A current sensing circuit includes a filtering circuit, an amplifier, a first resistor, a first transistor and a second transistor. The filtering circuit is coupled to two terminals of a sensing resistor. The amplifier has a first input terminal, a second input terminal and an output terminal. The second input terminal is coupled to the filtering circuit. The first resistor is coupled between the filtering circuit and the first input terminal of amplifier. A control terminal of the first transistor is coupled to the output terminal of amplifier, and its first terminal is coupled to the first input terminal of amplifier and its second terminal is grounded through a second resistor. A control terminal of the second transistor is coupled to the output terminal of amplifier, and its first terminal is coupled to the second input terminal of amplifier and its second terminal is grounded through a third resistor.

A current sensing circuit includes a filtering circuit, an amplifier, a first resistor, a first transistor and a second transistor. The filtering circuit is coupled to two terminals of a sensing resistor. The amplifier has a first input terminal, a second input terminal and an output terminal. The second input terminal is coupled to the filtering circuit. The first resistor is coupled between the filtering circuit and the first input terminal of amplifier. A control terminal of the first transistor is coupled to the output terminal of amplifier, and its first terminal is coupled to the first input terminal of amplifier and its second terminal is grounded through a second resistor. A control terminal of the second transistor is coupled to the output terminal of amplifier, and its first terminal is coupled to the second input terminal of amplifier and its second terminal is grounded through a third resistor.

Circuits and methods for maintaining loop stability and good load regulation in low loop gain LDO regulator circuits. Embodiments encompass LDO regulator circuits that include an offset error correction circuit that generates an opposing voltage V.sub.OFFSET as a function of load current to substantially cancel out variations in V.sub.OUT that would otherwise occur due to load regulation limitations of the LDO regulator circuits. Embodiments use V.sub.OFFSET to imbalance currents in differential paths in a last-stage LDO error-amplifier so that an offset is propagated to a pair of inputs to the error-amplifier, thereby altering the output voltage V.sub.OUT to a corrected value. Benefits include improved LDO load regulation even when feedback loop gain is low, the available of both digital and analog implementations, high LDO accuracy and less variation of the output voltage V.sub.OUT, and suitability for implementation in integrated circuits for applications such as high precision power supplies.

A signal output circuit includes an inverting amplifier circuit, a feedback capacitor and a low pass filter. The inverting amplifier circuit includes an input terminal and an output terminal. The inverting amplifier circuit executes an inverting amplification based on an input signal to output a signal to the output terminal at a pull-up state. An output stage of the inverting amplifier circuit is an open collector or an open drain. The feedback capacitor is connected between the input terminal and the output terminal of the inverting amplifier circuit. The low pass filter has an input and an output. The input of the low pass filter is connected to the output terminal of the inverting amplifier. The output of the low pass filter is connected to the feedback capacitor.

A reset signal is generated by a TIA circuit alone. In an embodiment, a transimpedance amplifier configured to convert a current signal into a voltage signal includes a transimpedance stage including an amplification stage constituted of a transistor with a grounded emitter, and a comparator configured to compare a collector voltage of the transistor with a reference voltage and output a reset signal.

Described herein are systems and methods that can adjust the performance of a transimpedance amplifier (TIA) in order to compensate for changing environmental and/or manufacturing conditions. In some embodiments, the changing environmental and/or manufacturing conditions may cause a reduction in beta of a bipolar junction transistor (BJT) in the TIA. A low beta may result in a high base current for the BJT causing the output voltage of the TIA to be formatted as an unusable signal output. To compensate for the low beta, the TIA generates an intermediate signal voltage, based on the base current and beta that is compared with the PN junction bias voltage on another BJT. Based on the comparison, the state of a digital state machine may be incremented, and a threshold base current is determined. This threshold base current may decide whether to compensate the operation of the TIA, or discard the chip.

Signal quality is improved in a circuit for amplifying and sampling an analog signal. An input signal is input to one end of an input-side resistor. An operational amplifier amplifies the input signal, and outputs the input signal from an output terminal as an amplified signal. One end of a filter capacitor is connected to an input terminal of the operational amplifier. A predetermined frequency component of the input signal passes through the filter capacitor. A sampling capacitor imports the amplified signal during a predetermined sampling period, and holds the amplified signal during a predetermined hold period. A sampling switch connects the output terminal of the operational amplifier to one end of the sampling capacitor during the sampling period, and disconnects the output terminal of the operational amplifier from one end of the sampling capacitor during the hold period. A cutoff circuit disconnects the input-side resistor from one end of the filter capacitor during the sampling period, and connects the input-side resistor to one end of the filter capacitor during the hold period.

Signal quality is improved in a circuit for amplifying and sampling an analog signal. An input signal is input to one end of an input-side resistor. An operational amplifier amplifies the input signal, and outputs the input signal from an output terminal as an amplified signal. One end of a filter capacitor is connected to an input terminal of the operational amplifier. A predetermined frequency component of the input signal passes through the filter capacitor. A sampling capacitor imports the amplified signal during a predetermined sampling period, and holds the amplified signal during a predetermined hold period. A sampling switch connects the output terminal of the operational amplifier to one end of the sampling capacitor during the sampling period, and disconnects the output terminal of the operational amplifier from one end of the sampling capacitor during the hold period. A cutoff circuit disconnects the input-side resistor from one end of the filter capacitor during the sampling period, and connects the input-side resistor to one end of the filter capacitor during the hold period.

A voltage-current conversion circuit includes a voltage-current conversion resistor connected to an input terminal, and a current mirror circuit which mirrors a current supplied from the voltage-current conversion resistor, wherein the current mirror circuit is constructed to include a depletion-type transistor whose source voltage is biased to be higher than the substrate voltage.

A signal output circuit includes an inverting amplifier circuit, a feedback capacitor and a low pass filter. The inverting amplifier circuit includes an input terminal and an output terminal. The inverting amplifier circuit executes an inverting amplification based on an input signal to output a signal to the output terminal at a pull-up state. An output stage of the inverting amplifier circuit is an open collector or an open drain. The feedback capacitor is connected between the input terminal and the output terminal of the inverting amplifier circuit. The low pass filter has an input and an output. The input of the low pass filter is connected to the output terminal of the inverting amplifier. The output of the low pass filter is connected to the feedback capacitor.