The on-chip power supply noise sensor detects high frequency overshoots
and undershoots of the power supply voltage. By creating two identical
current sources and attaching a time constant circuit to only one, the
high frequency transient behavior differs while the low frequency
behavior is equivalent. By comparing these currents, the magnitude of
very high frequency power supply noise can be sensed and used to either
set latches or add to a digital counter. This has the advantage of
directly sensing the power supply noise in a manner that does not require
calibration. Also, since the sensor requires only one power supply, it
can be used anywhere on a chip. Finally, it filters out any lower
frequency noise that is not interesting to the circuit designer and can
be tuned to detect down to whatever frequency is needed.