A 206.4 dBc/Hz FoMT Class-F23 VCO using nonlinear-capacitance-transforming technique

Abstract

—In this paper, a class-F23 VCO using nonlinear-capacitance transforming technique to simultaneously achieve low phase noise and a wide tuning range is proposed. The phase noise degradation due to the nonlinearity of the switched capacitor in the class-F23 oscillator is analyzed and quantitatively derived. The phase noise contributed by the nonlinear capacitance can be suppressed by using the proposed nonlinear-capacitance transformation technique. In order to achieve low phase noise over a wide bandwidth, the asymmetric-toggling method is utilized to achieve optimal capacitance ratios across the entire frequency range. Implemented in a 40-nm CMOS process, the proposed oscillator exhibits 41.2 % tuning range from 2.58 GHz to 3.92 GHz while consuming 13.8 mW–14.9 mW power dissipation. The phase noises at 2.58 GHz and 3.92 GHz oscillation frequencies are −136.4 dBc/Hz and −129.6 dBc/Hz at 1-MHz offset. The minimum phase noise is −157.2 dBc/Hz at 10 MHz offset, corresponding to an FoM of 194.1 dBc/Hz and FoMT of 206.4 dBc/Hz.