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Concept
Mixed-signal integrated circuit
Summary
A mixed-signal integrated circuit is any integrated circuit that has both analog circuits and digital circuits on a single semiconductor die. Their usage has grown dramatically with the increased use of cell phones, telecommunications, portable electronics, and automobiles with electronics and digital sensors.
Integrated circuits (ICs) are generally classified as digital (e.g. a microprocessor) or analog (e.g. an operational amplifier). Mixed-signal ICs contain both digital and analog circuitry on the same chip, and sometimes embedded software. Mixed-signal ICs process both analog and digital signals together. For example, an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) is a typical mixed-signal circuit.
Mixed-signal ICs are often used to convert analog signals to digital signals so that digital devices can process them. For example, mixed-signal ICs are essential components for FM tuners in digital products such as media players, which have digital amplifiers. Any analog signal can be digitized using a very basic ADC, and the smallest and most energy efficient of these are mixed-signal ICs.
Mixed-signal ICs are more difficult to design and manufacture than analog-only or digital-only integrated circuits. For example, an efficient mixed-signal IC may have its digital and analog components share a common power supply. However, analog and digital components have very different power needs and consumption characteristics, which makes this a non-trivial goal in chip design.
Mixed-signal functionality involves both traditional active elements (like transistors) and well-performing passive elements (like coils, capacitors, and resistors) on the same chip. This requires additional modelling understanding and options from manufacturing technologies. High voltage transistors might be needed in the power management functions on a chip with digital functionality, possibly with a low-power CMOS processor system. Some advanced mixed-signal technologies may enable combining analog sensor elements (like pressure sensors or imaging diodes) on the same chip with an ADC.
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