one feature size poly is charged by one feature size diffusion
then the delay is Time constant 1= Rs (n/p channel)x 1 Cg secs. This can be evaluated
for any technology. The value of Cg will vary with different technologies because of the
variation in the minimum feature size.
5u using n diffusion=104X0.01=0.1ns safe delay 0.03nsec
2um = 104x0.0032=0.064 nsecs safe delay 0.02nsec
1.2u= 104x0.0023 = 0.046nsecs safe delay =0.1nsec
These safe figures are essential in order to anticipate the output at the right time
INVERTER DELAYS
We have seen that the inverter is associated with pull up and pull down resistance values.
Specially in nmos inverters. Hence the delay associated with the inverter will depend on
whether it is being turned off or on. If we consider two inverters cascaded then the total
delay will remain constant irrespective of the transitions. Nmos and Cmos inverter
delays are shown next
NMOS INVERTER
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Figure 30: Cascaded nmos inverters
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Let us consider the input to be high and hence the first inverter will pull it down. The pull
down inverter is of minimum size nmos. Hence the delay is 1. Second inverter will pull
it up and it is 4 times larger, hence its delay is 4.The total delay is 1
+4= 5. Hence for nmos the delay can be generalized as T=(1+Zpu/Zpd)
CMOS INVERTER
Figure 30 : Cascaded Cmos inverter

Let us consider the input to be high and hence the first inverter will pull it down. The nmos
transistor has Rs = 10k and the capacitance is 2Cg. Hence the delay is 2. Now the
second inverter will pull it up, job done by the pmos. Pmos has sheet resistance of
25k i.e 2.5 times more, everything else remains same and hence delay is 5. Total delay is
2 +5 = 7 . The capacitance here is double because the input is
connected to the common poly, putting both the gate capacitance in parallel. The only
factor to be considered is the resistance of the p gate which is increasing the delay. If
want to reduce delay, we must reduce resistance. If we increase the width of p
channel, resistance can be reduced but it increases the capacitance. Hence some trade off
must be made to get the appropriate values.
FORMAL ESTIMATION OF DELAY
The inverter either charges or discharges the load capacitance CL. We could also estimate
the delay by estimating the rise time and fall time theoritically.
Rise time estimation
Assuming that the p device is in saturation we have the current given by the equation
Idsp=p(Vgs-|Vtp|)2/2
Figure 31 :Rise time estimation

The above current charges the capacitance and it has a constant value therefore the model
can be written as shown in figure above. The output is the drop across the capacitance,
given by
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Vout =Idsp x t/CL

Substituting for Idsp we have Vout=p(Vgs-|Vtp|)2t/2CL. Therefore the equation for
t=2CLVout/p(Vgs-|Vtp|).Let t=r and Vout=Vdd, therefore we have r =
2VddCL/p(Vgs-|Vtp|)2. If consider
Vtp=0.2Vdd and Vgs=Vdd we have r =
3CL/pVdd
On similar basis the fall time can be also be written as f = 3CL/nVdd whose model can be
written as shown next
Figure 32 :Fall time estimation

DRIVING LARGE CAPACITIVE LOAD
The problem of driving large capacitive loads arises when signals must travel outside the
chip. Usually it so happens that the capacitance outside the chip are higher. To reduce the
delay these loads must be driven by low resistance. If we are using a cascade of inverter
as drivers the pull and pull down resistances must be reduced. Low rsistance means low
L:W ratio. To reduce the ratio, W must be increased. Since L cannot be reduced to lesser
than minimum we end up having a device which occupies a larger area. Larger area
means the input capacitance increases and slows down the process more. The solution to this
is to have N cascaded inverters with their sizes increasing, having the largest to drive the load
capacitance. Therefore if we have
3 inverters,1st is smallest and third is biggest as shown next.
Figure 33:Cascaded inverters with varying widths
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We see that the width is increasing by a factor of f towards the last stage. Now both f and N
can be complementary. If f for each stage is large the number of stages N reduces but
delay per stage increases. Therefore it becomes essential to optimize. Fix N and find the
minimum value of f. For nmos inverters if the input transitions from 0 to 1 the delay is f
and if it transitions from 1 to 0 the delay is 4 f. The delay for a nmos pair is 5 f. For a
cmos pair it will be 7f
optimum value of f.
Assume y=CL/ Cg = fN, therefore choice of values of N and f are interdependent. We find
the value of f to minimize the delay, from the equation of y we have ln(y)=Nln(f)
i.e N=ln(y)/ln(f). If delay per stage is 5f for nmos, then for even number of stages
the total delay is N/2 5f=2.5f. For cmos total delay is N/2 7f =
3.5f
Hence delay Nft=ln(y)/ln(f)ft. Delay can be minimized if chose the value of f to be equal to
e which is the base of natural logarithms. It means that each stage is 2.7wider than its
predecessor. If f=e then N= ln(y).The total delay is then given by
1.For N=even
td=2.5Ne for nmos, td=3.5Ne for cmos
2.For N=odd
transition from 0 to 1
transition
from1
to
td=[2.5(N-1)+1]e nmos td=[2.5(N-1)+4]e

td=[3.59N-1)+2]e cmos
td=[3.5(N-1)+5]e
for example
For N=5 which is odd we can calculate the delay fro vin=1 as td=[2.5(5-1)+1]e
=11e
i.e. 1 +4+1+4+1 = 11e
For vin =0 , td=[2.5(5-1)+4]e = 14e
4+1+4+1+4 = 14e
SUPER BUFFER
The asymmetry of the inverters used to solve delay problems is clearly undesirable, this also
leads to more delay problems, super buffer are a better solution. We have a inverting and
non inverting variants of the super buffer. Such arrangements when used for 5u
technology showed that they were capable of driving 2pf capacitance with
2nsec rise time.The figure shown next is the inverting variant.
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Figure 34:Inverterting buffer
Figure 34:NonInverteing variant
BICMOS DRIVERS
The availability of bipolar devices enables us to use these as the output stage of
inverter or any logic. Bipolar devices have high Tran con--ductance and they are able switch
large currents with smaller input voltage swings. The time required to change the out by an
amount equal to the input is given by t=CL/gm, Where gm is the device trans
conductance. t will be a very small value because of the high gm. The transistor delay
consists of two components Tin and TL. Tin the time required to charge the base of the
transistor which is large. TL
is smaller because the time take to
charge capacitor is less by hfe which is the transistor gain a comparative graph shown
below.
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Figure
The collector resistance is another parameter that contributes to the delay.The graph shown
below shows that for smaller load capacitance, the delay is manageable but for large
capacitance, as Rc increases the delay increase drastically.
Figure
By taking certain care during fabrication reasonably good bipolar devices can be produced
with large hfe, gm , and small Rc. Therefore bipolar devices used in buffers and
logic circuits give the designers a lot of scpoe and freedom .This is coming without
having to do any changes with the cmos circuit.
PROPAGATION DELAY
This is delay introduced when the logic signals have to pass through a chain of pass
transistors. The transistors could pose a RC product delay and this increases
drastically as the number of pass transistor in series increases.As seen from the figure the
response at node V2 is given by CdV2/dt=(V1-V2)(V2-V3)/R For a long network we can
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write RCdv/dt =dv2/dx2, i.e delay x2,
Figure 38
Lump all the R and C we have Rtotal=nrRs and C=nc Cg where and hence delay
=n2rc. The increases by the square of the number, hence restrict the number of stages to
maximum 4 and for longer ones introduce buffers in between.
DESIGN OF LONG POLYSILICONS
The following points must be considered before going in for long wire.
1.The designer is also discouraged from designing long diffusion lines also because the
capacitance is much larger
2.When it inevitable and long poly lines have to used the best way to reduce delay is use
buffers in between. Buffers also reduce the noise sensitivity
OTHER SOURCES OF CAPACITANCE Wiring
capacitance
1.Fringing field
2.Interlayer capacitance
3.Peripheral capacitance
The capacitances together add upto as much capacitance as coming from the gate to source
and hence the design must consider points to reduce them.The major of the wiring
capacitance is coming from fringing field effects. Fringing capacitances is due to parallel fine
metal lines running across the chip for power conection.The capacitance depends on the
length l, thickness t and the distance d between the wire and
the substrate. The
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accurate
prediction
estimation.Hence Cw=Carea+Cff.
is
required
for performance
Interlayer capacitance is seen when different layers cross each and hence it is
neglected for simole calculations. Such capacitance can be easily estimated for regular
structures and helps in modeling the circuit better.
Peripheral capacitance is seen at the junction of two devices. The source and the drain n
regions form junctions with the pwell (substrate) and p diffusion form with adjacent nwells
leading to these side wall (peripheral) capacitance
The capacitances are profound when the devices are shrunk in sizes and hence must be
considered. Now the total diffusion capacitance is Ctotal = Carea + Cperi
In order to reduce the side wall effects, the designers consider to use isolation regions of
alternate impurity.
CHOICE OF LAYERS
1.Vdd and Vss lines must be distributed on metal lines except for some exception
2.Long lengths of poly must be avoided because they have large Rs,it is not suitable for
routing Vdd or Vss lines.
3.Since the resistance effects of the transistors are much larger, hence wiring effects due to
voltage dividers are not that profound
Capacitance must be accurately calculated for fast signal lines usually those using high Rs
material. Diffusion areas must be carefully handled because they have larger capacitance
to substrate.
With all the above inputs it is better to model wires as small capacitors which will give
electrical guidelines for communication circuits.
PROBLEMS
1.A particular section of the layout includes a 3 wide metal path which crosses a 2
polysilicon path at right angles. Assuming that the layers are seperated by a 0.5 thick
sio2,find the capacitance between the two.
Capacitance = 0 ins A/D
Let the technology be 5um, =2.5um. Area =
7.5umX5um=37.5um
C=4X8.854X10-12
x37.5/ 0.5 =2656pF The value of C in standard

units is Relative area 6 2 /4 2 =1.5
C =1.5x0.075=0.1125 Cg
2 nd part of the problem
The polysilicon turns across a 4 diffusion layer, find the gate to channel capacitance. Area = 2
x 4= 8 2 Relative area= 8 2 / 4 2 =2
Relative capacitance for 5u=1
Total gate capacitance = 2 Cg
Gate to channel capacitance>metal
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2. The two nmos transistors are cascaded to drive a load capacitance of 16 Cg as shown in
figure ,Calculate the pair delay. What are the ratios of each transistors. f stray and
wiring capacitance is to be considered then each inverter will have an additional
capacitance at the output of 4 Cg .Find the delay.
Figure 40
Lpu=16 Wpu=2 Zpu=8
Lpd=2 Wpd=2 Zpd=1
Ratio of inverter 1 = 8:1
Lpu=2 Wpu=2 Zpu=1
Lpd =2 Wpd =8 Zpd=1/4
Ratio of inverter 2 = 1/1/4=4
Delay without strays
1=Rsx1 Cg
Let the input transition from 1 to 0
Delay 1 = 8RsX Cg=8
Delay 2=4Rs( Cg +16 Cg)=68 Total delay = 76
Delay with strays

Delay 1 = 8RsX( Cg+ 4 Cg) = 40 Delay 2= 4RsX( Cg+ 4 Cg +16 Cg)=84
Total delay = 40+84=124
If = 0.1ns for 5u ie the delays are 7.6ns and 12.4ns
SCALING OF MOS DEVICES
The VLSI technology is in the process of evolution leading to reduction of the feature
size and line widths. This process is called scaling down. The reduction in sizes has generally
lead to better performance of the devices. There are certain limits on scaling and it becomes
important to study the effect of scaling. The effect of scaling must be studied for certain
parameters that effect the performance.
The parameters are as stated below
1.Minimum feature size
2.Number of gates on one chip
3.Power dissipation
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4.Maximum operational frequency

5.Die size
6.Production cost .
These are also called as figures of merit
Many of the mentioned factors can be improved by shrinking the sizes of transistors,
interconnects, separation between devices and also by adjusting the voltage and doping
levels. Therefore it becomes essential for the designers to implement scaling and understand
its effects on the performance
There are three types of scaling models used
1.Constant electric field scaling model
2.Constant voltage scaling model
3.Combined voltage and field model
The three models make use of two scaling factors 1/ and 1/ . 1/ is chosen as the scaling
factor for Vdd, gate oxide thickness D. 1/ is chosen as the scaling factor for all the linear
dimensions like length, width etc. the figure next shows the dimensions and their scaling
factors
The following are some simple derivations for scaling down the device parameters
1.Gate area Ag
Ag= L x W. Since L & W are scaled down by 1/ . Ag is scaled down by 1/ 2
2.Gate capacitance per unit area
Co=o/D, permittivity of sio2 cannot be scaled, hence Co can be scaled 1/1/=
3.Gate capacitance Cg
Cg=CoxA=CoxLxW. Therefore Cg can be scaled by x1/ x1/ = / 2
4.Parasitic capacitance
Cx=Ax/d, where Ax is the area of the depletion around the drain or source. d is the depletion
width .Ax is scaled down by 1/2 and d is scaled by 1/. Hence Cx is scaled by
1/ 2 /1/ = 1/
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5.Carrier density in the channel Qon

Qon=Co.Vgs
Co is scaled by and Vgs is scaled by 1/ ,hence Qo is scaled by x1/ =1.
Channel resistance Ro
Ron = L/Wx1/Qox, is mobility of charge carriers . Ro is scaled by1//1/ x1=1
Gate delay Td
Td is proportional to Ro and Cg
Td is scaled by 1x /2 = /2
Maximum operating frequency fo fo=1/td,therefore it is scaled
by 1/ /2 = 2/ Saturation current
Idss= CoW(Vgs-Vt)/2L, Co scale by and voltages by 1/ ,
Idss is scaled by /2= 1/ Current Density
J=Idss/A hence J is scaled by 1//1/2
= 2 /
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UNIT - 5
SCALING OF MOS CIRCUITS: Scaling model and scaling factors- Limit due to current density.
1. What is scaling?
2. Why scaling?
3. Figure(s) of Merit (FoM) for scaling
4. International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors
(IT
R
S)
5. Scaling models
6. Scaling factors for device parameters
7. Implications of scaling on design
8. Limitations of scaling
9. Observations
10.Summary
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Scaling of MOS Circuits

1.What is Scaling?
Proportional adjustment of the dimensions of an electronic device while
maintaining the electrical properties of the device, results in a device either larger or
smaller than the un-scaled device. Then Which way do we scale the devices for VLSI?
BIG and SLOW or SMALL and
FAST? What do we gain?
2.Why Scaling?...
Scale the devices and wires down, Make the chips fatter functionality, intelligence,
memory and faster, Make more chips per wafer increased yield, Make the end user
Happy by giving more for less and therefore, make MORE MONEY!!
3.FoM for Scaling
Impact of scaling is characterized in terms of several indicators:
o Minimum feature size
o Number of gates on one chip
o Power dissipation
o Maximum operational frequency
o Die size
o Production cost
Many of the FoMs can be improved by shrinking the dimensions of transistors and
interconnections. Shrinking the separation between features transistors and wires
Adjusting doping levels and supply voltages.
3.1 Technology Scaling
Goals of scaling the dimensions by 30%:
Reduce gate delay by 30% (increase operating frequency by 43%)
Double transistor density
Reduce energy per transition by 65% (50% power savings @ 43% increase in frequency)
Die size used to increase by 14% per generation
Technology generation spans 2-3 years
Figure1 to Figure 5 illustrates the technology scaling in terms of minimum feature size,
transistor count, prapogation delay, power dissipation and density and technology
generations.
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Figure-2:Technology Scaling (2)
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Propagation Delay
1000
10
0.1
0.01
80
MPU
DSP
85
90
Year
(a) Power dissipation vs. year.
95
Power Density (mW/mm2 )
Power Dissipation (W)
100
100
10
Scaling Factor
normalized by 4 m design rule
(b) Power density vs. scaling factor.
10
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Technology Generations
Figure-5:Technology generation
4.
International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (ITRS)

Table 1 lists the parameters for various technologies as per ITRS.
Table 1: ITRS
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5.Scaling Models
Full Scaling (Constant Electrical Field)
Ideal model dimensions and voltage scale together by the same scale factor
Fixed Voltage Scaling
Most common model until recently only the dimensions scale, voltages remain constant
General Scaling
Most realistic for todays situation voltages and dimensions scale with different factors
6.Scaling Factors for Device Parameters
Device scaling modeled in terms of generic scaling factors:
1/ and 1/
1/: scaling factor for supply voltage VDD and gate oxide thickness D
1/: linear dimensions both horizontal and vertical dimensions
Why is the scaling factor for gate oxide thickness different from other linear horizontal
and vertical dimensions? Consider the cross section of the device as in Figure 6,various
parameters derived are as follows.
Gate area Ag
Ag = L *W
Where L: Channel length and W: Channel width and both are scaled by 1/
Thus Ag is scaled up by 1/2
Gate capacitance per unit area Co or Cox

Cox = ox/D
Where ox is permittivity of gate oxide(thin-ox)= inso and D is the gate oxide thickness
scaled by 1/
Thus Cox is scaled up by
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1
C g = Co * L *W
Thus Cg is scaled up by * 1/ 2 =/ 2
Parasitic capacitance Cx
Cx is proportional to Ax/d
where d is the depletion width around source or drain and scaled by 1/
Gate capacitance Cg
Ax is the area of the depletion region around source or drain, scaled by (1/ 2 ).
Thus Cx is scaled up by {1/(1/)}* (1/ 2 ) =1/
Carrier density in channel Qon

Qon = Co * Vgs
where Qon is the average charge per unit area in the on state.
Co is scaled by and Vgs is scaled by 1/
Thus Qon is scaled by 1
Channel Resistance Ron
Where = channel carrier mobility and assumed constant
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Thus Ron is scaled by 1.
Gate delay Td
Td is proportional to Ron*Cg
Td is scaled by
* =
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Power dissipation per gate Pg

Pg = Pgs + Pgd
Pg comprises of two components: static component Pgs and dynamic component Pgd:
Where, the static power component is given by:
And the dynamic component by:
Pgs =
2
VDD
R on
Pgd = E g
fo
Since VDD scales by (1/) and Ron scales by 1, Pgs scales by (1/2).
Since Eg scales by (1/2 ) and fo by (2 /), Pgd also scales by (1/2). Therefore, Pg
scales by (1/2).
Power dissipation per unit area Pa
6.1 Scaling Factors Summary

Various device parameters for different scaling models are listed in Table 2 below.
Table 2: Device parameters for scaling models
NOTE: for Constant E: =; for Constant V: =1
Parameters
Description
VDD
L
W
D
Ag
Supply voltage
Channel length
Channel width
Gate oxide thickness
Gate area
Gate capacitance per
unit area
Gate capacitance
Co (or Cox)
Constant E
General
(Combined V
and
Dimension)
1/
1/
Constant V
1/
1/
1/
2
1/
1/
1/
1/
2
1/
1/
1/
1
1/
1/
1/
1/
1/
1
Parsitic capacitance
/
1/
Qon
Carrier density
Ron
Channel resistance
Idss
Saturation current
1/
1/
Cg
Cx
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Parameters
Ac
J
Vg
Eg
Pg
N
Pa
Td
fo
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Description
General
Constant E
(Combined V
and
Dimension)
2
Constant V
Conductor cross
section area
Current density
Logic 1 level
1/
1/
1/
2 /
1/
1/
2
1
Switching energy
Power dissipation per
gate
Gates per unit area
Power dissipation per
unit area
Gate delay
Max. operating
frequency
Power speed product
1 / 2
1 / 3
1/
1/
1/
1
2
2 / 2
2
1
2
2
/ 2
2 /
1/
1/
2
1 / 2
1 / 3
1/
7.Implications of Scaling
Improved Performance
Improved Cost
Interconnect Woes
Power Woes
Productivity Challenges
Physical Limits
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7.1Cost Improvement
Moores Law is still going strong as illustrated in Figure 7.
7.2:Interconnect Woes
Scaled transistors are steadily improving in delay, but scaled wires are holding
constant or getting worse.
SIA made a gloomy forecast in 1997
Delay would reach minimum at 250 180 nm, then get
worse because of wires
But
For short wires, such as those inside a logic gate, the wire RC delay is negligible.
However, the long wires present a considerable challenge.
Scaled transistors are steadily improving in delay, but scaled wires are holding
constant or getting worse.
SIA made a gloomy forecast in 1997
Delay would reach minimum at 250 180 nm, then get
worse because of wires
But
For short wires, such as those inside a logic gate, the wire RC delay is negligible.
However, the long wires present a considerable challenge.
Figure 8 illustrates delay Vs. generation in nm for different materials.
7.3 Reachable Radius
We cant send a signal across a large fast chip in one cycle anymore
But the microarchitect can plan around this as shown in Figure 9.
Just as off-chip memory latencies were tolerated
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Chip size
Scaling of
reachable radius
7.4 Dynamic Power
Intel VP Patrick Gelsinger (ISSCC 2001)
If scaling continues at present pace, by 2005, high speed processors would
have power density of nuclear reactor, by 2010, a rocket nozzle, and by
2015, surface of sun.
Business as usual will not work in the future.
Attention to power is increasing(Figure 10)
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7.5 Static Power
VDD decreases
Save dynamic power
Protect thin gate oxides and short channels
No point in high value because of velocity saturation.
Vt must decrease to maintain device performance
But this causes exponential increase in OFF leakage
A Major future challenge(Figure 11)
Moore(03) Figure-11:Technology generation

7.6 Productivity
Transistor count is increasing faster than designer productivity (gates / week)
Bigger design teams
Up to 500 for a high-end microprocessor
More expensive design cost
Pressure to raise productivity
Rely on synthesis, IP blocks
Need for good engineering managers
7.7 Physical Limits
o Will Moores Law run out of steam?
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Cant build transistors smaller than an atom

o Many reasons have been predicted for end of scaling
Dynamic power
Sub-threshold leakage, tunneling
Short channel effects
Fabrication costs
Electro-migration
Interconnect delay
o Rumors of demise have been exaggerated
8. Limitations of Scaling
Effects, as a result of scaling down- which eventually become severe enough to prevent
further miniaturization.
o Substrate doping
o Depletion width
o Limits of miniaturization
o Limits of interconnect and contact resistance
o Limits due to sub threshold currents
o Limits on logic levels and supply voltage due to noise
o Limits due to current density
8.1 Substrate doping
o Substrate doping
o Built-in(junction) potential VB depends on substrate doping level can be
neglected as long as VB is small compared to VDD.
o As length of a MOS transistor is reduced, the depletion region width scaled
down to prevent source and drain depletion region from meeting.
o the depletion region width d for the junctions is d =
o si relative permittivity of silicon
8.2 Depletion width
N B is increased to reduce d , but this increases threshold voltage Vt
trends for scaling down.
-against
Maximum value of N B (1.3*1019 cm-3 , at higher values, maximum electric field

applied to gate is insufficient and no channel is formed.
N B maintained at satisfactory level in the channel region to reduce the above

problem.
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Emax maximum electric field induced in the junction.

Electric field across the depletion region is increased by
ln
1/
Reach a critical level Ecrit with increasing N B
Where
d=
si 0
(Ecrit )
q NB
d=
si
q NB
Ecrit .d
2
Figure 12 , Figure 13 and Figure 14 shows the relation between substrate concentration
Vs depletion width , Electric field and transit time.
Figure 15 demonstrates the interconnect length Vs. propagation delay and Figure 16
oxide thickness Vs. thermal noise.
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8.3 Limits of miniaturization
minimum size of transistor; process tech and physics of the device
Reduction of geometry; alignment accuracy and resolution
Size of transistor measured in terms of channel length L
L=2d (to prevent push through)

L determined by NB and Vdd
Minimum transit time for an electron to travel from source to drain is
v drift = E
t=
2d
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Vdrift
smaximum
E
carrier drift velocity is approx. Vsat,regardless of supply voltage
8.4 Limits of interconnect and contact resistance
Short distance interconnect- conductor length is scaled by 1/ and resistance is

increased by
For constant field scaling, I is scaled by 1/ so that IR drop remains constant as a

result of scaling.-driving capability/noise margin.
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8.5 Limits due to subthreshold currents
Major concern in scaling devices.
I sub is directly praportinal exp (Vgs Vt ) q/KT
As voltages are scaled down, ratio of Vgs-Vt to KT will reduce-so that threshold
current increases.
Therefore scaling Vgs and Vt together with Vdd .
Maximum electric field across a depletion region is
Emax = 2{Va + Vb }/ d
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8.6 Limits on supply voltage due to noise

Decreased inter-feature spacing and greater switching speed result in noise problems
9. Observations Device scaling

oGate capacitance per micron is nearly independent of process
oBut ON resistance * micron improves with process
oGates get faster with scaling (good)
oDynamic power goes down with scaling (good)
oCurrent density goes up with scaling (bad)
oVelocity saturation makes lateral scaling unsustainable
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UNIT - 6
SUBSYSTEM DESIGN AND LAYOUT: Some architecture issues- other systems considerations. Examples of
structural design, clocked sequential circuits
8 Hours
CMOS SUBSYSTEM DESIGN
CONTENTS
1. System
2. VLSI design flow
3. Structured design approach
4. Architectural issues
5. MOSFET as switch for logic functionality
6. Circuit Families
Restoring Logic: CMOS and its variants - NMOS and Bi CMOS Other circuit
variants
NMOS gates with depletion (zero -threshold) pull up
Bi-CMOS gates
7. Switch logic: Pass Transistor and Transmission gate (TG)
8. Examples of Structured Design
MUX
DMUX
D Latch and Flop
A general logic function block
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1.What is a System?
A system is a set of interacting or interdependent entities forming and integrate whole.
Common characteristics of a system are
o Systems have structure - defined by parts and their composition
o Systems have behavior involves inputs, processing and outputs (of material,
information or energy)
o Systems have interconnectivity the various parts of the system functional as well
as structural relationships between each other
1.1Decomposition of a System: A Processor
o
5.VLSI Design Flow

The electronics industry has achieved a phenomenal growth mainly due to the
rapid advances in integration technologies, large scale systems design-in short due
to VLSI.
Number applications of integrated circuits in high-performance computing,
telecommunications, and consumer electronics has been rising steadily.
Current leading-edge technology trend expected to continue with very important
implications on VLSI and systems design.
The design process, at various levels, is evolutionary in nature.
Y-Chart (first introduced by D. Gajski) as shown in Figure1 illustrates the design
flow for mast logic chips, using design activities.
Three different axes (domains) which resemble the letter Y.
Three major domains, namely
Behavioral domain
Structural domain
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Geometrical domain
Design flow starts from the algorithm that describes the behavior
of target chip.
Figure 1. Typical VLSI design flow in three domains(Y-chart)

VLSI design flow, taking in to account the various representations, or abstractions of
design are Behavioural,logic,circuit and mask layout.
Verification of design plays very important role in every step during process.
Two approaches for design flow as shown in Figure 2 are
Top-down
Bottom-up
Top-down design flow- excellent design process control
In reality, both top-down and bottom-up approaches have to be combined.
Figure 3 explains the typical full custom design flow.
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Figure 2. Typical VLSI design flow
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Figure 3. Typical ASIC/Custom design flow
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3 Structured Design Approach
Design methodologies and structured approaches developed with complex

hardware and software.
Regardless of the actual size of the project, basic principles of structured designimprove the prospects of success.
Classical techniques for reducing the complexity of IC design are:
Hierarchy
Regularity
Modularity
Locality
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Figure 4-Structured Design Approach Hierarchy
Figure5-.Structured Design Approach Regularity
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Design of array structures consisting of identical cells.-such as parallel

multiplication array.
Exist at all levels of abstraction:
transistor level-uniformly sized.
logic level- identical gate structures
2:1 MUX, D-F/F- inverters and tri state buffers
Library-well defined and well-characterized basic building block.
Modularity: enables parallelization and allows plug-and-play
Locality: Internals of each module unimportant to exterior modules and internal
details remain at local level.
Figure 4 and Figure 5 illustrates these design approaches with an example.
4 Architectural issues
Design time increases exponentially with increased complexity

Define the requirements
Partition the overall architecture into subsystems.
Consider the communication paths
Draw the floor plan
Aim for regularity and modularity
convert each cell into layout
Carry out DRC check and simulate the performance
5. MOSFET as a Switch
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We can view MOS transistors as electrically controlled switches

Voltage at gate controls path from source to drain
5.1 Parallel connection of Switches..
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5.2 Series connection of Switches..
5.3 Series and parallel connection of Switches..
g1
g2
0
b
OFF
a
g2
ON
a
g1
a
g2
b
(c)
a
g1
OFF
ON
a
1
OFF
OFF
1
b
OFF
ON
ON
a
0
b
OFF
a
1
a
g2
OFF
a
0
1
b
1
b
(b)
0
b
g1
1
b
(a)
ON
a
1
1
b
a
0
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b
(d)
b
ON
ON
ON
b
OFF
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6. Circuit Families : Restoring logic

CMOS INVERTER
DD
Y
A
GND
V DD
A
OFF
A= 1
0
1
Y= 0
ON
0
GND
V DD
A
0
ON
A= 0
Y= 1
OFF
GND
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6.1 NAND gate Design..
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ON
ON
0
Y=1
A=0
1A
1
B
OFF
B=0
OFF
OFF
ON
Y=1
A=0
OFF
B=1
ON
ON
0
A=1
B=0
OFF
Y=1
ON
OFF
NAND gate Design..
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Y
A
B
C
6.2 NOR gate Design..
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A
B
C
D
Y
CMOS INVERTER
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6.3 CMOS Properties
Pull-up OFF
Pull-up ON
Pull-down OFF
Z (float)
Pull-down ON
X (crowbar)
pMOS
pull-up
network
inputs
output
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nMOS
pull-down
network
Complementary CMOS gates always produce 0 or 1

Ex: NAND gate
Series nMOS: Y=0 when both inputs are 1
Thus Y=1 when either input is 0
Requires parallel pMOS
Rule of Conduction Complements
Pull-up network is complement of pull-down

Parallel -> series, series -> parallel
Output signal strength is independent of input.-level restoring
Restoring logic. Ouput signal strength is either Voh (output high) or Vol. (output
low).
Ratio less logic :output signal strength is independent of pMOS device size to
nMOS size ratio.
significant current only during the transition from one state to another and - hence
power is conserved..
Rise and fall transition times are of the same order,
Very high levels of integration,
High performance.
6.4 Complex gates..
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6.5 Complex gates AOI..

Y = A B+C
D
(A N D -A N D -O R -IN V E R T , A O I2 2 )
(a)
(b)
B C
(c)
(d)
D
B
C
D
= (A+ B + C) D
AY
B
(f)
(e)
A
B
C
D
Y
D
unit inverter
AOI21
Y=A
Y = A B+C
Y = A B+C D
Y = A ( B + C) + D E
A
B
C
A
B
C
D
D
E
A
B
C
A
A
2
1
AOI22
4 B
C
4
C
Y
1
Complex AOI
4 B
4 D
2 C
2 D
gA = 3/3
gA = 6/3
gA = 6/3
gA = 5/3
p = 3/3
gB = 6/3
gB = 6/3
gB = 8/3
gC = 5/3
gC = 6/3
gC = 8/3
p = 7/3
gD = 6/3
gD = 8/3
p = 12/3
gE = 8/3
Y
2
p = 16/3
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6.7 Restoring logic CMOS Variants:
nMOS Inverter-stick diagram
Basic inverter circuit: load replaced by depletion mode transistor

With no current drawn from output, the current Ids for both transistor must
be same.
For the depletion mode transistor, gate is connected to the source so it is
always on and only the characteristic curve Vgs=0 is relevant.
Depletion mode is called pull-up and the enhancement mode device pulldown.
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Obtain the transfer characteristics.

As Vin exceeds the p.d. threshold voltage current begins to flow, Vout thus
decreases and further increase will cause p.d transistor to come out of
saturation and become resistive.
p.u transistor is initially resistive as the p.d is turned on.
Point at which Vout = Vin is denoted as Vinv
Can be shifted by variation of the ratio of pull-up to pull-down resistances
Zp.u / Zp.d
Z- ratio of channel length to width for each transistor
For 8:1 nMOS Inverter
Z p.u. = L p.u. / W p.u =8
R p.u = Z p.u. * Rs =80K
similarly
R p.d = Z p.d * Rs =10K
Power dissipation(on) Pd = V2 /Rp.u + Rp.d =0.28mV
Input capacitance = 1 Cg
For 4:1 nMOS Inverter
Z p.u. = L p.u. / W p.u =4
R p.u = Z p.u. * Rs =40K
similarly
R p.d = Z p.d * Rs =5K
Power dissipation(on) Pd = V2 /Rp.u + Rp.d =0.56mV
Input capacitance = 2Cg
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6.8Restoring logic CMOS Variants: BiCMOS Inverter-stick diagram
A known deficiency of MOS technology is its limited load driving capabilities

(due to limited current sourcing and sinking abilities of pMOS and nMOS
transistors. )
Output logic levels good-close to rail voltages
High input impedance
Low output impedance
High drive capability but occupies a relatively small area.
High noise margin
Bipolar transistors have
higher gain
better noise characteristics
better high frequency characteristics
BiCMOS gates can be an efficient way of speeding up VLSI circuits
CMOS fabrication process can be extended for BiCMOS
Example Applications
CMOS- Logic
BiCMOS- I/O and driver circuits
ECL- critical high speed parts of the system
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6.9 Circuit Families : Restoring logic CMOS NAND gate
6.10 Restoring logic CMOS Variants: nMOS NAND gate
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6.11 Restoring logic CMOS Variants: BiCMOS NAND gate
For nMOS Nand-gate, the ratio between pull-up and sum of all pull-downs must
be 4:1.
nMOS Nand-gate area requirements are considerably greater than corresponding
nMOS inverter
nMOS Nand-gate delay is equal to number of input times inverter delay.
Hence nMOS Nand-gates are used very rarely
CMOS Nand-gate has no such restrictions
BiCMOS gate is more complex and has larger fan-out.
7.Circuit Families :Switch logic: Pass Transistor
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7.1 Switch logic: Pass Transistor

g=0
g
s
In p u t g = 1 O u tp u t
0
s tro n g 0
g=1
s
g=0
g
s
s
g=1
d
g=1
In p u t
d
d e g ra d e d 1
g=0
O u tp u t
d e g ra d e d 0
49
g=0
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7.1 Switch logic: Pass Transistor-nMOS in series
Input
g
a
b
gb
a
g = 0, gb = 1
a
b
g = 1, gb = 0
0
strong 0
g = 1, gb = 0
a
b
g = 1, gb = 0
strong 1
1
g
b
Output
g
b
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gb
gb
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EN
0 Design-Tristate
0
8 Structured
Tristate buffer produces Z when not enabled
0
1
1
0
E N
Tristate buffer produces Z when not enabled

EN
E N
Y
A
E N
8.1 Structured Design-Nonrestoring Tristate
EN
A
Y
EN
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8.3 Structured Design-Tristate Inverter
A
EN
Y
EN
Tristate inverter produces restored output

Violates conduction complement rule
Because we want a Z output
A
EN
Y
EN
EN = 0
Y = 'Z'
EN = 1
Y=A
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8.4 Structured Design-Multiplexers
2:1 multiplexer chooses between two inputs
D1
D0
S
1
D1
1
D0
X
Y
1
S
D0
0
Y
D1
8. 5 Structured Design-Mux Design.. Gate-Level
Y = SD1 + SD0 (too many transistors)
How many transistors are needed?

How many transistors are needed? 20
D1
S
D0
Y
54
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8.6 Structured Design-Mux Design-Transmission Gate

Nonrestoring mux uses two transmission gates
Only 4 transistors
S
D0
S
D1
S
Inverting Mux
Inverting multiplexer
Use compound AOI22
Or pair of tristate inverters
Noninverting multiplexer adds an inverter
D0
D0
D1
D1
S
Y
Y
S
D0 0
Y
D1 1
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8.7 Design-4:1 Multiplexer

4:1 mux chooses one of 4 inputs using two selects
Two levels of 2:1 muxes
Or four tristates
S1S0 S1S0 S1S0 S1S0
D0
S0
S1
D0 0
D1
D1 1
D2 0
0
1
Y
D2
D3 1
D3
9 Structured Design-D Latch

When CLK = 1, latch is transparent
D flows through to Q like a buffer
When CLK = 0, the latch is opaque
Q holds its old value independent of D
a.k.a. transparent latch or level-sensitive latch
CLK
C LK
Latch
D -a latch is leQvel sensitive
a register is edge-triggered
A flip-flop is a bi-stable element
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9.1 D Latch Design

Multiplexer chooses D or old Q
CLK
D
CLK
Q
Q
0
CLK CLK
CLK
9.2 D Latch Operation
Q
D
Q
D
Q
CLK = 1
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CLK = 0
UNIT - 7
SUBSYSTEM DESIGN PROCESSES: Some general considerations, an Illustration of design process,
Observations
4 Hours
UNIT - 8
ILLUSTRATION OF THE DESIGN PROCESS: Observation on the design process, Regularity Design of an
ALU subsystem. Design of 4-bit adder, implementing ALU functions.
4 Hours
Objectives: At the end of this unit we will be able to understand
Design consideration, problem and solution
Design processes
Basic digital processor structure
Datapath
Bus Architecture
Design 4 bit shifter
Design of ALU subsystem
4 bit Adder
General Considerations
Lower unit cost
Higher reliability
Lower power dissipation, lower weight and lower volume
Better performance
Enhanced repeatability
Possibility of reduced design/development periods
Some Problems
1. How to design complex systems in a reasonable time & with reasonable effort.
2. The nature of architectures best suited to take full advantage of VLSI and the technology
3. The testability of large/complex systems once implemented on silicon
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Some Solution
Problem 1 & 3 are greatly reduced if two aspects of standard practices are
accepted.
1. a) Top-down design approach with adequate CAD tools to do the job
b) Partitioning the system sensibly
c) Aiming for simple interconnections
d) High regularity within subsystem
e) Generate and then verify each section of the design
2. Devote significant portion of total chip area to test and diagnostic facility
3. Select architectures that allow design objectives and high regularity in realization
Illustration of design processes
1. Structured design begins with the concept of hierarchy
2. It is possible to divide any complex function into less complex subfunctions that
is up to leaf cells
3. Process is known as top-down design
4. As a systems complexity increases, its organization changes as different factors
become relevant to its creation
5. Coupling can be used as a measure of how much submodels interact
6. It is crucial that components interacting with high frequency be physically
proximate, since one may pay severe penalties for long, h igh-bandwidth
interconnects
7. Concurrency should be exploited it is desirable that all gates on the chip do
useful work most of the time
8. Because technology changes so fast, the adaptation to a new process must occur
in a short time.
Hence representing a design several approaches are possible. They are:
Conventional circuit symbols
Logic symbols
Stick diagram
Any mixture of logic symbols and stick diagram that is convenient at a stage
Mask layouts
Architectural block diagrams and floor plans
General arrangements of a 4 bit arithmetic processor
The basic architecture of digital processor structure is as shown below in figure
6.1. Here the design of datapath is only considered.
Figure 6.1: Basic digital processor structure

Datapath is as shown below in figure 6.2. It is seen that the structure comprises of
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a unit which processes data applied at one port and presents its output at a second port.
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Alternatively, the two data ports may be combined as a single bidirectional port if storage
facilities exist in the datapath. Control over the functions to be performed is effected by
control signals as shown.
Figure 6.2: Communication strategy for the datapath

Datapath can be decomposed into blocks showing the main subunits as in
figure 3. In doing so it is useful to anticipate a possible floor plan to show the planned
relative decomposition of the subunits on the chip and hence on the mask layouts.
Figure 6.3: Subunits and basic interconnection for datapath

Nature of the bus architecture linking the subunits is discussed below. Some of
the possibilities are:
One bus architecture:
Figure 6.4: One bus architecture

Sequence:
1. 1st operand from registers to ALU. Operand is stored there.
2. 2nd operand from register to ALU and added.
3. Result is passed through shifter and stored in the register
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Two bus architecture:
Figure 6.5: Two bus architecture

Sequence:
1. Two operands (A & B) are sent from register(s) to ALU & are operated upon,
result S in ALU.
2. Result is passed through the shifter & stored in registers.
Three bus architecture:
Figure 6.6: Three bus architecture

Sequence:
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Two operands (A & B) are sent from registers, operated upon, and shifted result
(S) returned to another register, all in same clock period.
In pursuing this design exercise, it was decided to implement the structure with a
2 bus architecture. A tentative floor plan of the proposed design which includes some
form of interface to the parent system data bus is shown in figure 6.7.
Figure 6.7: Tentative floor plan for 4 bit datapath

The proposed processor will be seen to comprise a register array in which 4-bit
numbers can be stored, either from an I/O port or from the output of the ALU via a
shifter. Numbers from the register array can be fed in pairs to the ALU to be added (or
subtracted) and the result can be shifted or not. The data connections between the I/O
port, ALU, and shifter must be in the form of 4-bit buses. Also, each of the blocks must
be suitably connected to control lines so that its function may be defined for any of a
range of possible operations.
During the design process, and in particular when defining the interconnection
strategy and designing the stick diagrams, care must be taken in allocating the layers to
the various data or control paths. Points to be noted:
Metal can cross poly or diffusion
Poly crossing diffusion form a transistor
Whenever lines touch on the same level an interconnection is formed
Simple contacts can be used to join diffusion or poly to metal.
Buried contacts or a butting contacts can be used to join diffusion and poly
Some processes use 2nd metal
1st and 2nd metal layers may be joined using a via
Each
layer has
particular
properties
which
be taken
into account
For CMOS
layouts,
p-andelectrical
n-diffusion
wires must
notmust
directly
join each
other
Nor may they cross either a p-well or an n-well boundary
Design of a 4-bit shifter
Any general purpose n-bit shifter should be able to shift incoming data by up to
n 1 place in a right-shift or left-shift direction. Further specifying that all shifts should
be on an end-around basis, so that any bit shifted out at one end of a data word will be
shifted in at the other end of the word, then the problem of right shift or left shift is
greatly eased. It can be analyzed that for a 4-bit word, that a 1-bit shift right is equivalent
to a 3-bit shift left and a 2-bit shift right is equivalent to a 2-bit left etc. Hence, the design
of either shift right or left can be done. Here the design is of shift right by 0, 1, 2, or 3
places. The shifter must have:
input from a four line parallel data bus
four output lines for the shifted data
means of transferring input data to output lines with any shift from 0 to 3 bits
Consider a direct MOS switch implementation of a 4 X 4 crossbar switches shown in
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figure 6.8. The arrangement is general and may be expanded to accommodate n-bit
inputs/outputs. In this arrangement any input can be connected to any or all the outputs.
Furthermore, 16 control signals (sw00 sw15), one for each transistor switch, must be
provided to drive the crossbar switch, and such complexity is highly undesirable.
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Figure 6.8: 4 X 4 crossbar switch

An adaptation of this arrangement recognizes the fact that we couple the switch
gates together in groups of four and also form four separate groups corresponding to
shifts of zero, one, two and three bits. The resulting arrangement is known as a barrel
shifter and a 4 X 4 barrel shifter circuit diagram is as shown in the figure 6.9.
figure 6.9: 4 X 4 barrel shifter

The interbus switches have their gate inputs connected in a staircase fashion in
groups of four and there are now four shift control inputs which must be mutually
exclusive in the active state. CMOS transmission gates may be used in place of the
simple pass transistor switches if appropriate. Barrel shifter connects the input lines
representing a word to a group of output lines with the required shift determined by its
control inputs (sh0, sh1, sh2, sh3). Control inputs also determine the direction of the shift.
If input word has n bits and shifts from 0 to n-1 bit positions are to be implemented.
To summaries the design steps
Set out the specifications
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Partition the architecture into subsystems

Set a tentative floor plan
Determine the interconnects
Choose layers for the bus & control lines
Conceive a regular architecture
Develop stick diagram
Produce mask layouts for standard cell
Cascade & replicate standard cells as required to complete the design
Design of an ALU subsystem
Having designed the shifter, we shall design another subsystem of the 4-bit data
path. An appropriate choice is ALU as shown in the figure 6.10 below.
Figure 6.10: 4-bit data path for processor

The heart of the ALU is a 4-bit adder circuit. A 4-bit adder must take sum of two
4-bit numbers, and there is an assumption that all 4-bit quantities are presented in parallel
form and that the shifter circuit is designed to accept and shift a 4-bit parallel sum from
the ALU. The sum is to be stored in parallel at the output of the adder from where it is
fed through the shifter and back to the register array. Therefore, a single 4-bit data bus is
needed from the adder to the shifter and another 4-bit bus is required from the shifted
output back to the register array. Hence, for an adder two 4-bit parallel numbers are fed
on two 4-bit buses. The clock signal is also required to the adder, during which the inputs
are given and sum is generated. The shifter is unclocked but must be connected to four
shift control lines.
Design of a 4-bit adder:
The truth table of binary adder is as shown in table 6.1
As seen from the table any column k there will be three inputs namely Ak , Bk as
present input number and Ck-1 as the previous carry. It can also be seen that there are two
outputs sum Sk and carry Ck.
From the table one form of the equation is:
Sum
Sk = HkCk-l + HkCk-1
New carry
Ck = AkBk + Hkck-1
Where
Half sum
Hk = AkBk + Ak Bk
Adder element requirements
Table 6.1 reveals that the adder requirement may be stated as:
If
Ak = Bk
then Sk = Ck-1
Else Sk = Ck-l
And for the carry Ck
If
Ak = Bk
then Ck = Ak = Bk
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Else Ck = Ck-l
Thus the standard adder element for 1-bit is as shown in the figure 6.11.
Figure 6.11: Adder element

Implementing ALU functions with an adder:
An ALU must be able to add and subtract two binary numbers, perform logical
operations such as And, Or and Equality (Ex-or) functions. Subtraction can be performed
by taking 2s complement of the negative number and perform the further addition. It is
desirable to keep the architecture as simple as possible, and also see that the adder
performs the logical operations also. Hence let us examine the possibility.
The adder equations are:
Sum
Sk = HkCk-l + HkCk-1
New carry
Ck = AkBk + Hk Ck-1
Where
Half sum
Hk = AkBk + Ak Bk
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Let us consider the sum output, if the previous carry is at logical 0, then
Sk = Hk. 1 + Hk. 0
Sk = Hk = AkBk + Ak Bk An Ex-or operation
Now, if Ck-1 is logically 1, then
Sk = Hk. 0 + Hk. 1
Sk = Hk An Ex-Nor operation
Next, consider the carry output of each element, first Ck-1 is held at logical 0, then
Ck = AkBk + Hk . 0
Ck = AkBk - An And operation
Now if Ck-1 is at logical 1, then
Ck = AkBk + Hk . 1
On solving
Ck = Ak + Bk - An Or operation
The adder element implementing both the arithmetic and logical functions can be
implemented as shown in the figure 6.12.
Figure 6.12: 1-bit adder element

The above can be cascaded to form 4-bit ALU.
A further consideration of adders
Generation:
This principle of generation allows the system to take advantage of the
occurrences ak=bk. In both cases (ak=1 or ak=0) the carry bit will be known.
Propagation:
If we are able to localize a chain of bits ak ak+1...ak+p and bk bk+1...bk+p for which ak
not equal to bk for k in [k,k+p], then the output carry bit of this chain will be equal to the
input carry bit of the chain.
These remarks constitute the principle of generation and propagation used to
speed the addition of two numbers.
All adders which use this principle calculate in a first stage.
pk = ak XOR bk
gk = ak bk
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Manchester carry chain

This implementation can be very performant (20 transistors) depending on the
way the XOR function is built. The carry propagation of the carry is controlled by the
output of the XOR gate. The generation of the carry is directly made by the function at
the bottom. When both input signals are 1, then the inverse output carry is 0.
Figure-6.12: An adder with propagation signal controlling the pass-gate

In the schematic of Figure 6.12, the carry passes through a complete transmission
gate. If the carry path is precharged to VDD, the transmission gate is then reduced to a
simple NMOS transistor. In the same way the PMOS transistors of the carry generation is
removed. One gets a Manchester cell.
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Figure-6.13: The Manchester cell

The Manchester cell is very fast, but a large set of such cascaded cells would be
slow. This is due to the distributed RC effect and the body effect making the propagation
time grow with the square of the number of cells. Practically, an inverter is added every
four cells, like in Figure 6.14.
Figure-6.14: The Manchester carry cell

Adder Enhancement techniques
The operands of addition are the addend and the augend. The addend is added to
the augend to form the sum. In most computers, the augmented operand (the augend) is
replaced by the sum, whereas the addend is unchanged. High speed adders are not only
for addition but also for subtraction, multiplication and division. The speed of a digital
processor depends heavily on the speed of adders. The adders add vectors of bits and the
principal problem is to speed- up the carry signal. A traditional and non optimized four
bit adder can be made by the use of the generic one-bit adder cell connected one to the
other. It is the ripple carry adder. In this case, the sum resulting at each stage need to wait
for the incoming carry signal to perform the sum operation. The carry propagation can be
speed-up in two ways. The first and most obvious way is to use a faster logic circuit
technology. The second way is to generate carries by means of forecasting logic that does
not rely on the carry signal being rippled from stage to stage of the adder.
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The Carry-Skip Adder

Depending on the position at which a carry signal has been generated, the
propagation time can be variable. In the best case, when there is no carry generation, the
addition time will only take into account the time to propagate the carry signal. Figure
6.15 is an example illustrating a carry signal generated twice, with the input carry being
equal to 0. In this case three simultaneous carry propagations occur. The longest is the
second, which takes 7 cell delays (it starts at the 4th position and ends at the 11th
position). So the addition time of these two numbers with this 16-bits Ripple Carry Adder
is 7.k + k, where k is the delay cell and k is the time needed to compute the 11th sum bit
using the 11th carry-in.
With a Ripple Carry Adder, if the input bits Ai and Bi are different for all position
i, then the carry signal is propagated at all positions (thus never generated), and the
addition is completed when the carry signal has propagated through the whole adder. In
this case, the Ripple Carry Adder is as slow as it is large. Actually, Ripple Carry Adders
are fast only for some configurations of the input words, where carry signals are
generated at some positions.
Carry Skip Adders take advantage both of the generation or the propagation of the
carry signal. They are divided into blocks, where a special circuit detects quickly if all the
bits to be added are different (Pi = 1 in all the block). The signal produced by this circuit
will be called block propagation signal. If the carry is propagated at all positions in the
block, then the carry signal entering into the block can directly bypass it and so be
transmitted through a multiplexer to the next block. As soon as the carry signal is
transmitted to a block, it starts to propagate through the block, as if it had been generated
at the beginning of the block. Figure 6.16 shows the structure of a 24-bits Carry Skip
Adder, divided into 4 blocks.
Figure 6.15: Example of Carry skip adder
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Figure-6.16: Block diagram of a carry skip adder
Baugh-Wooley Multiplier
This technique has been developed in order to design regular multipliers, suited
for 2s-complement numbers.
Let us consider 2 numbers A and B:
The product A.B is given by the following equation:
We see that subtraction cells must be used. In order to use only adder cells, the
negative terms may be rewritten as:
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By this way, A.B becomes:
The final equation is:
because:
A and B are n-bits operands, so their product is a 2n-bits number. Consequently,

the most significant weight is 2n-1, and the first term -22n-1 is taken into account by
adding a 1 in the most significant cell of the multiplier. The implementation is shown in
figure 6.25.
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Figure-6.25: A 4-bit Baugh-Wooley Multiplier

Booth Algorithm
This algorithm is a powerful direct algorithm for signed-number multiplication. It
generates a 2n-bit product and treats both positive and negative numbers uniformly. The
idea is to reduce the number of additions to perform. Booth algorithm allows in the best
case n/2 additions whereas modified Booth algorithm allows always n/2 additions.
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Let us consider a string of k consecutive 1s in a multiplier:

..., i+k, i+k-1, i+k-2 , ..., i, i-1, ...
..., 0 , 1 , 1
, ..., 1, 0, ...
where there is k consecutive 1s.
By using the following property of binary strings:
2i+k-2i=2i+k-1+2i+k-2+...+2i+1+2i
the k consecutive 1s can be replaced by the following string
..., i+k+1, i+k, i+k-1, i+k-2, ..., i+1, i , i-1 , ...
..., 0
, 1 , 0 , 0 , ..., 0 , -1 , 0 , ...
k-1 consecutive 0s Addition Subtraction
In fact, the modified Booth algorithm converts a signed number from the standard
2s-complement radix into a number system where the digits are in the set {-1,0,1}. In
this number system, any number may be written in several forms, so the system is called
redundant.
The coding table for the modified Booth algorithm is given in Table 1. The
algorithm scans strings composed of three digits. Depending on the value of the string, a
certain operation will be performed.
A possible implementation of the Booth encoder is given on Figure 6.26.
Table-1: Modified Booth coding table
2
Yi+1
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
BIT
20 2-1
Yi Yi-1
0
0
1
1
0
0
1
1
0
1
0
1
0
1
0
1
OPERATION
M is
multiplied
by
add zero (no string)

add multipleic (end of string)
add multiplic. (a string)
add twice the mul. (end of string)
sub. twice the m. (beg. of string)
sub. the m. (-2X and +X)
sub . the m. (beg. of string)
sub. zero (center of string)
+0
+X
+X
+2X
-2X
-X
-X
-0
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Figure-6.26: Booth encoder cell

To summarize the operation:
Grouping multiplier bits into pairs
Orthogonal idea to the Booth recoding
Reduces the num of partial products to half
If Booth recoding not used
have to be able to multiply by 3 (hard:
shift+add)
Applying
the
grouping
Modified Booth Recoding (Encoding)
We
already
got
rid
no multiplication by 3
Just negate, shift once or twice
idea
of
to
sequences
Booth
of
1s
Wallace Trees
For this purpose, Wallace trees were introduced. The addition time grows like the
logarithm of the bit number. The simplest Wallace tree is the adder cell. More generally,
an n-inputs Wallace tree is an n-input operator and log2(n) outputs, such that the value of
the output word is equal to the number of 1 in the input word. The input bits and the
least significant bit of the output have the same weight (Figure 6.27). An important
property of Wallace trees is that they may be constructed using adder cells. Furthermore,
the number of adder cells needed grows like the logarithm log2(n) of the number n of
input bits. Consequently, Wallace trees are useful whenever a large number of operands
are to add, like in multipliers. In a Braun or Baugh-Wooley multiplier with a Ripple
Carry Adder, the completion time of the multiplication is proportional to twice the
number n of bits. If the collection of the partial products is made through Wallace trees,
the time for getting the result in a carry save notation should be proportional to log2(n).
Figure-6.27: Wallace cells made of adders
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Figure 6.28 represents a 7-inputs adder: for each weight, Wallace trees are used until
there remain only two bits of each weight, as to add them using a classical 2-inputs adder.
When taking into account the regularity of the interconnections, Wallace trees are the
most irregular.
Figure-6.28: A 7-inputs Wallace tree

To summarize the operation:
The Wallace tree has three steps:
Multiply (that is - AND) each bit of one of the arguments, by each bit of the other,
yielding n2 results.
Reduce the number of partial products to two by layers of full and half adders.
Group the wires in two numbers, and add them with a conventional adder.
The second phase works as follows.
Take any three wires with the same weights and input them into a full adder.
The result will be an output wire of the same weight and an output wire with a
higher weight for each three input wires.
If there are two wires of the same weight left, input them into a half adder.
If there is just one wire left, connect it to the next layer.
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Memory
Objectives: At the end of this unit we will be able to understand
System timing consideration
Storage / Memory Elements
dynamic shift register
1T and 3T dynamic memory
4T dynamic and 6T static CMOS memory
Array of memory cells
System timing considerations:
Two phase non-overlapping clock
1 leads 2
Bits to be stored are written to register and subsystems on 1
Bits or data written are assumed to be settled before 2
2 signal used to refresh data
Delays assumed to be less than the intervals between the leading edge of 1 & 2
Bits or data may be read on the next 1
There must be atleast one clocked storage element in series with every closed
loop signal path
Storage / Memory Elements:
The elements that we will be studying are:
Dynamic shift register
3T dynamic RAM cell
1T dynamic memory cell
Pseudo static RAM / register cell

4T dynamic & 6T static memory cell
JK FF circuit
D FF circuit
Dynamic shift register:

Circuit diagram: Refer to unit 4(ch 6.5.4)
Power dissipation
static dissipation is very small
dynamic power is significant
dissipation can be reduced by alternate geometry
Volatility
data storage time is limited to 1msec or less
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3T dynamic RAM cell:

Circuit diagram
VDD
Bus
T3
T1
T2
GND
WR
RD
Figure 7.1: 3T Dynamic RAM Cell

Working
RD = low, bit read from bus through T1, WR = high, logic level on bus
sent to Cg of T2, WR = low again
Bit level is stored in Cg of T2, RD=WR=low
Stored bit is read by RD = high, bus will be pulled to ground if a 1 was
stored else 0 if T2 non-conducting, bus will remain high.
Dissipation
Static dissipation is nil
Depends on bus pull-up & on duration of RD signal & switching
frequency
Volatility
Cell is dynamic, data will be there as long as charge remains on Cg of T2
1T dynamic memory cell:
Circuit diagram
Figure 7.2: 1T Dynamic RAM Cell

Working
Row select (RS) = high, during write from R/W line Cm is charged
data is read from Cm by detecting the charge on Cm with RS = high
cell arrangement is bit complex.
solution: extend the diffusion area comprising source of pass transistor,
but Cd<<< Cgchannel
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another solution : create significant capacitor using poly plate over

diffusion area.
Cm is formed as a 3-plate structure
with all this careful design is necessary to achieve consistent readability
Dissipation
no static power, but there must be an allowance for switching energy
during read/write
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dynamic RAM need to be refreshed periodically and hence not

convenient
static RAM needs to be designed to hold data indefinitely
One way is connect 2 inverter stages with a feedback.
say 2 to refresh the data every clock cycle
bit is written on activating the WR line which occurs with 1 of the clock
bit on Cg of inverter 1 will produce complemented output at inverter 1 and
true at output of inverter 2
at every 2 , stored bit is refreshed through the gated feedback path
stored bit is held till 2 of clock occurs at time less than the decay time of
stored bit
to read RD along with 1 is activated
Note:
WR and RD must be mutually exclusive

2 is used for refreshing, hence no data to be read, if so charge sharing
effect, leading to destruction of stored bit
cells must be stackable, both side-by-side & top to bottom
allow for other bus lines to run through the cell
4T dynamic & 6T static memory cell:

Circuit diagram
bit
bit_b
word
Figure 7.4: Dynamic and static memory cells
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Page 224
uses 2 buses per bit to store bit and bit

both buses are precharged to logic 1 before read or write operation.
write operation
read operation
Write operation
both bit & bit buses are precharged to VDD with clock 1 via transistor
T5 & T6
column select line is activated along with 2
either bit or bit line is discharged along the I/O line when carrying a
logic 0
row & column select signals are activated at the same time => bit line
states are written in via T3 & T4, stored by T1 & T2 as charge
Read operation
bit and bit lines are again precharged to VDD via T5 & T6 during 1
if 1 has been stored, T2 ON & T1 OFF
bit line will be discharged to VSS via T2
each cell of RAM array be of minimum size & hence will be the
transistors
implies incapable of sinking large charges quickly
RAM arrays usually employ some form of sense amplifier
T1, T2, T3 & T4 form as flip-flop circuit
if sense line to be inactive, state of the bit line reflects the charge present
on gate capacitance of T1 & T3
current flowing from VDD through an on transistor helps to maintain the
state of bit lines.
Page 225

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VLSI Circuit and Design

VLSI CIRCUITS AND DESIGN

No. of Lecture Hrs./

Total No. of Lecture

Department of EEE, SJBIT

VLSI Circuit and Design

Department of EEE, SJBIT

VLSI Circuit and Design

Scaling model and scaling factors.

Unit 6: Subsystem Design and Layout

Some architecture issues- other systems considerations.

UNIT 7: SUBSYSTEM DESIGN PROCESSES:

VLSI Circuit and Design

Some general considerations.

UNIT 8 Illustration of the Design Process

Observation on the design process.

Department of EEE, SJBIT

VLSI Circuit and Design

Figure 1. Moores law

The graph in figure2 compares the various technologies available in ICs.

VLSI Circuit and Design

Figure 2.Comparison of available technologies

Department of EEE, SJBIT

VLSI Circuit and Design

We have two types of FETs. They are Enhancement mode and

Department of EEE, SJBIT

VLSI Circuit and Design

Department of EEE, SJBIT

VLSI Circuit and Design

Figure 8(a)(b)(c) Enhancement mode transistor with different Vds values

VLSI Circuit and Design

Department of EEE, SJBIT

VLSI Circuit and Design

Figure 9 NMOS Fabrication process steps

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Figure 10 CMOS Fabrication (P-WELL) process steps

VLSI Circuit and Design

to implement the pMOS transistor, but to implement the nMOS transistor we

Figure 11 CMOS inverter (P-WELL)

VLSI Circuit and Design

Department of EEE, SJBIT

VLSI Circuit and Design

Department of EEE, SJBIT

VLSI Circuit and Design

Department of EEE, SJBIT

VLSI Circuit and Design

Department of EEE, SJBIT

VLSI Circuit and Design

Figure 13 CMOS twin-tub inverter

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Bi-CMOS technology: - (Bipolar CMOS)

Department of EEE, SJBIT

VLSI Circuit and Design

Figure 14 Cross section of BiCMOS process

Fig.15. Layout view of BiCMOS process

Department of EEE, SJBIT

VLSI Circuit and Design

Fig.16. cost versus delay graph