A current detection circuit, a semiconductor device and a semiconductor system which are capable of improving current detection accuracy are provided. According to one embodiment of the invention, a current detection circuit includes a resistive element to convert an input current supplied from outside into an input voltage, a constant-current source, a resistive element to convert an output current of the constant-current source into a reference voltage, and an AD converter to AD-convert the input voltage using the reference voltage.

In one aspect, a method comprises providing at least two identical front-end-of-line (FEOL) portions of an integrated circuit (IC) in a single wafer, with at least some of each FEOL portion comprising a plurality of circuit elements; building a design back-end-of-line (BEOL) portion of the IC on at least one of the FEOL portions to form a product chip, with the design BEOL portion configuring design-type interconnections of the same plurality of circuit elements for a first instantiation; building a test-only BEOL structure on at least one of the FEOL portions to form a sacrificial test device, with the test-only BEOL structure configuring test-type interconections of the same plurality of circuit elements for a second instantiation; and testing the sacrificial test device for at least one of functionality or reliability.

The present disclosure is directed toward a control system for controlling a heater that includes at least one heating element. The control system includes a power converter operable to supply an adjustable voltage output to the heater, a sensor circuit that measures an electrical characteristic of the heating element of the heater, a reference temperature sensor that measures a reference temperature of a reference at the heater, and a controller. The controller is configured to calculate a primary temperature of a heater element based on the electrical characteristic and determines the voltage output to be applied to the heater based on at least one of the reference temperature and the primary temperature. The controller is configured to operate in at least one of an operation mode and a learn mode, and execute protection protocols when voltage is being supplied to the heater.

A method for checking an insulation state of a battery or battery system comprising at least two batteries, comprising the following steps: measuring a voltage between a connection element of the battery and a ground over a predefined time; evaluating the measured voltage and determining whether a change in the measured voltage is present at time point that corresponds to a predefined temporal threshold value; and outputting a safety signal characterizing the insulation state on the basis of the established result.

A method for checking an insulation state of a battery or battery system comprising at least two batteries, comprising the following steps: measuring a voltage between a connection element of the battery and a ground over a predefined time; evaluating the measured voltage and determining whether a change in the measured voltage is present at time point that corresponds to a predefined temporal threshold value; and outputting a safety signal characterizing the insulation state on the basis of the established result.

A continuous time single drive capacitance-to-voltage (C2V) converter can be employed for single sensor, balanced single sensor, or differential sensor. First sensor and/or second sensor can be employed to sense a condition. A capacitive bridge can comprise a first capacitive digital-to-analog-converter (DAC) and second capacitive DAC as a differential node. First capacitive DAC can be associated with first sensor, and second capacitive DAC can be associated with a third capacitive DAC, in series with first sensor, if single sensor is implemented or the second sensor if balanced single sensor or differential sensor is implemented. Capacitive bridge can be connected to differential input of a capacitive feedback amplifier that can be a continuous time amplifier with no signal sampling and no noise folding. Capacitive feedback amplifier can comprise capacitively coupled input common mode feedback, which can remove noise from a sensor drive, and output common mode feedback.

A continuous time single drive capacitance-to-voltage (C2V) converter can be employed for single sensor, balanced single sensor, or differential sensor. First sensor and/or second sensor can be employed to sense a condition. A capacitive bridge can comprise a first capacitive digital-to-analog-converter (DAC) and second capacitive DAC as a differential node. First capacitive DAC can be associated with first sensor, and second capacitive DAC can be associated with a third capacitive DAC, in series with first sensor, if single sensor is implemented or the second sensor if balanced single sensor or differential sensor is implemented. Capacitive bridge can be connected to differential input of a capacitive feedback amplifier that can be a continuous time amplifier with no signal sampling and no noise folding. Capacitive feedback amplifier can comprise capacitively coupled input common mode feedback, which can remove noise from a sensor drive, and output common mode feedback.

A continuous-time sampler has series-connected delay lines with intermediate output taps between the delay lines. Signal from an output tap can be buffered by an optional voltage buffer for performance. A corresponding controlled switch is provided with each output tap to connect the output tap to an output of the continuous-time sampler. The delay lines store a continuous-time input signal waveform within the propagation delays. Controlling the switches corresponding to the output taps with pulses that match the propagation delays can yield a same input signal value at the output. The continuous-time sampler effectively holds or provides the input signal value at the output for further processing without requiring switched-capacitor circuits that sample the input signal value onto some capacitor. In some cases, the continuous-time sampler can be a recursively-connected delay line. The continuous-time sampler can be used as the front end sampler in a variety of analog-to-digital converters.

Systems and methods of measuring dynamic signals for power distribution units. In one embodiment, a power distribution unit (PDU) includes an analog to digital converter (ADC) including a plurality of channels, each channel corresponding to a respective outlet of a plurality of outlets of the PDU. The PDU further includes a microprocessor coupled to the ADC and configured to measure a scale of a signal output from a first channel of the ADC, compare the scale of the signal to a sensitivity threshold, and select, for a first outlet corresponding to the first channel, a reference voltage of a plurality of reference voltages for input to the ADC based on a result of comparing. Various embodiments allow using an ADC to measure low level outlet currents of less than around 300 mA in addition to high level currents such as around 20 A.

Systems and methods of measuring dynamic signals for power distribution units. In one embodiment, a power distribution unit (PDU) includes an analog to digital converter (ADC) including a plurality of channels, each channel corresponding to a respective outlet of a plurality of outlets of the PDU. The PDU further includes a microprocessor coupled to the ADC and configured to measure a scale of a signal output from a first channel of the ADC, compare the scale of the signal to a sensitivity threshold, and select, for a first outlet corresponding to the first channel, a reference voltage of a plurality of reference voltages for input to the ADC based on a result of comparing. Various embodiments allow using an ADC to measure low level outlet currents of less than around 300 mA in addition to high level currents such as around 20 A.