Architectures and Circuits for Efficient Highly Integrated Communication Systems and Microsystems

在当今的信息时代，微系统和通信系统已经无缝地交织在我们的日常生活中。集成电路（ic）几乎无处不在地用于实现这些系统（例如，手机和智能手机，数据中心，生物医学设备等）。模拟、混合信号和射频（RF）构建块通常是此类系统的性能瓶颈。这些模块通常决定系统的精度、速度和/或功耗。事实上，尽管数字信号处理和数字电路的进步令人印象深刻，并将注意力从模拟信号处理转移到数字信号处理，但将“真实世界”的模拟信号连接到“数字世界”是这些系统运行的必要条件。这项研究的目的是开发适合无线/有线通信系统以及生物医学微系统有效实施的系统和电路技术。重点是采用先进的CMOS技术实现的系统，其工作频率范围从几（几十）kHz（用于生物医学和医学成像应用的传感器接口）到几十GHz（用于无线和有线应用）。强调CMOS技术的原因是因为它们已经成为这些应用中实现集成解决方案的事实上的标准过程。除了密集集成之外，CMOS技术还提供了在同一芯片上集成模拟和数字电路的可能性。然而，CMOS技术的进步，虽然导致更快的晶体管，限制了模拟，混合信号和射频电路的性能指标，如噪声，精度和功耗。因此，在先进的CMOS技术中实现系统的净收益是所使用的系统架构和电路设计技术的强大功能。因此，这项研究的目标是继续发展新的cmos友好集成电路和系统设计技术，特别关注无线和有线通信系统，以及医学成像应用。

In the current information age, microsystems and communication systems have been seamlessly interwoven into our everyday lives. Integrated circuits (ICs) are almost ubiquitously used to implement these systems (e.g., cell phones and smart phones, data centers, biomedical devices, ...). Analog, mixed-signal, and radio-frequency (RF) building blocks are often the performance bottleneck of such systems. These blocks usually dictate the accuracy, speed and/or power consumption of the system. In fact, although the advances in digital signal processing and digital circuits have been impressive and shifted the attention from analog to digital signal processing, interfacing "real world" analog signals to the "digital world" is a necessity for the operation of such systems. The objective of this research is to develop system and circuit techniques that are suited for efficient implementation of wireless/wireline communication systems as well as biomedical microsystems. The emphasis is on systems implemented in advanced CMOS technologies and operate in the frequency ranges from a few (tens of) kHz (for sensor interfaces for biomedical and medical imaging applications) up to a few tens of GHz (for wireless and wireline applications). The reason for emphasis on CMOS technologies is because they have emerged as the de facto standard process for implementation of integrated solutions for these applications. In addition to dense integration, CMOS technologies provide the possibility of integrating analog and digital circuitry on the same chip. However, the advances in CMOS technologies, although result in faster transistors, constrain the performance measures of analog, mixed-signal, and RF circuits such as noise, accuracy, and power consumption. Thus, the net benefit of implementation of systems in advanced CMOS technologies is a strong function of the system architecture and circuit design techniques used. Therefore, the goal of this research is to continue the development of new CMOS-friendly integrated circuits and systems design techniques with a particular focus on wireless and wireline communication systems, and medical imaging applications.