Integrated Circuits and Systems >

2025 , Vol. 2 >Issue 3: 122 - 130

DOI: https://doi.org/10.23919/ICS.2025.3569486

Regular Papers

A 101 dB 123-pArms Current Readout Circuit With Automatic Current Control for Multimodality Electrochemical Sensing

  • LINA WANG ,
  • JIANZHENG LI ,
  • WEIMIN HU ,
  • YAJIE QIN
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  • School of Information Science and Technology, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
YAJIE QIN (e-mail: ).

LINA WANG received the B.S. degree in microelectronics science and engineering from Fudan University, Shanghai, China, in 2022. She is currently working toward the M.S. degree in school of information science and technology, Fudan University, Shanghai, China. Her research focuses on high-performance signal chain circuits.

JIANZHENG LI (Graduate Student Member, IEEE) received the B.Eng. degree in electronic and information engineering from Donghua University, Shanghai, China, in 2020. He is currently working toward the Ph.D. degree with the School of Information Science and Technology, Fudan University, Shanghai. His research interests include smart sensing circuits and systems, and hybrid integration of solid-state circuits with flexible electronics.

WEIMIN HU received the B.Eng. degree in microelectronics science and engineering from Anhui University, Anhui, China, in 2022. He is currently working toward the M.Eng. degree with the School of Information Science and Technology, Fudan University, Shanghai, China. His research focuses on the integrated sensing signal processing circuit in the chip.

YAJIE QIN (Member, IEEE) received the B.S. and M.S. degrees in microelectronics from Fudan University, Shanghai, China, in 2001 and 2005, respectively, and the double Ph.D. degrees from Fudan University and the KTH-Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden, in 2012 and 2016, respectively. He is currently an Associate Professor with the School of Information Science and Technology, Fudan University. His research interests include analog and mixed-signal circuits, techniques to hybrid integrate IC with flexible electronics, mixed-mode VLSI systems for information processing, and wearable/ implantable systems for IoT-based healthcare.

Received date: 2025-01-17

  Revised date: 2025-04-14

  Accepted date: 2025-05-04

  Online published: 2025-10-22

Supported by

National Key Research and Development Program of China for International Cooperation under Grant(2023YFE0117100)

Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation under Grant(CN24GR09)

Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation under Grant CN24GR09 and Grant CUP(B53C24001100001)

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Abstract

This paper presents a highly integrated wearable electrochemical sensor chip for sweat monitoring, incorporating both a current readout circuit and a programmable excitation waveform generator circuit. The chip is fabricated using a 0.11 μm standard CMOS process. The design utilizes a high-resolution and wide dynamic range current readout circuit for multimodality electrochemical sensing. A bidirectional current sensing potentiostat, based on a cascode current mirror, is presented. The circuit achieves bidirectional current sensing while isolating the sensing electrode from the subsequent circuitry, enhancing its versatility for various electrochemical measurement techniques. Additionally, the implementation of a current feedback loop, in conjunction with an automatic amplitude control method and a current-mode digital-to-analog converter, not only extends the dynamic range of the input current but also effectively eliminates the background currents. This design achieves 101 dB current dynamic range and 123 pA current resolution in the detection current range of ±15 μA with an R2 linearity of 0.9999. It also attains a nonlinearity of 0.07%, ensuring minimal distortion. The current readout circuit consumes 12 μA of static current from a 1.5 V supply.

Key words： Readout circuit; potentiostat; high-resolution; wide-range

Cite this article

LINA WANG , JIANZHENG LI , WEIMIN HU , YAJIE QIN . A 101 dB 123-pArms Current Readout Circuit With Automatic Current Control for Multimodality Electrochemical Sensing[J]. Integrated Circuits and Systems, 2025 , 2(3) : 122 -130 . DOI: 10.23919/ICS.2025.3569486

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