A High Data Rate, Wide Dynamic Range Envelope Detector for Short Distance Ultra-Low Power WuRx Applications in 2.4 Ghz ISM-Band

An ultra-low power passive Envelope detector (ED) with differential output adapted for short range communication applications in 2.4 GHz ISM-band is introduced in 18 nm FD-SOI technology. A modified unbalanced Dickson ED multistage configuration is proposed alongside a dynamic back gate biasing technique to operate under a data rate of 62.5 kbps and a maximal input power of 20 dBm while maintaining a high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of 18.7 dB and a <tex xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">$2-\text{mV}$</tex> differential voltage swing at sensitivity level. The circuit uses a calibrated biasing block ensuring a high circuit robustness against process variations. The design is suitable for a wake-up receiver (WuRx) implementation in short range applications by achieving simultaneously a high data rate, high maximal supported signal level and good sensitivity.