A new type of low power read circuit in EEPROM for UHF RFID

A novel low power read circuit without reference in 1k-bits electrically erasable and programmable (EEPROM) for UHF RFID is designed and implemented in SMIC 0.18@mm EEPROM process. The read power consumption is optimized using a pre-charge sense amplifier. To improve the performance of the read circuit, a self-detect circuit, a read control logic and a feedback scheme are adopted, combined with a special time sequence. For a power supply voltage of 1V, an average power consumption of 1.6@mA for the read operation of the EEPROM can be achieved when the read clock frequency is 640kHz. What is more, with a 110^oC temperature change, the read power consumption variation is as low as 12%. The die size of the EEPROM is 0.15mm^2, where the read circuit occupies 0.0125mm^2.

[1]  D. Yamazaki,et al.  A Passive UHF RF Identification CMOS Tag IC Using Ferroelectric RAM in 0.35-$\mu{\hbox {m}}$ Technology , 2007, IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits.

[2]  Ron Oliver,et al.  Design of ultra-low-cost UHF RFID tags for supply chain applications , 2004, IEEE Communications Magazine.

[3]  Mark Horowitz,et al.  Circuit techniques for 1.5-V power supply flash memory , 1997, IEEE J. Solid State Circuits.

[4]  Jung-Hoon Chun,et al.  A low power CMOS compatible embedded EEPROM for passive RFID tag , 2010, Microelectron. J..

[5]  Kee-Won Kwon,et al.  A fully CMOS-compitible 672-bit EEPROM for passive RFID tag application , 2010, 2010 IEEE Asian Solid-State Circuits Conference.

[6]  Yukihiro Fujimoto,et al.  A current-controlled latch sense amplifier and a static power-saving input buffer for low-power architecture , 1993 .

[7]  Junghwan Lee,et al.  A novel EEPROM cell for smart card application , 2004 .

[8]  Jieh-Tsorng Wu,et al.  MOS charge pumps for low-voltage operation , 1998, IEEE J. Solid State Circuits.

[9]  Deng Min,et al.  Embeded EEPROM Memory Achieving Lower Power - New design of EEPROM memory for RFID tag IC , 2006, IEEE Circuits and Devices Magazine.

[10]  Jean Michel Daga,et al.  Design techniques for EEPROMs embedded in portable systems on chips , 2003, IEEE Design & Test of Computers.

[11]  Gyu-Ho Lim,et al.  Low-Power 512-Bit EEPROM Designed for UHF RFID Tag Chip , 2008 .

[12]  Martin Fischer,et al.  Fully integrated passive UHF RFID transponder IC with 16.7-μW minimum RF input power , 2003, IEEE J. Solid State Circuits.

[13]  M. Feldhofer.  An authentication protocol in a security layer for RFID smart tags , 2004, Proceedings of the 12th IEEE Mediterranean Electrotechnical Conference (IEEE Cat. No.04CH37521).