A Low-Voltage Multistage Output Capacitor-Less LDO Using Dynamic Transient Enhancement Technique for SoC Applications

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A Low-Voltage Multistage Output Capacitor-Less LDO Using Dynamic Transient Enhancement Technique for SoC Applications

Year : 2025

Publisher : Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.

Source Title : IEEE Access

Document Type :

Abstract

This paper introduces a sub-1V output capacitorless low dropout regulator (OCL-LDO) for fast load transients. The OCL-LDO structures a multi-gain stage error amplifier and employs a dynamic transient enhancement (DTE) technique to improve response time. The proposed DTE significantly boosts the low-dropout (LDO) transient response by activating an additional biasing path at the power transistor’s gate during load transients. Moreover, it reduces the voltage undershoot and improves recovery time. Further aiding nested Miller compensation (NMC), an internal feed-forward circuit, and the Q-reduction concept in the fundamental multi-gain stage error amplifier contribute significantly to the LDO’s capacity to reject power noise at low frequencies and stabilize the output and guarantee consistent performance. The proposed design, fabricated using the 90nm CMOS process, works with a 1.1V supply voltage, delivers an output voltage of 0.9V, and consumes 26μA of quiescent current. There is a 150mV undershoot and a 180 ns settling period when the load-current increases from 5μA to 40mA with a risetime of 40 ns. Compared to an LDO without DTE, the suggested design shows better stability and driving capacity. Furthermore, the expected LDO achieves a measured PSR of 65dB at 10 kHz, demonstrating a notable improvement over the traditional system. According to the results of the trial, the suggested design results in a settling time that is around ten times faster and has less undershoot.