Logic circuit with single charge pulling out transistor and semiconductor integrated circuit using the same

Abstract

A logic circuit performs a predetermined logic operation by supplying charge to an external load or pulling out charge therefrom according to a combination of the states of a plurality of externally inputted binary signals. The logic circuit includes a first transistor for supplying charge through an output terminal to the external load and a second transistor for pulling out the charge from the load through the output terminal. One of the first and second transistors is constituted by a MOS field-effect transistor having a drain connected to the output terminal. The MOS field-effect transistor has a source receiving an inverse signal inverse to a signal combined for logic operation with an input signal inputted to a gate of the MOS field-effect transistor. The number of the series transistors is reduced, resulting in an increase of the current capacity and in a reduction of the layout area. Adjacent ones of the logic circuits have a common source diffusion layer so that the load capacitance with respect to the inverse signal can be significantly reduced, thus enabling the high speed operation.