1st Edition

CMOS Front-End Electronics for Radiation Sensors

By Angelo Rivetti Copyright 2015
    726 Pages
    by CRC Press

    726 Pages 486 B/W Illustrations
    by CRC Press

    CMOS: Front-End Electronics for Radiation Sensors offers a comprehensive introduction to integrated front-end electronics for radiation detectors, focusing on devices that capture individual particles or photons and are used in nuclear and high energy physics, space instrumentation, medical physics, homeland security, and related fields.

    Emphasizing practical design and implementation, this book:

    • Covers the fundamental principles of signal processing for radiation detectors
    • Discusses the relevant analog building blocks used in the front-end electronics
    • Employs systematically weak and moderate inversion regimes in circuit analysis
    • Makes complex topics such as noise and circuit-weighting functions more accessible
    • Includes numerical examples where appropriate

    CMOS: Front-End Electronics for Radiation Sensors provides specialized knowledge previously obtained only through the study of multiple technical and scientific papers. It is an ideal text for students of physics and electronics engineering, as well as a useful reference for experienced practitioners.

    Preface

    Acknowledgments

    List of Tables

    About the Author

    Front-End Specifications and Architecture Overview

    Basic Features and Electrical Modeling of Radiation Sensors

    Signal Formation in Detectors

    Signal Polarity

    Space Resolution and Detector Segmentation

    Amplitude and Signal Shape Fluctuations

    Sensor Capacitance

    Leakage Current

    Sensor Equivalent Circuit

    Modeling of Composite Systems

    Examples of Radiation Sensors

    Key Parameters in Front-End Electronics

    A First Front-End Amplifier

    Peaking Time

    Gain and Signal Polarity

    Noise

    Time Resolution

    Pile-Up

    Detection Efficiency and Derandomization

    Front-End Architectures

    Binary Front-End

    Counting and Time-Over-Threshold Architectures

    Time Pick-Off Systems

    Sample and Hold and Peak Detectors

    Analog Memories

    Real Time Waveform Digitizers

    Data Readout and Transmission

    References

    MOS Transistor Properties

    Silicon Properties

    Silicon Band Structure

    Doping

    Charge Transport in Silicon

    Charge Transport by Drift

    Mobility in Doped Silicon

    Charge Transport by Diffusion

    Einstein Relationship

    Graded Doping

    pn Junctions

    Built-In Voltage

    Depletion Region

    Breakdown Voltage

    Junction Capacitance

    Contact Potentials

    A First Look at MOS Transistors

    The NMOS Transistors

    The PMOS Transistors

    Transistor Representations

    CMOS Technologies

    CMOS Radiation Sensors

    Electrical Characteristics of MOS Transistors

    The Threshold Voltage

    Regions of Operation of the MOS Transistor

    MOS Characteristics in the Linear Region

    MOS Characteristics in Saturation

    The Body Effect

    MOS Capacitance

    The PMOS Transistor

    MOS Small Signal Parameters

    Gate Transconductance

    Bulk Transconductance

    Output Conductance

    MOS Small Signal Model

    Weak and Moderate Inversion

    The Deep Submicron MOS Transistor

    Scaling Methods

    Mobility Reduction

    Velocity Saturation

    Drain-Induced Barrier Lowering

    Hot Carrier Effects

    Gate Leakage Current

    References

    Input Stages

    Transimpedance Amplifiers

    The Transimpedance Amplifier as a Feedback Circuit

    Common Source Amplifiers

    Common Source Amplifier with Resistive Load

    Current Mirrors

    Common Source Amplifiers with Active Load

    Source Degenerated Common Source Amplifiers

    Feedback in Source Degenerated Amplifiers

    Output Impedance of the Source Degenerated Amplifier

    Cascode Amplifiers

    Cascode Current Mirrors

    Wide-Swing Current Mirrors

    Telescopic Cascode Amplifiers

    Folded Cascode

    Unbuffered Transresistance Amplifiers

    Source Followers

    Buffered Cascode Amplifiers

    Amplifiers with Rail-to-Rail Output Stage

    Gain Boosting

    Current Mode Input Stages

    References

    Input Stages in the Frequency Domain

    The Common Source Amplifier in the Frequency Domain

    Voltage Driven Common Source Amplifier

    Current Driven Common Source Amplifier

    Analysis of the Common Source Amplifier with the Miller Theorem

    Frequency Performance of Cascode Amplifiers

    Frequency Stability of Amplifiers

    Feedback and Frequency Compensation of CMOS OTA

    Phase Margin

    Frequency Compensation

    Effect of the Right-Half Plane Zero

    Advanced Compensation Techniques

    Frequency Stability and Compensation of Front-End Amplifiers

    Transimpedance Amplifier with Ideal Output Buffer

    Input Impedance

    Transimpedance Amplifier with Real Output Buffer

    Input Stages with Gain Boosting

    The Charge Sensitive Amplifier

    Frequency Performance of Current Mode Input Stages

    References

    Noise

    Fundamental Concepts

    Thermal and Shot Noise Spectral Density

    Thermal Noise

    Shot Noise

    Noise in MOS Transistors

    Channel Thermal Noise in MOS Transistors

    Flicker Noise

    Noise Calculations in Circuits

    Noise in an RC Low-Pass Filter

    Noise in a Single-Stage Front-End

    Noise Filtering and Optimization of the Signal-to-Noise Ratio

    The Matched Filter

    Optimum Filter for Energy Measurements

    Optimum Filter for Timing Measurements

    References

    Time Invariant Shapers

    Ideal Charge Sensitive Amplifiers

    The CR-RC Shaper

    CR-RCn Shapers

    Shapers with Complex Conjugate Poles

    Noise Calculations in Time Invariant Shapers

    Noise in CR-RC Shapers

    Noise Calculations in CR-RCn Shapers

    Noise Slope

    Effect of 1/ fa Noise

    Alternative Formalism for Noise Calculations

    Noise Simulations

    Pole-Zero Cancellation and Baseline Control

    Pole-Zero Cancellation

    Baseline Holders and Baseline Restorers

    Baseline Restorers

    Bipolar Shapers

    Front-End with Transimpedance Input Stage

    Gain and Bandwidth Limitations in Charge Sensitive Amplifiers

    Effects of Finite Gain in the CSA

    Effect of CSA Bandwidth Limitation

    Effect of Finite Charge Collection Time

    References

    Time Variant Shapers

    Ballistic Deficit and the Gated Integrator

    Noise Analysis in the Time Domain

    Time-Domain Noise Analysis of the CR-RC Filter

    Time-Domain Noise Analysis of the Gated Integrator

    Correlated Double Sampling

    Time-Variant Filters in CMOS Technology

    References

    Transistor-Level Front-End Design

    Transistor-Level Design of Charge Sensitive Amplifiers

    Optimization of the Input Transistor

    Load Design

    Choice of Input Transistor Type

    Passive Feedback Networks

    Integrated Capacitors

    Passive Resistors

    Active Feedback Networks

    Feedback Transistors in Linear Region

    Transconductance Feedback

    Feedback with DC Current Compensation

    Constant Current Feedback

    Power Supply Rejection

    Implementation of Shaping Amplifiers

    Single Stage Shapers

    Multi-Stage Shapers

    Active Shaping Networks

    OTA-C Shapers

    Compact Shaping Cells

    Baseline Holder Design

    Fully Differential Front-End

    Implementation of Current Mode Front-Ends

    References

    Discriminators

    Basic Discriminator Properties

    Discriminator Gain and Speed Requirements

    Discriminator Threshold Setting

    General Purpose Voltage Discriminators

    Two-Stage Discriminators

    Discriminator with Cross-Coupled Loads

    High-Speed Discriminators

    Timing Discriminators

    Jitter and Rise Time Variations

    Time Walk

    Leading-Edge Discriminators

    Zero Crossing Discriminators

    Constant Fraction Discriminators

    Latched Comparators

    Mismatch in CMOS Transistors

    Mismatch due to Local Fluctuations

    Mismatch Calculations in Circuits

    Offset Compensation in Discriminators

    Current Mode Discriminators

    References

    Data Converters

    Basic ADC Properties

    ADC Static Performance

    ADC Dynamic Performance

    ADC Architectures

    Flash ADC

    Single Ramp and Wilkinson ADC

    Successive Approximation Register ADC (SAR ADC)

    Conventional SAR ADC

    Key Issues in SAR ADC Design

    Low-Power SAR ADC Design

    Basic TDC Properties

    TDC Architectures

    TDC with Analog Interpolators

    TDC with Digital Delay Lines

    Loop-Based TDC

    Ring Oscillator TDC

    Pulse Shrinking TDC

    References

    Appendix: Differential and Operational Amplifiers

    Differential and Common Mode Signals

    Differential Cell Large-Signal Behavior

    Differential Cell Small-Signal Analysis

    Differential Cells with Active Load

    Differential Cell with Current Mirror Load

    Operational Amplifiers

    Single Stage Architectures

    Two-Stage OTA

    OTA with Class AB Output

    OTA with Rail-to-Rail Input Stages

    Fully Differential Amplifiers

    References

    Appendix: Practical Aspects in Front-End Design

    The Front-End Design Cycle

    Substrate Noise in Mixed-Signal ASICs

    Off-Chip Data Transmission and LVDS I/O Ports

    Bias Distribution in Multi-Channel Front-Ends

    Front-End Calibration

    Radiation Damage

    References

    Index

    Biography

    Angelo Rivetti received a degree in physics from the University of Torino, Italy, and a Ph.D in electrical engineering from the Politecnico di Torino, Italy. From 1998 to 2000, he worked at the Conseil Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire (CERN), Meyrin, Switzerland on the implementation of radiation tolerant integrated circuits in commercial deep submicron complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (CMOS) technologies. From 2000 to 2001, he was an assistant professor with the faculty of physics at the University of Torino. In December 2001, he joined the Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (INFN), Torino, Italy, where he developed very-large-scale integration (VLSI) front-end circuits now in use in the A Large Ion Collider Experiment (ALICE) and Common Muon and Proton Apparatus for Structure and Spectroscopy (COMPASS) experiments at CERN. He is currently a senior member of the research and technology staff at INFN. His research interests are in the design of mixed signal front-end electronics for hybrid and monolithic radiation detectors employed in high energy physics, medical imaging, and industrial applications.

    "… an essential resource for whoever is involved with radiation sensors from the circuit design perspective. It nicely covers all topics of practical interest, gradually leading from general concepts to specific aspects and bringing several interesting examples. The author was able to effectively transfer his wide knowledge and experience, both as a researcher and as an educator, into this amazing piece of work. The book can lead newcomers to rapidly learn how to address the analysis and design of front-end circuits, but it is also suitable for experts to refresh some important concepts without the need to go through many scientific papers."
    —Gian-Franco Dalla Betta, University of Trento, Italy

    "… a well-organized, clear, and comprehensive guide to the design of low-noise front-end electronics for sensors. An ideal introduction for beginners and students, and a valuable reference for experienced designers."
    —Gianluigi De Geronimo, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, New York, USA and Stony Brook University, New York, USA

    "Reflecting the author’s extensive experience, the book covers the design and implementation of the front-end electronics optimized for the amplification, conditioning, and digitization of signals in radiation sensors. This body of knowledge, developed along many decades within the high energy and nuclear physics communities, was dispersed in many specialized articles. Now it is collected, summarized, and enriched in an impressive book of about 700 pages, which covers both the theoretical background and many implementation practical aspects. This is the book that many people in the field were waiting for."
    —Joao Varela, Laboratory of Instrumentation and Experimental Particles Physics, Lisbon, Portugal and Instituto Superior Técnico, University of Lisbon, Portugal