A process variation compensation scheme using cell-based forward body-biasing circuits usable for 1.2V design

Abstract

A cell-based forward body-biasing technique to suppress the global process variation and its design flow are proposed. Latch-up free operation is guaranteed by embedded current source cells and limiter cells even when supply voltage is 1.2 V with small area overhead. By applying this technique to a media processor, the worst-case delay is reduced by 20% without sacrificing the maximum leakage spec.