Design methodology of a 0.7 V, 64.5 pW @ 36°C, 1830 μm² Subthreshold Voltage Reference for Implantable Devices

A picowatt CMOS voltage reference for body implantable devices is presented in this paper. The circuit is based on a PMOS-only voltage reference core with a passive RC filter to enhance the supply noise rejection and a speed-up mechanism to improve the switching-on time of the circuit. The measured power consumption at a supply voltage of 0.7 V is as low as 64.5 pW at the reference human body temperature of 36 °C, with a PSR better than -60 dB until frequencies of MHz.

keywords: voltage reference, ultra-low power, picowatt, CMOS