阅读说明：本技术 比较电路、半导体装置 (Comparator circuit and semiconductor device ) 是由 赤羽正志 于 2020-10-28 设计创作，主要内容包括：比较电路在输入电压超过第一阈值电压时输出第一逻辑电平的输出电压,在所述输入电压低于比所述第一阈值电压要低的第二阈值电压时输出第二逻辑电平的所述输出电压,该比较电路包括：转换电路,其将所述输入电压转换成第一电压和低于所述第一电压的第二电压；以及逻辑电路,其在所述第一电压超过第三阈值电压时输出所述第一逻辑电平的所述输出电压,在所述第二电压低于比所述第三阈值电压要低的第四阈值电压时输出所述第二逻辑电平的所述输出电压。(A comparison circuit outputs an output voltage of a first logic level when an input voltage exceeds a first threshold voltage, and outputs the output voltage of a second logic level when the input voltage is lower than a second threshold voltage lower than the first threshold voltage, the comparison circuit including: a conversion circuit that converts the input voltage into a first voltage and a second voltage lower than the first voltage; and a logic circuit that outputs the output voltage of the first logic level when the first voltage exceeds a third threshold voltage, and outputs the output voltage of the second logic level when the second voltage is lower than a fourth threshold voltage lower than the third threshold voltage.)

1. A kind of comparison circuit is disclosed, which has a comparator,

the comparator circuit outputs an output voltage of a first logic level when an input voltage exceeds a first threshold voltage, and outputs the output voltage of a second logic level when the input voltage is lower than a second threshold voltage lower than the first threshold voltage, the comparator circuit comprising:

a conversion circuit that converts the input voltage into a first voltage and a second voltage lower than the first voltage; and

a logic circuit that outputs the output voltage of the first logic level when the first voltage exceeds a third threshold voltage, and outputs the output voltage of the second logic level when the second voltage is lower than a fourth threshold voltage lower than the third threshold voltage.

2. The comparison circuit of claim 1,

the logic circuit operates at a power supply voltage lower than a maximum value of the input voltage.

3. The comparison circuit according to claim 1 or 2,

the logic circuit is a schmitt trigger circuit comprising:

two PMOS transistors on a power supply side to which the second voltage is applied and which are connected in series; and

two NMOS transistors connected in series between the two PMOS transistors and ground, the first voltage being applied to each of two gate electrodes,

the third threshold voltage is a voltage corresponding to a threshold voltage of each of the two NMOS transistors, and the fourth threshold voltage is a voltage corresponding to a threshold voltage of each of the two PMOS transistors.

4. The comparison circuit of claim 3,

the conversion circuit includes:

first to fourth resistors connected in series between a node to which a power supply voltage of the logic circuit is applied and ground,

when the input voltage is applied to a connection point of the second resistance and the third resistance, the conversion circuit generates the first voltage at the connection point of the first resistance and the second resistance and generates the second voltage at a connection point of the third resistance and the fourth resistance.

5. The comparison circuit of claim 4,

the first to fourth resistors have resistance values that turn off any one of the groups of two PMOS transistors and the group of two NMOS transistors in a case where the input voltage is not applied to the conversion circuit.

6. The comparison circuit according to any of claims 1 to 3,

the conversion circuit includes:

a first source follower circuit that applies the input voltage to a gate electrode and outputs the first voltage from a source electrode; and

a second source follower circuit that applies the input voltage to the gate electrode and outputs the second voltage from the source electrode.

7. The comparison circuit of any of claims 1 to 6,

the conversion circuit further includes:

a resistor connected between a node to which the input voltage is applied and ground.

8. A semiconductor device, comprising:

a power supply circuit that generates a low power supply voltage lower than a power supply voltage from the power supply voltage; a detection circuit that operates at the low power supply voltage and detects control signals for driving the switching elements of the upper arm and the switching elements of the lower arm; and a drive circuit for driving the switching element of the upper arm and the switching element of the lower arm based on a detection result of the detection circuit,

the detection circuit includes:

a comparison circuit that outputs the detection result of a first logic level when a voltage level of the control signal exceeds a first threshold voltage, and outputs the detection result of a second logic level when the voltage level of the control signal is lower than a second threshold voltage lower than the first threshold voltage,

the comparison circuit includes:

a conversion circuit that converts a voltage level of the control signal into a first voltage and a second voltage lower than the first voltage; and

a logic circuit that outputs the detection result of the first logic level when the first voltage exceeds a third threshold voltage, and outputs the detection result of the second logic level when the second voltage is lower than a fourth threshold voltage lower than the third threshold voltage.

Technical Field

The invention relates to a comparison circuit and a semiconductor device.

Background

As a circuit for detecting a logic signal, a comparator circuit using a schmitt trigger circuit having hysteresis characteristics is generally used (for example, patent document 1)

Further, there are hysteresis comparators using a differential comparator shown below, and these can adjust hysteresis characteristics (patent documents 2 and 3).

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open No. 6-53783

Patent document 2: japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2002-300011

Patent document 3: japanese patent laid-open No. Hei 10-209823

Disclosure of Invention

Technical problem to be solved by the invention

In addition, for example, when a schmitt trigger circuit as in patent document 1 is used as the comparison circuit, hysteresis characteristics are determined by threshold voltages of MOS transistors of the schmitt trigger circuit, and it is difficult to change the hysteresis characteristics.

Further, since the hysteresis comparator as in patent document 2 or 3 needs to use a differential comparator, the bias current continues to flow during the comparison operation, and the power consumption is large. But also has a disadvantage that the area of the comparator itself becomes large.

The present invention has been made in view of the above conventional problems, and an object thereof is to provide a comparator circuit capable of changing hysteresis characteristics.

Means for solving the problems

In an aspect of the present invention to solve the above-described problem, a comparator circuit outputs an output voltage of a first logic level when an input voltage exceeds a first threshold voltage, and outputs the output voltage of a second logic level when the input voltage is lower than a second threshold voltage lower than the first threshold voltage, the comparator circuit including: a conversion circuit that converts the input voltage into a first voltage and a second voltage lower than the first voltage; and a logic circuit that outputs the output voltage of the first logic level when the first voltage exceeds a third threshold voltage, and outputs the output voltage of the second logic level when the second voltage is lower than a fourth threshold voltage lower than the third threshold voltage.

In another aspect of the semiconductor device of the present invention, the semiconductor device includes: a power supply circuit that generates a low power supply voltage lower than a power supply voltage from the power supply voltage; a detection circuit that operates at the low power supply voltage and detects control signals for driving the switching elements of the upper arm and the switching elements of the lower arm; and a drive circuit that drives the switching element of the upper arm and the switching element of the lower arm based on a detection result of the detection circuit, the detection circuit including a comparison circuit that outputs the detection result of a first logic level when a voltage level of the control signal exceeds a first threshold voltage and outputs the detection result of a second logic level when the voltage level of the control signal is lower than a second threshold voltage lower than the first threshold voltage, the comparison circuit including: a conversion circuit that converts a voltage level of the control signal into a first voltage and a second voltage lower than the first voltage; and a logic circuit that outputs the detection result of the first logic level when the first voltage exceeds a third threshold voltage, and outputs the detection result of the second logic level when the second voltage is lower than a fourth threshold voltage lower than the third threshold voltage.

Effects of the invention

According to the present invention, a comparator circuit capable of changing hysteresis characteristics can be provided.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the structure of a power module 10.

Fig. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the structure of the HVIC 20.

Fig. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration of a comparator circuit 21a which is an embodiment of the comparator circuit 21.

Fig. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the logic circuit 50.

Fig. 5 is a diagram illustrating an operation of the logic circuit 50.

Fig. 6 is a diagram showing a change in threshold value when the comparison circuit 21a is used.

Fig. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the comparison circuit 21 b.

Fig. 8 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the comparison circuit 21 c.

Detailed Description

Cross reference to related applications

The present application claims priority based on japanese patent application 2019-.

At least the following matters will be made clear from the description of the present specification and the drawings.

In this embodiment, the present invention is not limited to the specific example

< Power Module 10 >

Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the structure of a power module 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The power module 10 includes a power semiconductor for power conversion and a driving circuit, and is, for example, a semiconductor device for driving the load 11. The power module 10 includes a capacitor 14 for generating a bootstrap voltage Vb, an HVIC20, a bridge circuit 30, terminals PWR, D, P, S, N, COM.

A power supply voltage VCC is applied to a terminal PWR, and a control signal IN from an MCU (not shown) is input to a terminal D. The load 11 is connected between the terminal S and the terminal N. A power supply voltage Vdc is applied to the terminal P, and a capacitor 12 for stabilizing the power supply voltage Vdc is connected between the terminal P and the terminal N.

The HVIC20 receives a control signal IN from an MCU (not shown) and outputs driving signals HO and LO to the bridge circuit 30 to drive the bridge circuit 30.

Bridge circuit 30 drives load 11 (e.g., an inductor) based on drive signals HO, LO from HVIC 20. The bridge circuit 30 includes NMOS transistors 31 and 32. The NMOS transistors 31 and 32 correspond to "switching elements".

＜HVIC20＞

Fig. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the structure of the HVIC 20. The HVIC (High voltage integrated Circuit) 20 includes a comparator Circuit 21, an inverter 22, a filter Circuit 23, a pulse generator Circuit 24, a High side driver Circuit 25, a power supply Circuit 26, a low side driver Circuit 27, and terminals PVCC, DS, VB, H, VS, L, and G.

The comparator circuit 21 is an input detection circuit that detects an input control signal IN and inverts and outputs the control signal IN. IN addition, for example, IN the present embodiment, the control signal IN varies within a range of 0 to 15V. Therefore, the comparator circuit 21 is composed of a high-voltage element. The control signal IN is a rectangular wave varying between 0 to 15V, and the NMOS transistor 31 of the upper arm is turned on at a high level (hereinafter referred to as "H" level), and the NMOS transistor 32 of the lower arm is turned on at a low level (hereinafter referred to as "L" level).

The inverter 22 inverts the output of the comparator 21 and outputs the inverted output to the filter circuit 23.

The filter circuit 23 includes, for example, a low-pass filter (not shown), and outputs a signal S obtained by removing noise from the signal output from the inverter 22.

The pulse generation circuit 24 generates a set signal set at a rising edge of the signal S and a reset signal reset at a falling edge.

The high-side drive circuit 25 outputs a drive signal HO for driving the NMOS transistor 31 of the upper arm via the terminal H based on the set signal set and the reset signal reset from the pulse generation circuit 24.

The power supply circuit 26 is, for example, a step-down regulator, and generates a low power supply voltage VDD (for example, 5V) by stepping down a power supply voltage VCC (for example, 15V) from the terminal PVCC, and supplies the low power supply voltage VDD to the comparator circuit 21, the inverter 22, the filter circuit 23, and the pulse generation circuit 24.

The low-side driver circuit 27 outputs a drive signal LO for driving the NMOS transistor 32 of the lower arm via the terminal L based on the signal S from the filter circuit 23.

< comparison Circuit 21>

The comparison circuit 21a of the present embodiment is not limited to the one shown in the drawings

Fig. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration of a comparator circuit 21a which is an embodiment of the comparator circuit 21.

The comparison circuit 21a changes the logic level of the output voltage Vout from the "H" level to the "L" level when the voltage level of the control signal IN changes from the low voltage level (e.g., 0V) to the high voltage level (e.g., VDD) and exceeds the high threshold voltage VtH. Further, the comparison circuit 21a changes the logic level of the output voltage Vout from the "L" level to the "H" level when the voltage level of the control signal IN changes from the high voltage level to the low voltage level and is lower than the low threshold voltage VtL. The comparator circuit 21a includes a voltage conversion circuit 40a and a logic circuit 50.

The voltage conversion circuit 40a converts the voltage generated at the node N1, to which the control signal IN is input, into the voltage VNG and the voltage VPG lower than the voltage VNG. Hereinafter, the voltage generated at the node N1 is referred to as the input voltage Vin.

The voltage conversion circuit 40a includes resistors 41 to 44. The resistors 41 to 44 are connected in series between a node to which the low power supply voltage VDD is applied and the ground, and when the input voltage Vin is applied to the node N1, the voltage conversion circuit 40a generates the voltage VNG at a connection point of the resistor 41 and the resistor 42, and generates the voltage VPG at a connection point of the resistor 43 and the resistor 44.

The voltage VNG is applied to the input of the logic circuit 50, i.e. to the gate electrodes of the NMOS transistors 51, 52, and the voltage VPG is applied to the input of the logic circuit 50, i.e. to the gate electrodes of the PMOS transistors 54, 55 of the logic circuit 50.

Here, assuming that the resistance values of the resistors 41 to 44 are R1, R2, R3, and R4, the voltage VNG and the voltage VPG are calculated as follows.

VNG＝(R1/(R1+R2))×Vin+(R2/(R1+R2))×VDD···(1)

VPG＝(R4/(R3+R4))×Vin···(2)

The logic circuit 50 is a schmitt trigger circuit that changes the logic level of the output voltage Vout with hysteresis characteristics in accordance with changes in the voltage levels of the voltages VNG and VPG. The logic circuit 50 includes NMOS transistors 51-53 and PMOS transistors 54-56.

The NMOS transistors 51, 52 and the PMOS transistors 54, 55 are connected in series in the order of the PMOS transistors 55, 54 and the NMOS transistors 52, 51 from the power supply side between the power supply node to which the low power supply voltage VDD is applied and the ground. The voltage VNG is applied to gate electrodes of the NMOS transistors 51 and 52 as inputs of the logic circuit 50, and the voltage VPG is applied to gate electrodes of the PMOS transistors 54 and 55.

An output voltage Vout output from a connection point of the NMOS transistor 52 and the PMOS transistor 54 is applied to a gate electrode of the NMOS transistor 53, a low power supply voltage VDD is applied to a drain terminal of the NMOS transistor 53, and a source of the NMOS transistor 53 is connected to a connection point of the NMOS transistors 51, 52.

The output voltage Vout is applied to the gate electrode of the PMOS transistor 56, the drain terminal of the PMOS transistor 56 is grounded, and the source of the PMOS transistor 56 is connected to the connection point of the PMOS transistors 54, 55.

Further, the maximum value of the voltage of the control signal IN has a voltage higher than the power supply voltage of the logic circuit 50. Accordingly, the NMOS transistors 51 to 53 and the PMOS transistors 54 to 56 are constituted by high withstand voltage MOS transistors.

In the present embodiment, the resistance values R1 to R4 have a resistance value that turns off either the group of PMOS transistors 54 and 55 or the group of NMOS transistors 51 and 52 when the input voltage Vin is not applied to the node N1.

The resistors 41 to 44 correspond to "first resistor", "second resistor", "third resistor", and "fourth resistor", respectively. Voltage VNG corresponds to a "first voltage", and voltage VPG corresponds to a "second voltage". The NMOS transistors 51 and 52 correspond to "two NMOS transistors", and the PMOS transistors 54 and 55 correspond to "two PMOS transistors". The logic level of the output voltage Vout corresponds to "detection result".

The logic circuit 50 operates at a low power supply voltage VDD (e.g., 5V) lower than the maximum value (e.g., 15V) of the input voltage Vin.

Basic operation of the logic circuit 50

Here, in order to explain the basic operation of the schmitt trigger circuit, a circuit shown in fig. 4 in which the gates of the two NMOS transistors 51 and 52 and the two PMOS transistors 54 and 55 of the logic circuit 50 are common will be explained. Further, here, the voltages applied to the gates of the two NMOS transistors 51, 52 and the two PMOS transistors 54, 55 of the logic circuit 50 are set as the input voltage Vin _ org.

< description of operation of logic circuit 50 >

Fig. 5 is a diagram illustrating an operation of the logic circuit 50. The operation of the NMOS transistors 51 to 53 and the PMOS transistors 54 to 56 of the logic circuit 50 will be described with reference to FIG. 5.

The straight lines shown by the broken lines indicate the relationship between the input voltage Vin _ org input to the logic circuit 50 and the applied voltages applied to the gate electrodes of the NMOS transistors 51, 52 and the PMOS transistors 54, 55.

First, a case X in which the input voltage Vin _ org changes from X1 to X3 will be described. At X1, the input voltage Vin _ org is 0V. At this time, the NMOS transistors 51 and 52 are turned off, and the NMOS transistor 53 is turned on. On the other hand, the PMOS transistors 54 and 55 are turned on, and the PMOS transistor 56 is turned off. Therefore, the output voltage Vout becomes the power supply voltage VDD.

At X2 where the input voltage Vin _ org is higher than X1, NMOS transistor 51 is turned on, NMOS transistor 52 is turned off, and NMOS transistor 53 is turned on. On the other hand, the PMOS transistors 54 and 55 are turned off, and the PMOS transistor 56 is turned off. Since the parasitic capacitor of the node applied with the output voltage Vout is directly charged, the output voltage Vout keeps the power supply voltage VDD constant.

When the input voltage Vin _ org is higher than the voltage at X2, NMOS transistors 51, 52 are turned on and NMOS transistor 53 is turned off. On the other hand, the PMOS transistors 54 and 55 are turned off, and the PMOS transistor 56 is turned on. At this time, the output voltage Vout changes from the power supply voltage VDD to 0V. Therefore, the voltage value of the input voltage Vin _ org at this time becomes the high threshold voltage VtH _ org. When the input voltage Vin _ org becomes the high threshold voltage VtH _ org of the logic circuit 50, the applied voltage applied to the gate electrodes of the NMOS transistors 51 and 52 becomes the voltage level indicated by the point a1 (i.e., VtH _ org). At this time, the output voltage Vout changes from the "H" level to the "L" level via the point a 1.

At X3, the input voltage Vin _ org becomes a voltage higher than the power supply voltage VDD (e.g., 15V). At this time, the NMOS transistors 51 and 52 are turned on, and the NMOS transistor 53 is turned off. On the other hand, the PMOS transistors 54 and 55 are turned off, and the PMOS transistor 56 is turned on. Therefore, the output voltage Vout remains constant at 0V.

Next, a case Y where the input voltage Vin _ org changes from Y1 to Y3 will be described. At Y1, the input voltage Vin _ org becomes a voltage higher than the power supply voltage VDD (e.g., 15V). At this time, the PMOS transistors 54 and 55 are turned off, and the PMOS transistor 56 is turned on. On the other hand, the NMOS transistors 51 and 52 are turned on, and the NMOS transistor 53 is turned off. Therefore, the output voltage Vout becomes 0V.

At Y2, where the input voltage Vin _ org is lower than Y1, PMOS transistor 54 is turned off, PMOS transistor 55 is turned on, and PMOS transistor 56 is turned on. On the other hand, the NMOS transistors 51 and 52 are turned off, and the NMOS transistor 53 is turned off. Since the parasitic capacitor of the node applied with the output voltage Vout is directly discharged, the output voltage Vout is kept constant at 0V.

When the input voltage Vin _ org is lower than the voltage at Y2, PMOS transistors 54, 55 are turned on and PMOS transistor 56 is turned off. On the other hand, the NMOS transistors 51 and 52 are turned off, and the NMOS transistor 53 is turned on. Therefore, the output voltage Vout changes from 0V to the power supply voltage VDD. Therefore, the voltage value of the input voltage Vin _ org at this time becomes the low threshold voltage VtL _ org. Further, when the input voltage Vin _ org becomes the low threshold voltage VtL _ org of the logic circuit 50, the applied voltage applied to the gate electrodes of the PMOS transistors 54, 55 becomes the voltage level shown at the point B1 (i.e., VtL _ org). At this time, the output voltage Vout changes from the "L" level to the "H" level via the point B1.

At Y3, the input voltage Vin _ org is 0V. At this time, the PMOS transistors 54 and 55 are turned on, and the PMOS transistor 56 is turned off. On the other hand, the NMOS transistors 51 and 52 are turned off, and the NMOS transistor 53 is turned on. Therefore, the output voltage Vout keeps the power supply voltage VDD constant.

Therefore, when the voltage level of the input voltage Vin _ org of the logic circuit 50 changes from the low voltage level (e.g., 0V) to the high voltage level (e.g., VDD) and exceeds the high threshold voltage VtH _ org, the logic level of the output voltage Vout is changed from the "H" level to the "L" level (case X). When the voltage level of the input voltage Vin _ org of the logic circuit 50 changes from the high voltage level to the low voltage level and becomes lower than the low threshold voltage VtL _ org, the logic level of the output voltage Vout is changed from the "L" level to the "H" level (case Y).

< calculation of threshold voltage of logic circuit 50 >)

As described above, the logic circuit 50 has a hysteresis characteristic realized by the high threshold voltage VtH _ org and the low threshold voltage VtL _ org. The high threshold voltage VtH _ org is determined based on the condition that the NMOS transistors 51, 52 are simultaneously turned on. The low threshold voltage VtL _ org is determined based on the condition that the PMOS transistors 54 and 55 are simultaneously turned on.

That is, the high threshold voltage VtH _ org is determined based on the threshold voltage vtn of each of the NMOS transistors 51 and 52. The low threshold voltage VtL _ org is determined based on the threshold voltage vtp of the PMOS transistors 54 and 55, respectively.

Here, the threshold voltages of the PMOS transistors 54 and 55 are made to be common vtp, but the threshold voltages of the PMOS transistors 54 and 55 may be different from each other. The threshold voltage vtn of the NMOS transistors 51, 52 is the same.

Hereinafter, how to determine the high threshold voltage VtH _ org from the threshold voltage vtn will be described. Similarly, how to determine the low threshold voltage VtL _ org by the threshold voltage vtp will be described.

First, in order to express the high threshold voltage VtH _ org as the threshold voltage vtn, the following will be explained: the input voltage Vin changes from a low voltage (e.g., 0V) to a high voltage (e.g., VDD).

In the logic circuit 50 of fig. 4, a circuit including NMOS transistors 51 to 53 will be described. When the gate-source voltages of the NMOS transistors 51, 52, and 53 are VGS51, VGS52, and VGS53, the following states are expressed, respectively. Here, the voltage at the connection point of the NMOS transistor 51 and the NMOS transistor 52 is set to the voltage Vx.

VGS51＝Vin＿org···(3)

VGS52＝Vin＿org－Vx···(4)

VGS53＝Vout－Vx···(5)

At X1 of fig. 5, when the input voltage Vin _ org is 0V, the NMOS transistors 51, 52 are turned off, and the NMOS transistor 53 is turned on.

When the input voltage Vin approaches the threshold voltage vtn of the NMOS transistor 51, the NMOS transistor 51 is turned on. The drain current flowing to the NMOS transistor 53 and the drain current flowing to the NMOS transistor 51 become equal.

In this case, the following expression (6) is established.

β3×(VDD－Vx－vtn)＾2/2＝β1×(Vin＿org－vtn)＾2/2···(6)

Here, β 1 and β 3 are coefficients determined by the physical structures of the NMOS transistors 51 and 53, respectively. For example, β ═ μ CoxW/L, μ is mobility, Cox is capacitance per unit area of the gate oxide film, W is gate width, and L is gate length.

In order to obtain the voltage Vx, expression (6) is modified as follows.

Vx＝VDD+(√(β1/β3)－1)×vtn－√(β1/β3)×Vin＿org···(7)

When the input voltage Vin becomes a higher voltage, and thus becomes a high threshold voltage VtH _ org, and VGS 52-Vin _ org-Vx-vtn, the NMOS transistor 52 is turned on. Since the NMOS transistors 51 and 52 are turned on, the output voltage Vout becomes 0V. When the input voltage Vin _ org at this time is VtH _ org, the following expression (8) is established.

VtH＿org－VDD－(√(β3/β1)－1)×vtn+√(β3/β1)×VtH＿org＝vtn···(8)

When VtH _ org is obtained from equation (8), equation (9) is satisfied.

VtH＿org＝(VDD+√(β1/β3)×vtn)/(1+√(β1/β3))＝(√(β3/β1)×VDD+vtn)/(1+√(β3/β1))···(9)

When the NMOS transistors 51 and 52 are turned on, Vx equals Vout equals 0 and VGS53 equals 0, so the NMOS transistor 53 is turned off.

Next, in order to represent the low threshold voltage VtL _ org by the threshold voltage vtp, a case where the input signal Vin _ org changes from a high voltage to a low voltage will be described. Here, the threshold voltage vtp is a negative value.

In the logic circuit 50 of fig. 4, a circuit including PMOS transistors 54 to 56 will be described. When the gate-source voltages of the PMOS transistors 54, 55, and 56 are VGS54, VGS55, and VGS56, the following states are expressed, respectively. Here, the voltage at the connection point of the PMOS transistor 54 and the PMOS transistor 55 is referred to as a voltage Vy.

VGS54＝Vin＿org－Vy···(10)

VGS55＝Vin＿org－VDD···(11)

VGS56＝Vout－Vy···(12)

When the input voltage Vin _ org is VDD, the PMOS transistors 54 and 55 are turned off, and the PMOS transistor 56 is turned on. At this time, Vout is 0 and Vy is vtp.

When the input voltage Vin _ org approaches VDD + vtp, the PMOS transistor 55 is turned on. The drain current flowing to the PMOS transistor 56 and the drain current flowing to the PMOS transistor 55 become equal.

In this case, the following expression (13) is established.

β5×(Vin＿org－VDD-vtp)＾2/2＝β6×(―Vy－vtp)＾2/2···(13)

Here, β 5 and β 6 are coefficients determined by the physical structures of the PMOS transistors 55 and 56, respectively. For example, β ═ μ CoxW/L, μ is mobility, Cox is capacitance per unit area of the gate oxide film, W is gate width, and L is gate length.

In order to obtain the voltage Vy, equation (13) is modified as follows.

Vy＝√(β5/β6)×VDD+(√(β5/β6)－1)×vtp－√(β5/β6)×Vin＿org···(14)

When the input voltage Vin _ org becomes lower and VGS54 is Vin _ org-Vy vtp, the PMOS transistor 54 is turned on. Since the PMOS transistors 54 and 55 are turned on, the output voltage Vout becomes VDD. When the input voltage Vin _ org at this time is VtL _ org, the following expression (15) is established.

VtL＿org－√(β5/β6)×VDD－(√(β5/β6)－1)×vtp+√(β5/β6)×VtL＿org＝vtp···(15)

When VtL _ org is obtained from equation (15), equation (16) is established.

VtL＿org＝(√(β5/β6)×VDD+√(β5/β6)×vtp)/(1+√(β5/β6))＝(VDD+vtp)/(1+√(β6/β5))···(16)

When the PMOS transistors 54 and 55 are turned on, the PMOS transistor 56 is turned off because Vy is Vout VDD and VGS56 is 0.

As is apparent from the above, the high threshold voltage VtH _ org is a voltage corresponding to the threshold voltage vtn of each of the NMOS transistors 51, 52, and the low threshold voltage VtL _ org is a voltage corresponding to the threshold voltage vtp of each of the PMOS transistors 54, 55.

< < calculation of threshold voltage of comparison circuit 21a >)

In the comparison circuit 21a, the voltage VNG is applied to the gate electrodes of the NMOS transistors 51, 52, and the voltage VPG is applied to the gate electrodes of the PMOS transistors 54, 55.

Therefore, when the voltage VNG changes from a low voltage to a high voltage, the logic level of the output voltage Vout changes from the "H" level to the "L" level if the high threshold voltage VtH _ org is exceeded. Similarly, when the voltage VPG changes from a high voltage to a low voltage and falls below the low threshold voltage VtL _ org, the logic level of the output voltage Vout changes from "L" level to "H" level.

Therefore, when the high threshold voltage VtH _ org of the logic circuit 50 is applied to the logic circuit 50, IN the case where the voltage level of the control signal IN of the comparison circuit 21a becomes the threshold voltage VtH as the input voltage Vin, when the slave expression (1) is

VtH＿org＝(R1/(R1+R2))×VtH+(R2/(R1+R2))×VDD···(17)

When the high threshold voltage VtH is obtained from equation (17), the result is as follows.

VtH＝((R1+R2)/R1)×VtH＿org－(R2/R1)×VDD···(18)

Similarly, when the low threshold voltage VtL _ org of the logic circuit 50 is applied to the logic circuit 50, if the voltage level of the control signal IN of the comparator 21a becomes the threshold voltage VtL as the input voltage Vin, the slave equation (2) shows that the threshold voltage is set to be equal to the threshold voltage VtL

VtL＿org＝(R4/(R3+R4))×VtL···(19)

When the low threshold voltage VtL is obtained from equation (19), the following is obtained.

VtL＝((R3+R4)/R4)×VtL＿org···(20)

As described above, the high threshold voltage VtH and the low threshold voltage VtL of the comparison circuit 21a can be set to different values from the high threshold voltage VtH _ org and the low threshold voltage VtL _ org of the logic circuit 50. Further, if the comparator circuit 21a is used, the high threshold voltage VtH and the low threshold voltage VtL of the comparator circuit 21a can be changed by changing the resistance values R1 to R4 of the resistors 41 to 44. Therefore, the hysteresis characteristic of the logic circuit 50 can be changed.

In addition, when the input voltage Vin becomes high and becomes the high threshold voltage VtH of the comparison circuit 21a, the resistance values R3, R4 of the resistors 43, 44 are designed so that the voltage VPG is higher than the low threshold voltage VtL _ org. On the other hand, when the input voltage Vin becomes low and becomes the low threshold voltage VtL of the comparison circuit 21a, the resistance values R1 to R4 of the resistors 41 and 44 are designed so that the voltage VNG is smaller than the high threshold voltage VtH _ org.

Therefore, even if the input signal Vin changes, the NMOS transistors 51 to 53 and the PMOS transistors 54 to 56 operate as described above in the description of the operation of the logic circuit 50.

In addition, the "L" level may correspond to the "first logic level" and the "H" level may correspond to the "second logic level", whereas the "H" level may correspond to the "first logic level" and the "L" level may correspond to the "second logic level".

< comparison of input/output characteristics of comparison circuit 21a and logic circuit 50 >)

Fig. 6 is a diagram showing a change in threshold value when the comparison circuit 21a is used. In fig. 6, straight lines indicated by broken lines indicate the relationship between the input voltage Vin _ org input to the logic circuit 50 and the applied voltages applied to the gate electrodes of the NMOS transistors 51, 52 and the PMOS transistors 54, 55.

The straight line indicated by the one-dot chain line indicates a change in the voltage VNG with respect to the input voltage Vin input to the comparison circuit 21 a. That is, the straight line indicated by the one-dot chain line indicates a change in the applied voltage applied to the gate electrodes of the NMOS transistors 51 and 52 with respect to the input voltage Vin.

The straight line indicated by the two-dot chain line indicates a change in the voltage VPG with respect to the input voltage Vin input to the comparator circuit 21 a. That is, the straight line indicated by the two-dot chain line is a straight line indicating a change in the applied voltage applied to the gate electrodes of the PMOS transistors 54, 55 with respect to the input voltage Vin. The straight line of the voltages VNG and VPG is an example of the relationship between the resistance values R1 to R4 of the resistors 41 to 44, that is, R2: R1: R3: R4: 1: 2.

The relationship between the input voltage Vin in the comparison circuit 21a, the high threshold voltage VtH and the low threshold voltage VtL of the comparison circuit 21a will be described below.

First, when the input voltage Vin changes from a low voltage (e.g., 0V) to a high voltage (e.g., VDD) and the voltage VNG becomes the same voltage level as the voltage level shown at the point a1, i.e., the voltage level shown at the point a2 (i.e., VtH _ org), the logic level of the output voltage Vout changes from the "H" level to the "L" level as shown by the solid line passing through the point a 2. Therefore, when the voltage level of the voltage VNG becomes the point a2, the input voltage Vin becomes the high threshold voltage VtH of the comparison circuit 21 a.

Next, when the input voltage Vin changes from a high voltage to a low voltage and the voltage VPG becomes the same voltage level as the voltage level shown at the point B1, that is, the voltage level shown at the point B2 (that is, VtL _ org), the logic level of the output voltage Vout changes from the "L" level to the "H" level as shown by the solid line passing through the point B2. Therefore, when the voltage level of the voltage VPG reaches the point B2, the input voltage Vin becomes the low threshold voltage VtL of the comparator circuit 21 a.

Thus, the comparator circuit 21a applies the voltages VNG and VPG generated by the voltage converter circuit 40a to the NMOS transistors 51 and 52 and the PMOS transistors 54 and 55. Therefore, the comparison circuit 21a can change the high threshold voltage VtH _ org and the low threshold voltage VtL _ org determined by the threshold values of the MOS transistors to the high threshold voltage VtH and the low threshold voltage VtL of the comparison circuit 21 a. Therefore, the comparator circuit 21a can change the hysteresis characteristic of the logic circuit 50.

As shown in the above equation (9) or equation (16), the value of the high threshold voltage VtH _ org depends on the voltage corresponding to the threshold voltage vtn of each of the NMOS transistors 51 and 52, and the value of the low threshold voltage VtL _ org depends on the voltage corresponding to the threshold voltage vtp of each of the PMOS transistors 54 and 55. A threshold voltage with a low threshold voltage can be used, and in this case, the hysteresis characteristic can be changed.

In the present invention, the circuit shown in fig. 4 is used as the logic circuit 50. A device in which the hysteresis width, the threshold value from the "H" level to the "L" level, and the threshold value from the "L" level to the "H" level can be changed by the hysteresis comparator requires the use of a plurality of differential amplifiers. The differential amplifier has a large area, and thus requires a bias current to be continuously applied when operating, which increases power consumption. When the output of the logic circuit 50 is stable at a high level, the NMOS transistors 51 and 52 are turned off, and thus the through current does not flow to the logic circuit 50. Similarly, when the output of the logic circuit 50 is stable at a low level, the PMOS transistors 54 and 55 are turned off, and thus the through current does not flow to the logic circuit 50. This reduces the current consumption except when switching the output, and thus can suppress power consumption.

The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a semiconductor device

The comparator circuit 21b is a comparator circuit

Fig. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the comparison circuit 21 b. In the voltage conversion circuit 40b of the comparison circuit 21b, a resistor 45 is further added between the node to which the input voltage is applied and the ground to the voltage conversion circuit 40a of the comparison circuit 21 a.

The comparator circuit 21c is set to

Fig. 8 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the comparison circuit 21 c. The voltage conversion circuit may be implemented by a structure different from the voltage conversion circuits 40a and 40 b. As one example, the voltage conversion circuit 40c is constituted by a source follower circuit 61a to which the input voltage Vin is applied to the gate electrode and from which the voltage VNGb is output, and a source follower circuit 61b to which the input voltage Vin is applied to the gate electrode and from which the voltage VPGb is output.

The source follower circuit 61a includes a constant current source 62a and a PMOS transistor 63 a. The source follower circuit 61b includes a constant current source 62b and an NMOS transistor 63 b.

Further, the source follower circuit 61a corresponds to a "first source follower circuit", and the source follower circuit 62b corresponds to a "second source follower circuit".

The voltage VNGb, which is the output of the source follower circuit 61a, is basically a voltage obtained by offsetting the input voltage Vin by the gate-source voltage of the PMOS transistor 63a, and is output. Similarly, the voltage VPGb which is the output of the source follower circuit 61b is basically a voltage obtained by shifting the gate-source voltage of the NMOS transistor 63 b.

However, according to the nature of the source follower circuit, the input voltage Vin exceeding the output amplitude obtained by subtracting the voltage drop amount used in the constant current source and the transistor is cut off and output, and therefore, the magnitudes of the voltages VNGb and VPGb become smaller than the potential difference between the low power supply voltage VDD and the ground voltage.

Since the voltage conversion circuit 40c receives the input voltage Vin, a high-voltage device is required. However, since the amplitudes of the voltage VNG and the voltage VPG of the output of the source follower circuit operated at the low power supply voltage VDD are equal to or less than the potential difference between the ground voltage and the low power supply voltage VDD, even if the comparator circuit 21a does not use a high-voltage-resistant element, element breakdown can be more reliably prevented. Thus, in the present modification, the voltage conversion circuit 40c uses a high-voltage device, and the logic circuit 50 that operates with a potential difference between the low power supply voltage VDD and the ground voltage uses a low-voltage device.

The term "summary" means that

The power module 10 of the present embodiment has been described above. When the schmitt trigger circuit is used as the comparator circuit 21, the hysteresis characteristic is determined by the threshold voltages of the NMOS transistors 51 and 52 and the PMOS transistors 54 and 55, and it is difficult to change the hysteresis characteristic. However, the hysteresis characteristic observed from the input voltage Vin can be changed by converting the input voltage Vin into the voltage VNG and the voltage VPG and applying them to the gate electrodes of the NMOS transistors 51 and 52 and further the gate electrodes of the PMOS transistors 54 and 55, respectively.

The input voltage Vin is higher than the power supply voltage VDD of the logic circuit 50, and high-voltage MOS transistors are used as the NMOS transistors 51 to 53 and the PMOS transistors 54 to 56. In this case, when the logic circuit 50 is used, hysteresis characteristics determined by the threshold values of the high-voltage MOS transistors can be changed by adjusting the resistance values R1 to R4 of the resistors 41 to 44.

In the present embodiment, when the NMOS transistor 32 is turned on by the low-side drive circuit 27, the voltage VS at the terminal VS may become a negative voltage due to the influence of the inductance component of the load 11. Then, a current flows from the ground to a voltage line to which the voltage VS of the terminal VS is applied, and the potential of the terminal G (for example, the ground) may fluctuate. This may cause the low power supply voltage VDD to fluctuate. By configuring the logic circuit 50 with two PMOS transistors and two NMOS transistors, the comparator is not affected by variations in bias current that occur when the low power supply voltage VDD varies when used as a schmitt trigger circuit. Therefore, the logic circuit 50 operates as a high-precision schmitt trigger circuit.

Further, by configuring the voltage conversion circuit 40a with the resistors 41 to 44, the voltages VNG and VPG can be generated with high accuracy.

The resistance values R1 to R4 of the resistors 41 to 44 are determined so as to turn off any one of the group of the two PMOS transistors 54 and 55 and the group of the NMOS transistors 51 and 52 of the logic circuit 50. Thus, even when the input voltage Vin is not applied to the node N1, the through current can be prevented from flowing to the logic circuit 50.

In addition, the voltage conversion circuit 40b is implemented by two source follower circuits. Therefore, the hysteresis characteristic observed from the input voltage Vin can be changed as in the case of the logic circuit 50.

In addition, when the resistor 45 is connected between the node N1 and the ground, the node N1 can be pulled down when the input voltage Vin is not applied to the node N1, and the resistance values R1 to R4 of the resistors 41 to 44 can be designed freely to some extent.

The above embodiments are for the convenience of understanding the present invention, and are not intended to be construed as limiting the invention. The present invention may be modified or improved without departing from the gist thereof, and the present invention naturally includes equivalents thereof.

Description of the reference symbols

10 power module

11 load

12. 14 capacitor

13 DC power supply

20 HVIC

21. 21a, 21b, 21c comparator circuit

22 inverter

23 filter circuit

24 pulse generating circuit

25 high-side driving circuit

26 power supply circuit

27 low side driving circuit

30 bridge circuit

31. 32, 51-53, 63b NMOS transistors

40a, 40b, 40c voltage conversion circuit

41-45 resistance

50 logic circuit

54-56, 63a PMOS transistor

61a, 61b source follower circuit

62a, 62b are constant current sources.