High-linearity flash ADC achieved through design-technology co-optimization based on two-dimensional semiconductor

The swift advancement of the Internet of Things (IoT) and the subsequent proliferation of smart devices have precipitated an exponential surge in demand for integrated analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) that exhibit low power consumption and high stability across a broad spectrum of applications. Despite the notable progress witnessed in conventional silicon-based ADCs, they continue to confront constraints pertaining to miniaturization, wearability, and power efficiency—critical parameters for the effective functionality of IoT devices. In recent years, two dimensional semiconductors (2DSCs) have attracted notable interest in low-power circuitry and flexible electronics due to their intrinsically atomic-scale thickness and exceptional electrical properties. However, integrating 2DSCs into analog circuits poses substantial challenges, especially in the context of complex mixed-signal circuits. The divergent design requirements for digital and analog circuits also complicate the achievement of high-performance ADCs on a single chip. This paper presents an innovative 3-bit Flash ADC circuit utilizing 2DSCs. Through the synergistic optimization of materials, fabrication processes, and circuit design, the nonlinearity of the ADC is significantly reduced, resulting in a differential nonlinearity (DNL) of 0.072 least significant bit (LSB), an integral nonlinearity (INL) of 0.128 LSB, and a remarkably low power consumption of only 3.36 μW.