A 10-b 50-MSPS Low Power Pipeline ADC for Ultra-High Energy Cosmic Rays Detection

The upgrade of the Pierre Auger Observatory required a larger number of detectors that implies a dramatic increase of the power consumption. As the analog-to-digital converter (ADC) is the most critical circuit block, an integrated solution is here proposed. A 10 b 50-MSps 5-stage pipeline ADC is implemented in 65 nm digital CMOS. It achieves 50.3 dB signal-to-noise and distortion ratio (SNDR), 52.3 dB signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), 59.2 dB spurious free dynamic range (SFDR) for a full-scale input sinewave at Nyquist frequency. The ADC features 12 mW power consumption from a 1.2 V supply, while occupying 0.8 mm² die area.