Low-Threshold Nanopower™ MOSFETs

Advanced Linear Devices Inc (ALD, Sunnyvale, CA) offers a family of ultra-precise enhancement mode MOSFET arrays that will allow designers a new level of accuracy in controlling gate threshold and sub threshold voltage characteristics in circuits. With extremely low gate threshold characteristics, these devices have been created to enable Nanopower™ circuit designs.

As the era of ultra-low power design evolves into a new era of nanopower challenges, analog designers seek a new set of tools to make their tasks more exacting in order to avert some of the limitations of commonly used semiconductor devices. The Quad/Dual N-Channel Matched Pair Enhancement Mode MOSFET arrays, matched at the factory using ALD’s EPAD® CMOS technology, provide these tools as they achieve the threshold voltage of +0.20V.

This low threshold of +0.20V and the precision tolerances of +/- 0.02V and +/- 10 mV offset provide designers the ability to design circuits that operate on mere nanowatts of power. Along with very tight tolerances, the extremely low threshold voltage of EPAD enhancement mode MOSFETs support the operation of applications in industries such as instrumentation, military, aerospace, industrial controls and medical to name a few.

“Nanopower operation, or circuits that operate on less than a microwatt, has been an elusive goal for the electronics industry ,” said John Skurla, Marketing Director of ALD “ALD is now offering that possibility with the Ultra-Low Power Enhancement Mode EPAD MOSFET arrays which enable the operation of delicate sensors from remote locations for sensitive and critical security applications. Even portable medical devices that are counted on for long operational life can benefit by circuitry with precisely controlled voltages. The world is demanding lower voltage operation from a variety of electronic devices and these highly precise Nanopower EPAD MOSFETs will help enable the industry to achieve this goal.”

The extremely low threshold voltages and precise tolerance range of the EPAD MOSFETs are made possible through ALD’s patented EPADÒ technology. This family of devices will play an important role in many specific analog circuits such as current sources, current mirrors, discrete differential amplifiers, and analog multiplexers.

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