Elastic-Vt CMOS circuits for multiple on-chip power control

Abstract

The elastic-Vt CMOS (EVTCMOS) circuit design controls MOS transistor source (not substrate) voltages, so fabrication requires no special steps. The post-fabrication threshold voltages can be switched back and forth between high Vt (sleep mode) and low Vt (active mode), and can be also controlled as a means of reducing the sensitivity to device-parameter deviations and operating-environment variations. This results in reduction of switching time between sleep and active modes, and in reduced static power consumption in sleep mode.