Abstract:
Power semiconductor device (30) integrated on a semiconductor substrate (100) of a first type of conductivity comprising a plurality of elemental units, each elemental unit comprising a body region (40) of a second type of conductivity realised on a semiconductor layer (20) of the first type of conductivity formed on the semiconductor substrate (100), and a column region (50) of the first type of conductivity realised in said semiconductor layer (20) below the body region (40), wherein the semiconductor layer (20) comprises a plurality of semiconductor layers (21, 22, 23, 24), overlying each other, the resistivity of each layer being different from that of the other layers, and wherein said column region (50) comprises a plurality of doped sub-regions (51, 52, 53, 54), each realised in one of said semiconductor layers (21, 22, 23, 24), wherein the amount of charge of each doped sub-regions (51, 52, 53, 54) balances the amount of charge of the semiconductor layer (21, 22, 23, 24).
Abstract:
By making an ovonic threshold switch (33) using a carbon interfacial layer (36,40) having a thickness of less than or equal to ten percent of the thickness of the associated electrode (34,42), cycle endurance may be improved. A glue layer may be used between the carbon layer and the electrode of the ovonic threshold switch. The glue layer may be effective to improve adherence between carbon and electrode material.
Abstract:
A phase change memory includes a float buffer which stores the result of a comparison between the current state of data in the phase change memory cells and an intended next state of each of those cells. The float buffer indicates which cells need to be programmed in order to achieve the new states and which cells happen to already be in the new states. Then, after programming of the cells, the float buffer indicates which cells still need to be programmed. Thus, a control stage uses the information in the float buffer to program only those cells whose states need to be changed.
Abstract:
An integrated programmable gain amplifier circuit (22), for receiving, at input, an analog signal (S MC ), including an operational amplifier (33) and a gain setup network (NRC IN , NRC F ) including resistive elements (R 1 -R 4 , Rf 1 -Rf n ) and selection elements (S 1 -S n ), which may be controlled in order to setup the gain of said amplifier circuit (22), is described. The gain setup network (NRC IN , NRC F ) further includes capacitive elements (C1-C3, Cf 1 -Cf n ), for defining, together with the resistive elements (R 1 -R 4 ) and the operational amplifier (33), an anti-aliasing filter of the active RC type.
Abstract:
A method of improving noise characteristics of an all-digital phase locked loop generating a feedback word representing a continuous-time oscillating signal, including a time-to-digital converter input with the continuous-time oscillating signal and a reference signal function of a reference clock, the time-to-digital converter generating a digital word representing either the ratio between the oscillating signal and the reference signal or the DCO output phase, the feedback word being a function of said digital word, comprises the step of corrupting with a dither signal at least one among the reference clock, the digital word and the oscillating signal. This method is implemented by a respective feedback circuit for an all-digital phase locked loop.
Abstract:
Described herein is an integrated microelectromechanical structure (30), provided with: a driving mass (3), anchored to a substrate (2) via elastic anchorage elements (8a, 8b) and moved in a plane (xy) with a driving movement; and a first sensing mass (16a'), suspended inside, and coupled to, the driving mass via elastic supporting elements (20') so as to be fixed with respect to the driving mass (3) in the driving movement and to perform a detection movement of rotation out of the plane (xy) in response to a first angular velocity (Ω x ); the elastic anchorage elements (8a, 8b) and the elastic supporting elements (20') cause the detection movement to be decoupled from the driving movement. The elastic supporting elements are coupled to the first sensing mass (16a') at an end portion (31; 31') thereof, and the axis of rotation of the detection movement extends, within the first sensing mass, only through the aforesaid end portion.