A Comprehensive Mixed-Mode Time-Domain Load- and Source-Pull Measurement System

We present a novel test set devised for nonlinear balanced device characterization using load-pull techniques. The system is capable of measuring the voltage and current waveforms at the calibration reference planes while independently tuning the device under test (DUT) source and load differential- and common-mode terminations. The test set is designed to address present and future large-signal multiport measurement needs, easing the characterization task while developing new multiport active device

Fully integrated CMOS power amplifier design using the distributed active-transformer architecture

A novel on-chip impedance matching and power-combining method, the distributed active transformer is presented. It combines several low-voltage push-pull amplifiers efficiently with their outputs in series to produce a larger output power while maintaining a 50-Ω match. It also uses virtual ac grounds and magnetic couplings extensively to eliminate the need for any off-chip component, such as tuned bonding wires or external inductors. Furthermore, it desensitizes the operation of the amplifier to the inductance of bonding wires making the design more reproducible. To demonstrate the feasibility of this concept, a 2.4-GHz 2-W 2-V truly fully integrated power amplifier with 50-Ω input and output matching has been fabricated using 0.35-μm CMOS transistors. It achieves a power added efficiency (PAE) of 41 % at this power level. It can also produce 450 mW using a 1-V supply. Harmonic suppression is 64 dBc or better. This new topology makes possible a truly fully integrated watt-level gigahertz range low-voltage CMOS power amplifier for the first time

Design of an Active Harmonic Rejection N-Path Filter for Highly Tunable RF Channel Selection

As the number of wireless devices in the world increases, so does the demand for flexible radio receiver architectures capable of operating over a wide range of frequencies and communication protocols. The resonance-based channel-select filters used in traditional radio architectures have a fixed frequency response, making them poorly suited for such a receiver. The N-path filter is based on 1960s technology that has received renewed interest in recent years for its application as a linear high Q filter at radio frequencies. N-path filters use passive mixers to apply a frequency transformation to a baseband low-pass filter in order to achieve a high-Q band-pass response at high frequencies. The clock frequency determines the center frequency of the band-pass filter, which makes the filter highly tunable over a broad frequency range. Issues with harmonic transfer and poor attenuation limit the feasibility of using N-path filters in practice. The goal of this thesis is to design an integrated active N-path filter that improves upon the passive N-path filter’s poor harmonic rejection and limited outof- band attenuation. The integrated circuit (IC) is implemented using the CMRF8SF 130nm CMOS process. The design uses a multi-phase clock generation circuit to implement a harmonic rejection mixer in order to suppress the 3rd and 5th harmonic. The completed active N-path filter has a tuning range of 200MHz to 1GHz and the out-ofband attenuation exceeds 60dB throughout this range. The frequency response exhibits a 14.7dB gain at the center frequency and a -3dB bandwidth of 6.8MHz

A 300-800MHz Tunable Filter and Linearized LNA applied in a Low-Noise Harmonic-Rejection RF-Sampling Receiver

A multiband flexible RF-sampling receiver aimed at software-defined radio is presented. The wideband RF sampling function is enabled by a recently proposed discrete-time mixing downconverter. This work exploits a voltage-sensing LNA preceded by a tunable LC pre-filter with one external coil to demonstrate an RF-sampling receiver with low noise figure (NF) and high harmonic rejection (HR). The second-order LC filter provides voltage pre-gain and attenuates the source noise aliasing, and it also improves the HR ratio of the sampling downconverter. The LNA consists of a simple amplifier topology built from inverters and resistors to improve the third-order nonlinearity via an enhanced voltage mirror technique. The RF-sampling receiver employs 8 times oversampling covering 300 to 800 MHz in two RF sub-bands. The chip is realized in 65 nm CMOS and the measured gain across the band is between 22 and 28 dB, while achieving a NF between 0.8 to 4.3 dB. The IIP2 varies between +38 and +49 dBm and the IIP3 between -14 dBm and -9 dBm, and the third and fifth order HR ratios are more than 60 dB. The LNA and downconverter consumes 6 mW, and the clock generator takes 12 mW at 800 MHz RF.\ud \u

RF power amplifier design optimization using measurement data and statistical methods

Abstract. Constantly growing number of mobile data users, and thus the mobile data, creates challenges for spectral efficient data transmission. A high data throughput of a base station requires linear modulation methods and broadband signals. Radio frequency (RF) power amplifier (PA) as a part of base station has an important role making the output signal of the transceiver as linear and spectral efficient as possible. The key RF parameters such as peak power, efficiency, linearity and gain suffer from productional variety which needs to be taken into account in design process. In this thesis, the RF PA design is optimized to tolerate the productional variety of certain RF parameters. The effects of productional variety are pre-analyzed by building the design using corner sample transistors. The build consists of seven different PA module versions where the RF transistor’s internal matchings are modified. The best information of the PA performance is gathered from measurement results and therefore, the presented design optimization method is based on hardware measuring and tuning. Measurement results are compared to self-defined specification limits of each RF parameter and to the nominal version. Another method for analyzing a build which aims for illustrating large population of PA modules is statistical analysis. Along with the help of process capability index Cpk, the statistical behavior compared to the specification limits is evaluated. Peak power proved to be the optimized parameter. Changing the biasing of the transistor and tuning the external input matching network, the peak power results increased. The measurement results proved that the RF PA design is optimized to tolerate the productional variety better with the design optimization method presented in this thesis.RF-tehovahvistinsuunnittelun optimointi mittausdataa ja tilastollisia menetelmiä käyttäen. Tiivistelmä. Mobiilidatan käyttäjien, ja siten myös mobiilidatan määrä on jatkuvasti kasvussa, mikä luo haasteita spektritehokkaaseen datansiirtoon. Tukiaseman suuri datansyöttö vaatii laajakaistaisia signaaleja sekä lineaarisia modulointimenetelmiä. RF-tehovahvistimella on siis tärkeä rooli tukiaseman osana saada lähtösignaalista mahdollisimman lineaarinen ja spektritehokas. Tehovahvistimen RF-parametrit, kuten huipputeho, hyötysuhde, lineaarisuus sekä vahvistus kärsivät tuotannollisesta vaihtelusta, kun tehovahvistinmoduulia aletaan tuottaa suuria määriä. Tämän opinnäytetyön tarkoituksena on optimoida RF-tehovahvistimen suunnittelu sellaiseksi, että se on sietokykyinen tiettyjen RF-parametrien tuotannolliselle vaihtelulle. Tuotannollisen vaihtelun vaikutuksia analysoidaan etukäteen käyttämällä tehovahvistimessa kulmanäytetransistoria. Kulmanäytteet koostuvat seitsemästä erilaisesta versiosta, jossa RF-transistorin sisäisiä sovituksia on muunneltu. Paras tieto tehovahvistimen käyttäytymisestä saadaan mittaustuloksista, minkä takia työssä käytetään mittauksiin ja laitteiston hienosäätämiseen perustuvaa optimointimetodia. Kulmanäytteiden mittaustuloksia verrataan itse määrittelemiin RF-parametrien spesifikaatioihin sekä nominaaliversioon. Toinen analyysimetodi suuren tehovahvistinmoduulimäärän havainnollistamiseen on tilastollinen analyysi. Prosessin kyvykkyysindeksin Cpk analysoinnin kanssa, RF-parametrien tilastollinen käyttäytyminen spesifikaatiorajoihin verrattuna voidaan arvioida. Huipputeho osoittautui optimoitavaksi parametriksi. Transistorin biasoinnin muutoksella sekä tulon ulkoisen sovituspiirin muokkauksella huipputehoa saatiin kasvatettua. Mittaustulokset osoittavat, että työssä esitetyllä suunnittelun optimointimetodilla tehovahvistin saatiin sietämään tuotannollista vaihtelua paremmin

A Noise-Shifting Differential Colpitts VCO

A novel noise-shifting differential Colpitts VCO is presented. It uses current switching to lower phase noise by cyclostationary noise alignment and improve the start-up condition. A design strategy is also devised to enhance the phase noise performance of quadrature coupled oscillators. Two integrated VCOs are presented as design examples

DAC-Less amplifier-less generation and transmission of QAM signals using sub-volt silicon-organic hybrid modulators

We demonstrate generation and transmission of optical signals by directly interfacing highly efficient silicon-organic hybrid (SOH) modulators to binary output ports of a field-programmable gate array. Using an SOH Mach-Zehnder modulator (MZM) and an SOH IQ modulator we generate ON-OFF- keying and binary phase-shift keying signals as well as quadrature phase-shift keying and 16-state quadrature amplitude modulation (16QAM) formats. Peak-to-peak voltages amount to only 0.27 V-pp for driving the MZM and 0.41 V-pp for the IQ modulator. Neither digital-to-analog converters nor drive amplifiers are required, and the RF energy consumption in the modulator amounts to record-low 18 fJ/bit for 16QAM signaling

Design of a low-noise optoelectronic amplifier channel for a laser radar

Abstract. The goal of this Master’s thesis is to find and develop the best topologies and circuit structures for a low-noise amplifier channel for a laser radar application. In this work different topologies, their strengths, weaknesses and challenges are studied. Low-noise optoelectronic amplifier channels have been used extensively in a variety of applications such as wireless communication, optical receivers and laser radar. The common constraint for all the mentioned applications is the noise. The optical input signal for optoelectronic receivers can be very weak. In order to detect the signal reliably and accurately, the receiver must not add significant noise to the input signal. Therefore, this thesis concentrates on improving the signal to noise ratio (SNR) by minimizing the noise sources, filtering the high frequency noise and amplifying the signal. In addition, the delay of the whole channel should be constant with respect to signal strength, supply voltage etc. variations. This low-noise optoelectronic amplifier channel can be employed in a laser radar to detect the distance of several kilometers.Pienikohinaisen optoelektronisen vahvistinkanavan suunnittelu lasertutkasovellukseen. Tiivistelmä. Tämän diplomityön tavoitteena on etsiä ja kehittää sopivia piiriratkaisuja ja -rakenteita lasertutkan pienikohinaiseen vahvistinkanavaan. Työssä tutkittiin eri rakenteita, niiden vahvuuksia, heikkouksia ja haasteita. Pienikohinaisia optoelektronisia vahvistinkanavia on käytetty paljon useissa sovelluksissa kuten langattomassa viestinnässä, optisissa vastaanottimissa ja lasertutkissa. Näissä sovelluksissa yhteisenä haasteena on kohina. Optoelektronisen vastaanottimen tulosignaali voi olla hyvin heikko, joten tarkan ja luotettavan vastaanoton varmistamiseksi vastaanottimen itsessään tulee olla hyvin pienikohinainen. Tässä työssä keskityttiinkin signaalikohinasuhteen (SNR) optimointiin minimoimalla itse kohinalähteet, suodattamalla korkeataajuista kohinaa ja vahvistamalla signaalia. Lisäksi koko kanavan viive oli pidettävä mahdollisimman vakiona eri signaalitasoilla, eri lämpötiloissa, eri käyttöjännitteillä jne. Työssä kehitettyä optoelektronista vahvistinkanavaa voidaan käyttää lasertutkissa mittaamaan etäisyyksiä kilometrien päässä oleviin kohteisiin

Survey on individual components for a 5 GHz receiver system using 130 nm CMOS technology

La intención de esta tesis es recopilar información desde un punto de vista general sobre los diferentes tipos de componentes utilizados en un receptor de señales a 5 GHz utilizando tecnología CMOS. Se ha realizado una descripción y análisis de cada uno de los componentes que forman el sistema, destacando diferentes tipos de configuraciones, figuras de mérito y otros parámetros. Se muestra una tabla resumen al final de cada sección, comparando algunos diseños que se han ido presentando a lo largo de los años en conferencias internacionales de la IEEE.The intention of this thesis is to gather information from an overview point about the different types of components used in a 5 GHz receiver using CMOS technology. A review of each of the components that form the system has been made, highlighting different types of configurations, figure of merits and parameters. A summary table is shown at the end of each section, comparing many designs that have been presented over the years at international conferences of the IEEE.Departamento de Ingeniería Energética y FluidomecánicaGrado en Ingeniería en Electrónica Industrial y Automátic