A 15-bit binary-weighted current-steering DAC with ordered element matching

Device variability has become one of the fundamental challenges to high-resolution and high-accuracy DACs in nanometer and emerging processes. This paper introduces a 15-bit binary-weighted current-steering DAC in a standard 130nm CMOS technology, which utilizes a new random mismatch compensation theory called ordered element matching to improve the static linearity performance with the presence of large variability. The chip´s core area is less than 0.42mm², among which the 7-bit MSB current source area is well within 0.021mm². Measurement results have shown that the DAC´s DNL and INL can be reduced from 9.85LSB and 17.41LSB to 0.34LSB and 0.77LSB, respectively.