Noise Analysis and Design Methodology of Chopper Amplifiers With Analog DC-Servo Loop for Biopotential Acquisition Applications

Abstract

Biopotential acquisition chopper instrumentation amplifiers require a dc-servo loop (DSL) in order to filter electrode dc offsets. However, the noise performance degradation due to the addition of the DSL is often overlooked despite that it can be very detrimental at the frequencies of interest. This article presents an in-depth noise analysis of biopotential acquisition chopper instrumentation amplifiers with analog DSLs. Analytical expressions that predict the noise of different DSL implementations are found and a design flow to minimize their noise contribution is proposed. The design methodology is demonstrated with example circuits targeting biopotential recording systems. These circuits are implemented using a standard 180 nm CMOS technology, and their performance is verified through postlayout simulations. The findings of this work provide a comprehensive understanding of the noise characteristics of a DSL, its impact on noise performance, and design strategies for noise optimization.