Current Mirrors

Basic Current Mirrors Cascode Current Mirrors

Hassan Aboushady University of Paris VI

References
B. Razavi, Design of Analog CMOS Integrated Circuits, McGraw-Hill, 2001.

H. Aboushady

University of Paris VI

Copying Currents
Definition of current by a resistive divider

I out

nCox W
2

R2 VDD VTH L R1 + R2

Iout depends upon supply, process and temperature. A relatively complex circuit is used to generate a stable reference current IREF

IREF is then copied to the different current sources of the system.

H. Aboushady University of Paris VI

Basic Current Mirror

How to guarantee that Iout = IREF ?

2 identical MOS devices that have equal gate-source voltages and operating in saturation carry equal currents (assuming =0).

I REF =

nCox W
2

(VGS VTH ) L 1

I out =

I out =

nCox W
2

(VGS VTH ) L 2

(W / L )2 I (W / L )1 REF

H. Aboushady

University of Paris VI

Taking channel Length modulation into account

I D1 = I D2 =

nCox W
2 2

(VGS VTH ) (1 + VDS 1 ) L 1

2

nCox W

(VGS VTH ) (1 + VDS 2 ) L 2

2

I D1 (W / L )2 (1 + VDS 2 ) = I D 2 (W / L )1 (1 + VDS 1 )

If
H. Aboushady

VDS1 VDS 2

I D1 I D 2
University of Paris VI

Cascode Current Mirror

VGS 0 + VX = VGS 3 + VY
if

(W / L )3 = (W / L )2 (W / L )0 (W / L )1
and VY = V X

Then VGS 3 = VGS 0

H. Aboushady

University of Paris VI

Limited Voltage Swing

VDS 3 = VGS 3 VTH VP min VY = VN VY VTH VP min = VN VTH VP min = VGS 1 + VGS 0 VTH VP min = (VGS1 VTH ) + (VGS 0 VTH ) + VTH
Low Voltage Cascode Current Mirror:

VP min = (VGS 3 VTH ) + (VGS 4 VTH )

H. Aboushady

University of Paris VI