Lecture

Mixed-signal circuits: Comparators

Graph Chat

Chat with Graph Search

Ask any question about EPFL courses, lectures, exercises, research, news, etc. or try the example questions below.

DISCLAIMER: The Graph Chatbot is not programmed to provide explicit or categorical answers to your questions. Rather, it transforms your questions into API requests that are distributed across the various IT services officially administered by EPFL. Its purpose is solely to collect and recommend relevant references to content that you can explore to help you answer your questions.

In course

EE-423: Low power electronics: analog mixed signal design

This course deals with the analyze, design and optimization of CMOS analog circuits, emphasizing low-power solutions required in a broad range of applications (e.g. IoT, wearables, Biosensors ...). Some examples of mixed-signal design are also addressed. ...

Description

This lecture covers the performance parameters of high-speed comparators, including propagation delay and resolution. It discusses basic topologies such as two-stage class A and B amplifiers, as well as regenerative comparators with internal and external positive feedback. The instructor explains the operation of clocked comparators and analog latches, highlighting the importance of isolating inputs to reduce noise and improve accuracy.

Instructor

Adil Koukab

Official source

Ontological neighbourhood

Physics

Electromagnetism: Electrical networks

Related concepts (32)

Positive feedback

Positive feedback (exacerbating feedback, self-reinforcing feedback) is a process that occurs in a feedback loop which exacerbates the effects of a small disturbance. That is, the effects of a perturbation on a system include an increase in the magnitude of the perturbation. That is, A produces more of B which in turn produces more of A. In contrast, a system in which the results of a change act to reduce or counteract it has negative feedback. Both concepts play an important role in science and engineering, including biology, chemistry, and cybernetics.

Feedback

Feedback occurs when outputs of a system are routed back as inputs as part of a chain of cause-and-effect that forms a circuit or loop. The system can then be said to feed back into itself. The notion of cause-and-effect has to be handled carefully when applied to feedback systems: Simple causal reasoning about a feedback system is difficult because the first system influences the second and second system influences the first, leading to a circular argument.

Negative feedback

Negative feedback (or balancing feedback) occurs when some function of the output of a system, process, or mechanism is fed back in a manner that tends to reduce the fluctuations in the output, whether caused by changes in the input or by other disturbances. Whereas positive feedback tends to lead to instability via exponential growth, oscillation or chaotic behavior, negative feedback generally promotes stability. Negative feedback tends to promote a settling to equilibrium, and reduces the effects of perturbations.

Electronic circuit

An electronic circuit is composed of individual electronic components, such as resistors, transistors, capacitors, inductors and diodes, connected by conductive wires or traces through which electric current can flow. It is a type of electrical circuit and to be referred to as electronic, rather than electrical, generally at least one active component must be present. The combination of components and wires allows various simple and complex operations to be performed: signals can be amplified, computations can be performed, and data can be moved from one place to another.

Amplifier

An amplifier, electronic amplifier or (informally) amp is an electronic device that can increase the magnitude of a signal (a time-varying voltage or current). It is a two-port electronic circuit that uses electric power from a power supply to increase the amplitude (magnitude of the voltage or current) of a signal applied to its input terminals, producing a proportionally greater amplitude signal at its output. The amount of amplification provided by an amplifier is measured by its gain: the ratio of output voltage, current, or power to input.

Related lectures (64)

Feedback and Stability

Explores negative feedback in analog circuits, focusing on desensitizing gain, reducing distortion, controlling noise, and extending bandwidth.

Feedback and Stability: General Structure and Analysis

Explores the fundamentals of feedback and stability in amplifier design, covering negative feedback advantages, loop gain, and systematic analysis.

Feedback Amplifiers: Stability Analysis

Covers stability analysis of feedback amplifiers and Butterworth and Chebyshev filter design.

Comparators II: Basic Topologies

Covers the design of high-speed comparators and regenerative topologies with positive feedback.

Noise Calculation in Circuits