Pesut

Temperature Sensor with 10-bit SAR Analog-to-Digital Converter

A project for ECE 547 “VLSI Design”
Fall Semester 2010 at the
Electrical Engineering Dept. of the
University of Maine

Designed by
Steven Pesut

Computer chip

The design consists of three main stages. First, there is a circuit that is sensitive to ambient temperature changes. An amplification stage then turns the output of the sensing circuit into a usable signal. Lastly, the amplified signal is fed into a 10-bit analog-to-digital converter. The ADC is a Successive Approximation Register (SAR) which utilizes an R-2R Digital-to-Analog converter to generate the digital outputs. Simulations show the sensor to have a resolution of approximately +.5 oC with each conversion taking approximately a minimum of 550 μs and a maximum of 1.05 ms. Test and verification procedures are outlined and described. Both a low and high current design are implemented on the chip.

The project report (PDF) contains a description of the project and details of the design and layout.

Fall 2010