0.9–10.6 GHz UWB mixer using current bleeding for multi‐band application

Abstract

A complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) downconversion mixer for ultra-wideband (UWB) applications is presented. The mixer circuit is designed using a VIS 0.25 μm radio frequency (RF) CMOS technology, working at the 0.9-10.6 GHz frequency range; it will be used in applications such as IEEE wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi), global systems for mobile (GSM) and worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX). The core of the mixer has been designed based on double-balanced cell architecture, and uses the current-bleeding method to increase the linearity and improve the conversion gain. A resistor is put on the drain of the MOS between two RF inputs, which will improve the flatness of the conversion gain. The measured conversion gain of the mixer is 8.6 ± 1 dB. The 1 dB compression point of the intermediate frequency (IF) output power is equal to -8 dBm. The RF and the local oscillator (LO) input return loss are well below -9 dB. The noise figure is 13.1 dB, whereas the IF is 100 MHz, and the mixer core dissipates 9.8 mW under a 1.8 V supply. The analytical, simulated and measured results are mutually consistent.