A 0.4 V low power baseband processor for UHF passive RFID tags

In this paper, a RFID baseband processor designed according to the EPC C1G2 protocol is presented. By adjusting the processor's activities according to the RF modulated envelop - the received signal strength, and by distributing data processing in different period, a low voltage, energy-aware design is achieved. Special care was taken in backend design to extend the clock frequency range and the supply range, so the robustness of the processor is ensured. The processor was fabricated in standard 180 nm CMOS technology. It consumes less than 180 nW at 0.4 V supply.