IEEE Solid-States Circuits Magazine - Winter 2021 - 18

Paul joined ADI's semiconductor operation when
it was less than a year old, and he fundamentally
shaped the engineering approach that was to
become the foundation for the company.
Data Converters, Sensors, and
Instrument Application-Specified
Integrated Circuits
Although he might be most famous
for his reference and regulator work,
Paul was also behind much of the

foundational work in the high-resolution data converters that ADI produced in the 1970s and 1980s. As
with his voltage reference innovation, Paul would work to understand
the error mechanisms that were lim-

Examples of Paul Brokaw's Significant Publications,
Patents, and So Forth

A. P. Brokaw, " A simple three-terminal IC bandgap reference, " IEEE J. Solid-State Circuits,
vol. 9, no. 6, pp. 388-293, Dec. 1974. doi: 10.1109/JSSC.1974.1050532.
A. P. Brokaw and M. P. Timko, " An improved monolithic instrumentation amplifier, " IEEE J.
Solid-State Circuits, vol. 10, no. 6, pp. 417-423, Dec. 1975. doi: 10.1109/JSSC.1975.1050636.
A. P. Brokaw, " A monolithic 10-bit A/D using I2L and LWT thin-film resistors, " IEEE J. SolidState Circuits, vol. 13, no. 6, pp. 736-745, Dec. 1978. doi: 10.1109/JSSC.1978.1052044.
P. Brokaw, " An IC amplifier user's guide to decoupling, grounding, and making things
go right for a change, " Analog Devices, Inc., Norwood, MA, Analog Devices Application Note AN-202. [Online]. Available: https://www.analog.com/media/en/technical-docu
mentation/application-notes/AN-202.pdf
A. P. Brokaw, " Band-gap voltage reference with curvature correction, " U.S. Patent 4 250
445, Feb. 10, 1981.
A. P. Brokaw, " Integrated circuit monitor for storage battery voltage and temperature, " U.S.
Patent 5 339 018, Aug. 16, 1994.
A. P. Brokaw, " Digital-to-analog converter with current source transistors operated accurately at different current densities, " U.S. Patent 3 940 760, Feb. 24, 1976.
A. P. Brokaw, " Solid-state regulated voltage supply, " U. S. Patent 3 887 863, June 3, 1975.

FIGURE 1: Paul is presented with an award recognizing his 100th U.S. patent in 2013. ADI
Chief Technical Officer Sam Fuller is on the left, Paul is in the center, and Jason Fiorillo is on
the right. (Photo courtesy of Mike Kennedy.)

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IEEE SOLID-STATE CIRCUITS MAGAZINE

iting matching and accuracy and
then derive creative circuit topologies to avoid, mitigate, or compensate for these errors. This allowed
converter accuracy to push from 8
to 12 bits and beyond. It was also a
period in which he and the industry
were addressing various barriers to
integration: data converters moved
from hybrids and modules to single ICs that integrated the matched
devices (often resistors), voltage references, sample and holds, clocks,
and digital logic.
Paul's desire to understand the
fundamental physical behaviors of
silicon drew him into the domain of
solid-state sensors, and his fingerprints are on some of the industry's
most influential senor products.
Temperature sensors were a natural
extension of his bandgap work, and
the AD590 two-terminal temperature transducer that he designed
with Mike Timko in the early 1970s
remains a popular product today.
His work with magnetic sensors led
him to develop several applicationspecified integrated circuits (ASICs)
for the automotive industry, and he
was the coinventor of ADI's breakthrough work on microelectromechanical systems accelerometers.

The Patents and Papers
As one might expect from a prolific
inventor doing pioneering work
in a field, Paul built a large patent
portfolio including 110 U.S. patents
(Figure 1) and more than 200 patents
globally. In reviewing this portfolio, it
is remarkable on several dimensions.
■■ Enormous breadth: His work inc ludes b a n dg aps , r eg u l ator s ,
current mirrors, sensors, data
converters, automotive ASICs, a
device-level transistor, and resistor structures.
■■ Frequent citations: Dozens of his
patents have been cited by 40
or more other patents, which is a
strong indication that Paul's work
has been foundational.
■ ■ Coinventors: A lt h o ug h P au l is
the sole inventor on many of his
patents, he also has a remarkable

https://www.analog.com/media/en/technical-documentation/application-notes/AN-202.pdf https://www.analog.com/media/en/technical-documentation/application-notes/AN-202.pdf

IEEE Solid-States Circuits Magazine - Winter 2021

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