A new concept for cost effective smart power ICs based on a unique cell type

This work presents a new one-cell based concept, aimed at smart power ICs, which can be applied to a large variety of VLSI processes already existent for analogue and digital circuits for signal processing. This approach enables designers to use the available design kits and libraries, through the simple addition of a new library of active circuits which implement required devices and functions, such as: low-side and high-side power devices, level shifter interface, charge-pumps, bootstraps, zeners and ESD protections, all of them resorting to a unique NMOS cell. Experimental and simulation results using a LDSD-NMOS based elementary power switching cell to derive active circuits aimed at smart power ICs, to be fabricated using standard, low cost, CMOS technologies, are also presented. This cell is suitable for a wide range of power applications, in the 50 V/2 A range.