CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.0 INTRODUCTION

The advances in many fields of science have, either directly or indirectly been
dependent on the evolution of electronics devices. The electronic devices and
systems are definitely inseparable from our everyday life affecting our lifestyle
and life quality. As an example, today’s computers with incredible capabilities
have control on our life in many ways. In addition, the revolutions in
communication, media, transportation, etc. have been due to advances in
electronics. It is hard to believe that all of these advances have occurred only
in a few decades, revolutionizing the human life. These electronic
communication devices require fast clocks for fast, reliable and effective data
transmission and reception.

The amount of data that have to be transmitted over the global communication
networks has increased exponentially, mainly driven by the rapid growth of the
internet. The network devices are for instance used to synchronize the data flow
in data communication. These result in the need to design fast and reliable
devices capable of processing all these data at the required high speed. High-
performance digital systems use clocks to sequence operations and synchronize
between functional units and between ICs. Clock frequencies and data rates have
been increasing with each generation of processing technology and processor
architecture. Within these digital systems, clocks giving accurate timing are
generated with phase-locked loops (PLLs) and then distributed on-chip with clock
buffers. The rapid increase of the systems’ clock frequency poses challenges in
1
generating and distributing the clock with low uncertainty and low power
(Mozhgan, 2003). Voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) forms the heart of the PLL .

High frequency oscillators are needed for the construction of fast clocks. For data
recovery the oscillation (clocking) must be at different frequencies. This is
achieved normally using voltage controlled oscillator (VCO). The frequency of the
VCO determines the speed of the clock. If there is noise, in the VCO it makes the
output of the clock lower. The efficiency, reliability and speed of data
transmission in the communication systems are all related to the speed of the
processor of the two communicating hardware items. The processor speed is
based on its clock. This means that if the clock is fast, then the processor will be
able to process large amount of data within a short period. Very high frequency
oscillator free from noise is therefore vital to digital communication systems.

Clock and data recovery circuits in data communication need to be designed

nowadays using bipolar junction transistors (BJTs) for their high power handling
capabilities compared to metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors
(MOSFETs) at high frequency. (Malcolm, 2003).

1.1 AIM

The aim of this work is to design and simulation high frequency voltage controlled
oscillator that can be used in the construction of fast clocks for processors.

1.2 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

I. An amplifier that has wide frequency range (wideband amplifier) was

designed and simulated.

2
 II. Colpitts oscillator with a frequency of 900MHz was designed and simulated
using the above amplifier.
III. The colpitts oscillator was modified to LC tuned VCO with a frequency range
of 800MHz to 1.5GHz

1.3 SCOPE AND LIMITATION

The scope of this work is the design of LC tuned VCO using colpitt oscillator
configuration.

The limitation of the

3
 CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 DIRECT CURRENT CIRCUITS

Direct current (DC) circuit analysis deals with constant currents and voltages,
while alternating current (AC) circuit analysis deals with time-varying voltage and
current signals whose time average values are zero. Circuits with time-average
values of non-zero are also important .

2.1.1 Kirchoff’s Laws

The conservation of energy and conservation of charge when applied to electrical

circuits are known as Kirchoff’s laws.

Conservation of energy– the algebraic sum of the voltage drops V i around a closed
circuit loop (imaginary loop) is equal to zero.

∑ V i=0 … … … 2.1
i

Conservation of charge– the algebraic sum of the currents I k flowing into a point is
equal to zero (total charge in, equals total charge out).

∑ I k =0 … … … 2.2
k

2.1.2 Series and Parallel Combinations of Resistors

4
Circuit elements are connected in series when a common current passes through
each element. The equivalent resistance R eq of a combination of resistors R i
connected in series is given by summing the voltage drops across each resistor.

V =∑ V i … … …2.3
i

I R eq=I ∑ Ri … … … 2.4
i

Req =∑ Ri … … … 2.5
i

Circuit elements are connected in parallel when a common voltage is applied

across each element. The equivalent resistance R eq of a combination of resistors Ri
connected in parallel is given by summing the current through each resistor.

V V
I= =∑ I i=∑ … … …2.6
R eq i i Ri

1 1
=∑ … … …2.7
R eq i Ri

2.1.3 Voltage Divider

Figure 2.1: Divider circuit: (a) voltage divider and (b) current divider.

5
Consider the voltage divider shown in figure 2.1a, applying Kirchoff’s voltage law
we have

V ¿ =( R1 + R2 ) I … … … 2.8

The voltage across the output between terminals A and B is

V out =R 2 I … … … 2.9

The output voltage from the voltage divider is thus given by

R2
V out = V ¿ … … … 2.10
R1 + R2

2.1.4 Current Divider

Consider the current divider shown in figure 2.1b. The source current is divided
between the two resistors and is given by

V V
I ¿=I 1 + I 2= + … … … 2.11
R1 R 2

The voltage at the output is

V =I out R2 … … … 2.12

The output current from the current divider is thus

R1
I out = I … … … 2.13
R1 + R2 1

2.1.5 Thevenin’s and Norton’s Theorems

A Thevenin’s equivalent circuit contains an equivalent voltage source V Th in series

with an equivalent resistor R Th. A Norton equivalent circuit contains an equivalent
current source IN in parallel with an equivalent resistor RN.
6
One approach to determine the equivalent circuits is:

1. Thevenin – calculate the open-circuit voltage VAB = VTh.

Figure 2.2 Thevenin and Norton equivalent circuits.

2. Norton – calculate the short-circuit current between A and B; I N.

3. RTh = RN = VTh/IN.

2.2 ALTERNATING CURRENT CIRCUITS

Alternating current circuits (AC circuits) are circuits in which voltages and currents
may vary with time.

In general, signals will have both DC and AC properties

V(t)=VAC(t)+VDC ……… 2.14

The DC properties can be treated separately using the methods already described
above. The algebraic equations representing Kirchoff’s laws for DC circuits will
take the form of differential equations for AC circuits. In AC circuits we have the
additional circuit elements, capacitance C and inductance L, which store energy in
electric and magnetic fields respectively. C and L are referred to as reactive

7
elements while R is a resistive element. All three of these elements are
considered passive elements.

2.2.1 Capacitor

The fundamental property of a capacitor is that it can store charge and hence
electric field energy. The capacitance C between two appropriate surfaces is
defined by

Q
V= … … … 2.15
C

Where V is the potential difference between the surfaces and Q is the magnitude
of the charge distributed on either surface. In terms of current

dQ
I= ……… 2.16
dt

implies

dV 1 dQ I
= = … … … 2.17
dt C dt C

There are four principle functions of a capacitor in a circuit.

1. Since charge and electric field can be stored, a capacitor can be used as a (non-
ideal) source of current and voltage.

2. Capacitor passes AC current but not DC current, it can therefore be used to

connect parts of a circuit that must operate at different DC voltage levels.

3. A capacitor and resistor in series will limit current and hence smooth sharp
edges in voltage signals.

8
4. Charging or discharging a capacitor with a constant current results in the
capacitor having a voltage signal with a constant slope.

Like resistors and inductors, capacitors can be connected in series, in parallel or in

series-parallel.

Placing capacitors in series effectively increases the thickness of the dielectric,

and so reduces the total capacitance. Because the total capacitance is inversely
proportional to the distance between the plates, the formula we use for
capacitors in series is;

1 1
=∑ … … … 2.18
Ceq i C i

Note that the voltage across each capacitor will be inversely proportional to the
capacitance, with the total voltage being shared out between the capacitors, the
smallest capacitance having the largest voltage across it and the largest
capacitance having the smallest voltage etc.

Connecting capacitors in parallel effectively increases the area of the plates,

therefore the total capacitance is given by the sum of the individual capacitances.

C eq=∑ Ci … … … 2.19
i

Parallel capacitors all charge to the same voltage.

2.2.2 Inductors

Inductors are components that consist of coils of insulated copper wire wound
around a former that will have some type of core at its center. This core might be
a metal such as iron that can be easily magnetized. Inductors depend for their

9
action on the magnetic field that is present around any conductor when it is
carrying a current. If the wire coil is wound around a core made of a material that
is easily magnetized, such as iron, then the magnetic field around the coil is
concentrated within the core; this greatly increases the efficiency of the inductor

Faraday’s law applied to an inductor states that a changing current induces a back
electromotive force (EMF) that opposes the change. Or

dI
V =V A−V B=L … … … 2.20
dt

Where V is the voltage across the inductor and L is the inductance measured in
henry (H). The inductance will tend to smooth sudden changes in current just as
the capacitance smoothes sudden changes in voltage. If the current is constant
there will be no induced EMF. So unlike the capacitor which behaves like an open-
circuit in DC circuits, an inductor behaves like a short-circuit in DC circuits.

Applications using inductors are less common than those using capacitors, but
inductors are very common in high frequency circuits.

2.2.3 Reactance

This is the opposition offered to the flow of current by capacitor (capacitive

reactance) and inductor (inductive reactance). Inductive and capacitive reactance,
each has opposite effects in relation to frequency. Inductive reactance rises with
an increase in frequency, and capacitive reactance falls. Both are similar to
resistance and are measured in Ohms, but resistance is not dependent on
frequency, whilst reactance is.

The inductive reactance XL is given by

10
 X L =2 πfL=ωf … … …2.21

The capacitive reactance XC is given by

1 1
XC= = … … … 2.22
2 πfC ωC

Where 2πf = ω is the angular velocity and f is the frequency of the applied
alternating current (AC).

2.3 LCR Series Circuits

LCR series circuit is a circuit that contains inductor, capacitor and resistor
connected together in series and supplied with an alternating voltage as shown in
figure 2.3. In such an arrangement, the same circuit supply current (I S) flows
through all the components of the circuit, and V R, VL and VC indicate the voltages
across the resistor, the inductor and the capacitor respectively. Where V S is the
supplied voltage.

Figure 2.3 LCR series circuit

11
The phase relationship between the supply voltage V S and the circuit current IS
depends on the frequency of the supply voltage, and on the relative values of
inductance and capacitance, and whether the inductive reactance (X L) is greater
or less than the capacitive reactance (X C). Figure 2.4 shows the circuit conditions
when the inductive reactance (XL) is greater than the capacitive reactance (X C). In
this case, since both L and C carry the same current, and X L is greater than XC, it
follows that VL must be greater than VC.

Figure 2.4 VL is greater than VC so the circuit behaves like an inductor

From figure 2.4 it follows that

V S =√ ¿ ¿

Since the same current flows, the impedance (Z) is given by

Z=√ ¿ ¿

12
Series Resonance occurs when the inductive reactance is equal to the capacitive
reactance. Figure 2.5 shows that at resonance:

i. VC is equal to, but in anti-phase to VL

ii. Impedance (Z) is at minimum and equal to the resistance (R)
iii. Circuit current (IS) is at a maximum.
iv. The circuit is entirely resistive.

Below resonance, the circuit is capacitive and above resonance the circuit is
inductive.

Figure 2.5 The Properties of a Series LCR Circuit at Resonance.

The resonant frequency is given by

X L =X C … … … 2.25

1
2 π f r L= … … … 2.26
2 π f rC

1
f r= … … 2.27
2 π √ LC

13
Equation (2.27) is widely used at radio frequencies. It is often not accurate
enough at low frequencies where large inductors, having considerable internal
resistance are used. The formula below can be used for low frequency (large
internal resistance) calculations.

√
2
1 1 R
f r= − 2 … … … 2.28
2π LC L

2.4 Parallel LCR Circuit

Parallel LCR circuit is a circuit consisting of inductor, L, capacitor, C and resistor, R

connected in parallel as shown in figure 2.6.

Figure2.6 Parallel LCR circuit

The circuit in Figure 2.7 is an "Ideal" LC circuit consisting of only an inductor L and
a capacitor C connected in parallel. It allows consideration of the effects of L and
C, ignoring any circuit resistance that would be present in a practical circuit.

14
Figure 2.7 Tank circuit

Figure 2.8 shows phasor diagrams for the circuit in Figure 2.7 under three
different conditions, below, above and at resonance. Unlike the phasor diagrams
for series circuits, these diagrams have a voltage VS as the reference (horizontal)
phasor, and have several phasors depicting currents. This is because; in a parallel
circuit the voltage VS is common to both the L and C arms of the circuit but
each of the component arms (L and C) has individual currents. The phasors for
L and C seem to be reversed compared with the phasor diagrams for series
circuits. The parallel phasor diagram shows the current I C through the
capacitor leading the supply voltage VS by 90°, while the inductive current IL

15
lags the supply voltage by 90°.

Figure 2.8 Phasor diagram of parallel LCR circuit

The supply current IS will be the phasor sum of I C and IL but as, in the ideal
circuit, there is no resistance present, I C and IL are in antiphase, and I S will be
simply the difference between them. Figure 2.8a shows the circuit operating at
some frequency below resonance ƒ r where IL is greater than IC and the total
current through the circuit I S is given by IL− IC and will be in phase with I L, and it
will be lagging the supply voltage by 90°. Therefore at frequencies below ƒ r more
current flows through L than through C and so the parallel circuit acts as an
INDUCTOR. Figure 2.8b shows the conditions when the circuit is operating above
ƒr. Here, because XC will be lower than XL more current will flow through C. IC is
therefore greater than IL and as a result, the total circuit current I S can be given as
IL− IC but this time IS is in phase with IC. The circuit is now acting as a CAPACITOR.

At resonance (ƒr) shown in Figure 2.8c, the reactances of C and L will be equal, so
an equal amount of current flows in each arm of the circuit, (I C = IL). Considerable
16
current is flowing in each arm of the circuit, but the supply current is zero.
Current is in effect "stored" within the parallel circuit at resonance, without being
released. For this reason the circuit is sometimes also called a "tank circuit" or
“resonator”. Ignoring resistance, the resonant frequency of a LC parallel circuit is
given by the same formula as is used for LC series circuits.

2.5 Diode

Diode is made by joining a P-type and N-type semiconductor together as shown

below

Figure 2.9 PN Junction Diode

Initially both semiconductors are totally neutral. The concentrations of positive

and negative carriers are quite different on opposite sides of the junction and the
thermal energy powered diffusion of positive carriers into the N-type material and

17
negative carriers into the P-type material occurs. The N-type material acquires an
excess of positive charge near the junction and the P-type material acquires an
excess of negative charge. Eventually diffuse charges build up and an electric field
is created which drives the minority charges and eventually equilibrium is
reached. A region develops at the junction called the depletion region. This region
is essentially un-doped or just intrinsic silicon. To complete the diode conductor,
leads are placed at the ends of the PN junction.

The behavior of a diode depends on its polarity in the circuit (figure 2.10). If the
diode is reverse biased (positive potential on N-type material) the depletion
region increases. The only charge carriers able to support a net current across the
PN junction are the minority carriers and hence the reverse current is very small.
A forward-biased diode (positive potential on P-type material) has a decreased
depletion region; the majority carriers can diffuse across the junction. The voltage
may become high enough to eliminate the depletion region entirely.

Figure 2.10 Diode circuit connections

18
The current-voltage curve for diode is shown in figure 2.11.

Figure 2.10 V-I diode characteristics

The following points apply to diode:

i. Diode is operated in both forward and reverse biased.

ii. The knee of the curve in forward bias is the point at which the barrier
potential is overcome and the current increases rapidly.
iii. A forward-biased diode is normally operated above the knee of the curve.
iv. A reverse-biased diode is normally operated below the knee of the curve.
v. The breakdown voltage is always much greater than the barrier potential.
vi. The barrier potential decreases as temperature increases.

The above characteristics can be described analytically using equation called

Boltzmann diode equation given below:
19
 ( )
V
e
I =I o e ᶯKT
−1 ampere … … … 2.29

Where IO = diode reverse saturation current

V = voltage across junction-positive for forward bias and negative for

reverse bias.

K = Boltzmann constant

T = crystal temperature

ᶯ = 1 for germanium and 2 for silicon

Diodes are the simplest of all the semiconductor devices, but have a very wide
range of uses, including:

a. Rectification − changing A.C. power to D.C. power.

b. Demodulation − recovering audio or video information from radio signals.
c. Illumination − light emitting diodes, made from materials such as Gallium
Phosphide rather than silicon, replace filament lamps in many applications.
d. Stabilisation. − Zener diodes can be used to set very precise voltage values
in such circuits as d.c. power supplies.
e. Protection − diodes can be used to protect circuits from being damaged by
such things as wrong polarity supply connection, and abnormally high
voltages or currents.
f. Frequency tuning – varactor diode is used to make the frequency of

oscillator tunable.

2.5.1 Varactor diode

20
A varactor diode changes capacitance proportional to the reverse bias across the
PN junction. Two common types of varactor diodes are abrupt and hyperabrupt
junctions varactor diodes. The abrupt junction varactor diode is made with a
linearly doped PN junction and typically has a capacitance change of 4:1 or less
over the specified range of reverse bias. Abrupt junction diodes are available with
maximum reverse bias voltages between 5V and 60V. A hyperabrupt junction
varactor diode has a non-linear doped PN junction that increases the capacitance
change vs. reverse bias and may have a 10:1 capacitance change. Varactor diode
may be manufactured in Si or GaAs. The GaAs process offers a varactor diode with
lower capacitance for the same resistance due to the higher electron mobility
than Si. Therefore the Q of a GaAs varactor is slightly higher than that of silicon.
However, the flicker noise of a varactor made in GaAs is very high and would
deteriorate the phase noise significantly (Jason, 2001). For this reason, only silicon
hyperabrupt junction diodes were considered for this design. The depletion
capacitance of varactor diode is given by:

C j0
C j=
………. (2.30)
( )
m
V
1+
α

Where Cj0 is the zero bias capacitance, V is the applied voltage, α is the contact
potential (0.6 for Si), and m is the diode law (Malcolm, 2003).

Generally the use of a varactor diode in a circuit requires connecting it to a tuned

circuit, usually in parallel with any existing capacitance or inductance. Because a
DC voltage must be applied reverse bias across the varactor diode to alter its
capacitance, this must be blocked from entering the tuned circuit. This is
accomplished by placing a DC blocking capacitor with a capacitance about 100

21
times greater than the maximum capacitance of the varactor diode in series with
it and applying the DC from a high impedance source to the node between the
varactor diode’s cathode and the blocking capacitor as shown in figure 2.11.

Figure 2.11 Varactor diode circuits

Since no significant DC current flows in the varactor diode, the value of the
resistor connecting its cathode back to the DC control voltage can be somewhere
in the range of 22KΩ to 150KΩ and the blocking capacitor somewhere in the
range of 5-100nF. Sometimes, with very high-Q tuned circuits; an inductor is
placed in series with the resistor to increase the source impedance of the control
voltage so as not to load the tuned circuit and decrease its Q.

A second circuit using two back-to-back (cathode to cathode), series-connected

varactor diodes is another common configuration. The second varactor effectively
replaces the blocking capacitor in the first circuit. This reduces the overall
capacitance and the capacitance range by half, but possesses the advantage of
reducing the AC component of voltage across each device and symmetrical

22
distortion should the AC component possess enough amplitude to bias the
varactor diode into forward conduction (Adrio Communications Ltd, 2013).

2.6 TRANSISTOR

A transistor is three-terminal device formed by sandwiching two diodes placed

very close to each other that the current in either diode had an important effect
on the current in the other diode.

General classes of transistors that are used in electronics today include:

a) Bipolar junction transistors (BJT)

b) Junction field effect transistors (JFET)
c) Metal-oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFET)
d) Insulated-gate bipolar transistors (IGBT)

These transistors each have one advantage or the other over one another. The
type to use depends on the purpose for which it intended for. For example, the
table below gives the comparison between BJTs and MOSFETs.

Sl
BJT MOSFET
No

1 It is a Bipolar Device It is majority carrier Device

2 Current control Device Voltage control Device.

3 Output is controlled by controlling base current Output is controlled by controlling gate voltage

4 Negative temperature coefficient Positive temperature coefficient

23
 5 So paralleling of BJT is difficult. So paralleling of this device is easy.

Dive circuit is complex. It should provide Dive circuit is simple. It should provide
6
constant current(Base current) constant voltage(gate voltage)

7 Losses are low. Losses are higher than BJTs.

8 So used in high power applications. Used in low power applications.

9 BJTs have high voltage and current ratings. They have less voltage and current ratings.

10 Switching frequency is lower than MOSFET. Switching frequency is high.

Table 2.1 Comparison between BJTs and MOSFETs.

2.6.1 Bipolar Junction Transistors

By placing two PN junctions together we can create a bipolar junction transistor.

In a PNP transistor the majority charge carriers are holes and germanium is
favoured for these devices. Silicon is best for NPN transistors where the majority
charge carriers are electrons. The thin and lightly doped central region is known
as the base (B) and has majority charge carriers of opposite polarity to those in
the surrounding material. The two outer regions are known as the emitter (E) and
the collector (C). Under the proper operating conditions the emitter will emit or
inject majority charge carriers into the base region, and because the base is very
thin, most will ultimately reach the collector. The emitter is highly doped to
reduce resistance. The collector is lightly doped to reduce the junction
capacitance of the collector-base junction.

When the transistor is biased for normal operation as in figure 2.12a, the base
terminal is slightly positive with respect to the emitter (about 0.7 V for silicon),
and the collector is positive by several volts. When properly biased, the transistor
acts to make IC >> IB. The depletion region at the reverse-biased base-collector

24
junction grows and is able to support the increased electric potential change
indicated in the figure 2.12b. For a typical transistor, 95% to 99% of the charge
carriers from the emitter make it to the collector and constitute almost all the
collector current IC. IC is slightly less than IE and we may write

IC
α= … … … 2.30
IE

where α=0.95 to 0.99.

Figure 2.12 (a) NPN transistor biased for operation and (b) voltage levels
developed within the biased semiconductor.

The behavior of a transistor can be summarized by the characteristic curves

shown in figure 2.13. Each curve starts from zero in a nonlinear fashion, rises
smoothly, and then rounds a knee to enter a region of essentially constant I C. This
flat region corresponds to the condition where the depletion region at the base-
emitter junction has essentially disappeared. To be useful as a linear amplifier, the
transistor must be operated exclusively in the flat region, where the collector
25
current is determined by the base current. A small current flow into the base
controls a much larger current flow into the collector. We can write

IC
β= … … … 2.31
IB

Where β is the DC current gain.

From equation and conservation of charge,

I E =I C + I B … … …2.32

We have

α
β= … … …2.33
1−α

a b

Figure 2.13 (a) Output, (b) input characteristics of a transistor

26
There are three common configurations: common emitter (CE), common collector
(CC) and common base (CB), as shown in figure 2.14

Figure 2.14 Transistor basic circuit configurations: a) common emitter (CE), b)

common collector (CC) and c) common base (CB).

The operating characteristics of the different circuit configurations are shown in

table 2.2 below.

Characteristic CE CC CB

Power gain yes Yes yes

voltage gain Yes No yes

current gain Yes Yes no

Input resistance 3.5 kΩ 580 kΩ 30 Ω

output resistance 200 kΩ 35Ω 3.1 MΩ

voltage phase Yes No No

change

Table 2.2 Operating characteristics of the different transistor configurations

27
2.7 AMPLIFIER

An amplifier is used to increase the amplitude of a signal waveform, without

changing other parameters of the waveform such as frequency or wave shape.

Amplifiers can be described based on the type of signal it is designed to amplify,

usually a band of frequency that the amplifier can handle. Table 2.3 shows some
of these amplifiers, their frequency range and their uses

Amplifier Frequency Range uses

Audio frequency 20Hz to 20KHz used to amplify the low level

(A.F.) signals from microphones, tape
and disk pickups etc

Intermediated 470KHz to 40MHz Use in radio, TV and radar

frequency (I.F.)

Radio Frequency Mostly used as buffer amplifiers

(R.F.)

wideband Wide range of Use in test equipment, oscillators

frequencies (e.g. etc.
few Hertz upto
tens of GHz)

Table 2.3 frequency range and uses of some selected amplifiers

2.7.1 Amplifier design

The design of amplifiers is aimed at producing a circuit that has a predicted gain
over a particular band of frequencies with minimum distortion. The amplifier
28
must also be stable and not prone to oscillation. Bipolar PNP or NPN transistors or
FETs may be used in a wide variety of designs depending on their intended
purpose.

Consider the simple bipolar NPN common emitter amplifier shown in Figure 2.15.
To function correctly the amplifier should produce at its output, an amplified
version of the signal at its input without distortion. In order to do this, its
quiescent or no signal (DC) conditions, must first be correct. Here we have used
voltage divider bias method. Other method of biasing such as base resistor
method and biasing with feedback resistor can be used as well. All involve
applying Kirchoff’s voltage law, Thevenin’s and Nortion’s theorem where
necessary.

Figure 2.15 Common emitter amplifier circuit

The Thevenin’s equivalent circuit of figure 2.15 is as shown in figure 2.16 below

29
Figure 2.16 Thevenin’s equivalent circuit.

Applying Kirchhoff’s law to the output and input side of figure 2.16, we have

VCC = ICRC + VCE + IERE …………. 2.34

VBB = IBRB + VBE + IERE ………….. 2.35

Where VCC, and VBB are the collector and base voltages respectively. R C, RB and RE
are the collector, base and emitter resistors respectively. I C, IB and IE are the
collector, base and emitter current respectively.

In any transistor circuit design DC bias current and voltage must be supplied to
operate in the linear region of the characteristic curve. The DC operating point is
defined by the values of base current I B, collector current IC, base-emitter voltage
VBE and collector emitter voltage V CE. While VCE, IB and IC are determined from the
out characteristics, VBE is determined from the input characteristic and is usually
between 0.6V to 0.7V for silicon transistors.

Stabilization is the process of making the operating point independent of

temperature changes or variation in transistor parameters. A rise of temperature

30
of 100C doubles the collector leakage current according the equation (Mehta and
Mehta 2004).

I C =β I B + I CEO =β I B + ( β+1 ) I CBO … … … … 2.36

Where β is the DC current gain, I CEO is the collector-emitter leakage current and
ICBO is the collector-base leakage current.

This means that IC is increases by (β +1)I CBO for every increase in I CBO and the
increase in IC increases the temperature the more and this may lead to thermal
runaway. Stability factor at constant IB and β is given by

d IC
S= … … … 2.36
d I co

It can be shown that the stability factor for the circuit in figure 2.15 is given by

(R ¿ ¿ B+ RE )
S=(β +1) … … … 2.37 ¿
R B + R E + β RE

RB
1+
RE
¿ ( β +1 ) × … … … 2.38
RB
( β +1 ) +
RE

Where

R 2 R3
R B= … … … 2.39
R2 + R3

RB RB
If the ratio R is very small, then R can be neglected as compared to 1 and the
E E

stability factor becomes:

1
S= ( β+1 ) × =1… … …2.40
( β+ 1 )
31
In actual practice S may be around 10. Thus For thermal stability of the amplifier

we can assume (Alley and Atwood, 1973).

RB ≤ 0.3βRE …………..2.41

RE = 0.2RC ……..2.42

While RB is used to ensure proper operating point RE is used to ensure proper

stability.

From the discussion so far it can be seen that if we substitute the operating point
(Q point: VCC, VCE, VBE, IC, IB, IE and β) values we have four equations (i.e. 2.34, 2.35,
2.41 and 2.42) in four unknown. These can be solved simultaneously.

C2 and C3 are coupling capacitors. Coupling capacitors allow AC signals to pass

while blocking DC at the input and output so that voltages present on preceding
or later circuits will not upset the bias condition for the amplifier. The main
consideration in choosing these capacitor values is to ensure that their capacitive
reactance is low enough, compared with the input impedance of the amplifier, or
any load connected to the output, to allow signals at all the required frequencies
to pass. It basically acts as a high-pass filter and its capacitance is given by:

1
C= … … … 2.43
2 π f min Z

Where fmin is low-frequency cut-off, C is the capacitance of the coupling capacitor

and Z is the input impedance of the amplifier.

R 2 R3 Zin( base)
Z = Zin (base)//R2//R3 = R R +R Z ….. 2.44
2 3 2 in(base) +R 3 Zin(base)

32
 Zin(base) = βre’ ………. 2.45

25mV
re’ = I … … … 2.46
E

Where Zin(base) is the input impedance of the transistor base and re’ is the AC
emitter resistance.

The purpose of bypassed capacitor (C 1) is to prevent any AC signal voltage from

appearing across the emitter resistor RE. Any AC appearing on the emitter of the
transistor would be in phase with the signal at the base, therefore the base and
emitter voltages would rise and fall together, and the difference between base
and emitter voltages would be reduced. This would effectively reduce the input
signal and so reduce the amplifier’s gain. A good rule of the thumb is that the
capacitive reactance of C1 (XC1) of the bypassed capacitor should be at least 10
times smaller than the RE at the minimum frequency of oscillation (Floyd, 2005)

10XC1 ≤ RE ………. 2.47

Voltage gain AV = Amplitude of output voltage ÷ Amplitude of input voltage.

V out
AV = … … … 2.48
V¿

Current gain Ai= Amplitude of output current ÷ Amplitude of input current.

I out
Ai= … … … 2.49
I¿

Power gain Ap = Signal power out ÷ Signal power in.

Pout
A P= … … …2.50
P¿

33
2.8 OSCILLATOR BASICS

Oscillators have been essential component of electronic circuit since Edwin

Armstrong discovered the heterodyne principle, wherein they effect frequency
translation by multiplying the oscillators signal with other input signals
(Armstrong, 1921). Since then oscillators have been an integral part of many
electronic systems. Their applications range from clock generation to carrier
synthesis, and are one of the most challenging blocks in the design of a PLL.

2.8.2 CRITERIA FOR OSCILLATION

A simple oscillator produces a periodic output, usually a voltage signal. The

oscillator circuit has no input however it sustains an output indefinitely. This is
possible only if the overall feedback becomes positive in an amplifier. Thus, the
behavior of oscillators can be modeled as a feedback system as shown in figure
2.17.

Figure 2.17 Feedback Oscillatory System

34
The transfer function of the feedback oscillatory system shown in figure 2.17 is
given by (Razavi, 1997).

Y ( s) G(s)
= ………. (2.51)
X (s) 1−G ( s ) H (s)

For oscillation to occur:

G(s)H(s) ≥ 1 ………………...(2.52)

< G(s) + H(s) = 00 or 3600 …… (2.53)

Equation 2.52 is known as the magnitude criterion for oscillation which states that
the gain represented by G(s)H(s) of the oscillator loop must be equal to one
during standard operation. In practice the loop gain has to be larger than one for
the oscillator to begin to oscillate and for the oscillation amplitude to grow. The
amplitude will eventually saturate due to device nonlinearities, reducing the loop
gain to one and providing a signal with stable amplitude. Equation 2.53 is known
as the phase criterion for oscillation. It states that the phase shift of the oscillator
loop must be zero or a multiple of 2π. This means that the signals with the same
phase are summed at some point in the oscillator. If the phase shift was an odd
multiple of π, then the signals would have opposite phases and would cancel each
other out. In that case there will be no oscillation.

2.9 TYPES OF OSCILLATORS

Setting as priority a high tunable range of frequencies, oscillators can be classified

into two (Dimitrios, Paul and Gert, 2008). They are ring oscillators and LC
oscillators. Tunable oscillators can also be separated into two groups, narrowband
and wideband. A narrowband oscillator may have a tunable range between 5%

35
and 10% and is commonly used in communication systems that require small
amounts of tuning such as channel selection in cellular phones. Wideband
oscillators are able to tune over an octave and some up to a decade of
frequencies. They are used in systems requiring broad frequency range tunability
such as radar systems, highly adaptive communication systems and measurement
equipment.

2.9.1 Ring Oscillaotrs

Ring oscillator is formed when three or more odd number of inverters are
cascaded together as shown in figure 2.18 (Razavi, 2008).

Figure 2.18 an N-stage ring oscillator

The number of inverter stages in a ring oscillator determines the oscillation

frequency of the oscillator. In an N-stage ring oscillator shown in Figure 2.18, the
oscillation frequency is given by

1
f osc=
2Ntp
……… (2.54)

Where tp is the propagation delay of an inverter stage driving an identical inverter

and it can be calculated by

36
 v2
ⅆv
t p=C ∫ ………. (2.55)
v1
i

where i is the current which charges or discharges the capacitor in each

node and v1 and v2 are initial and final voltages over this capacitor. Thus, the
frequency of oscillation is a function of the delay through each stage and the
number of stages. To change the oscillation frequency the propagation delay of
each stage could be adjusted in a number of ways, such as varying the current
through each stage or varying the capacitative load at the output of each stage.
We assume that the output of inverters is changing between 0 and Vdd .
Furthermore, for simplicity we can assume that in each cycle, a constant
current charges or discharges capacitor in each node. This constant current is
the average of the currents at the end points of the voltage transition. Defining
propagation delay as the time it takes the output to reach the 50% point in
its transition gives propagation delay for an inverter as

C V dd
t p= ……….. (2.56)
2 I av

Ring oscillator has wider tuning range than LC counterpart, it is power supply
dependent and hence has worst noise performance compared with LC oscillators,
it is also is easily integrated into IC because it does not need an external
components for its operation (Shu, Lee and Leung, 2004).

2.9.2 LC Oscillators

In networks, consisting of an inductors and capacitors the frequency of oscillation

is inversely related to the values of L and C. LC oscillators generate a very good
shape of sine wave and have quite good frequency stability. That is, the frequency

37
does not change very much for changes in D.C. supply voltage or in ambient
temperature. LC oscillators are extensively used for generating R.F. signals where
good wave shape and reasonable frequency stability is required but is NOT of
prime importance (Ham and Hajimiri 2001). The several types of LC feedback
oscillators are: (a) colpitts, (b) Armstrong , (c) clap, (d) Hartley and (e) crystal -
controlled oscillators.

Most wideband varactor tuned oscillators are a variation of the Colpitts or Hartley
oscillator (Anthony and Vendelin 1990).

(a) COLPITTS OSCILLATOR

Figure 2.19 shows a circuit diagram of a colpitts oscillator. The approximate

frequency of oscillation is the resonant frequency of the LC circuit and is
established by the values of L, C1 and C2 according to the formula:

1
f r= ……… (2.57)
2 π √ L CT

Where C is the series combination of C1 and C2 given by:

C1 C2
CT = ……….. (2.58)
C1 + C2

38
Fig 2.19 Colpitts oscillator

The circuit operation: when the circuit is tuned on, the capacitors C1 and C2 are
charged. The capacitors discharge through L, setting up oscillations determined by
(2.57). The output voltage of the amplifier is developed across C 2 and feedback
appears across C1. The transistor produces a phase shift of 180 0 and the voltage
divider formed by C1 - C2 produces a further phase shift of 180 0 thus the feedback
is properly phased to produce undamped oscillation continuously. The feedback
fraction is given by:

Vf X C1 C2
β= ¿ ¿ …………… (2.59)
Vout X C2 C1

For oscillation to be self-starting:

39
 C1
Av(min) ≥ ……. (6.60)
C2

Where AV(min) is the minimum open loop gain (Theraja B.K. and Theraja B.L.)

2.10 VOLTAGE CONTROLLED-OSCILLATOR (VCO)

Applications such as clock recovery and clock synthesis require the oscillators to
be “tunable”. Tunability means that the output frequency must be a function of
some control input, usually voltage. This voltage could be for example the output
of the loop filter in an analog phase-locked loop, PLL. In an ideal voltage-
controlled oscillator, the output frequency is a linear function of its control
voltage. The voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) forms the heart of a PLL. Figure
2.20 shows the block diagram of VCO.

Figure 2.20 VCO block diagram

Commonly, both ring oscillators and LC oscillators are used in GHz range
applications. However, ring oscillators suffer from poor phase noise compared to
that of LC oscillators and are less suitable for high-end wireless communication
systems (Shu, Lee and Leung, 2004). LC oscillators are more attractive due to their
better phase noise performance and lower power consumption. However, they

40
occupy larger area compared to that of ring oscillators (Ham and Hajimiri 2001).
The quality factor Q of the LC tank is given by

energy stored RP
Q=2 π = …. (2.61)
energy dissipated per cycle f r L

Where RP is the effective resistance of the tank. Higher quality factor Q means
lower VCO phase noise. A good phase noise model is the most important
specification for low phase noise VCO design.

A resonator based LC VCO has a LC tank as a frequency selective circuit consisting

of inductors and capacitors. The energy loss in the tank is compensated by the
active devices. Here varactor diode is employed whose capacitance is controlled
by a reverse biased voltage.

2.10.1 VCO Specifications

 The VCO must exhibit a low Phase Noise in order to meet the Sensitivity
requirement. High Pushing (change of the oscillation frequency with supply
voltage) can cause Phase Noise degradation due to increased sensitivity to
the power supply noise.
 A buffer at the output is necessarily to isolate the VCO from any output
load variations (Pulling) and to provide the required output power. BJTs
offer the advantage of generating high power levels directly from the VCO,
eliminating the need for buffer amplifiers (Axel, 2006) which consume
additional DC power, increase noise, increase module complexity, and
increase cost. The reduction in system complexity is particularly useful for
applications requiring very compact transceiver modules, such as mobile-
phones and PDAs (Chen, Wang, Chen, Luo and Liu, 2010).
41
  The tuning slope is the slope of the frequency to voltage tuning
characteristic at any point and is the same as modulation sensitivity. The
slope could be positive or negative. For a positive slope, the output
frequency increases as the tuning voltage increases. Similarly for a negative
slope, the output frequency decreases as the tuning voltage increases.
 Tuning sensitivity as a function of tuning voltage is a measure of tuning
linearity.
 Tuning flatness – As the VCO frequency range is increased, the difficulty to
achieve a flat output power is increased. Adding an output filter to suppress
harmonics may in some cases degrade power output flatness (Anu, 2010).
 A monotonic tuning characteristic means that the frequency is single valued
at any tuning voltage and that the slope has the same sign across the tuning
range.

In order to lower the VCO Phase Noise, a number of rules should be respected:

 Reduce the current flow through the active device.

 Choose an active device that has a low flicker corner frequency. A bipolar
transistor biased at a low collector current will keep the flicker corner
frequency to a minimum, typically around 6 to 15 KHz.
 Maximize the power at the output of the oscillator.
 Choose a varactor diode with the best phase noise performance

2.10.2 Over View of VCO Application

Applications of the VCO abound in communications, analog built-in self-test,

multi-dithering adaptive electronics and biomedical instrumentation (Dimitrios,

42
Paul and Gert, 2008). The VCO is the element that generates the clock reference
for the recovery and regeneration process, so its performance is critical for the
clock and data recovery. Therefore, careful attention needs to be paid to its
design. In the first place, its tuning range needs to be wide enough to overcome
the shift of its expected central frequency (f0) caused by process, voltage and
temperature (PVT) variations; to overcome this limitation, a tuning range of about
20% is sufficient Also, its frequency should remain as constant as possible in the
locked state because any variation in it will result in jitter at the regenerated data
stream (Sanchez-Azqueta and Celma, 2011). The use of Phase-locked loop (PLL)
attain this constant locked state is explained below.

Fig. 2.21 shows the topology of a simple phase-locked loop. Here, a phase
frequency detector (PFD) generates a phase error whose DC value is proportional
to the difference between the phases and frequencies of the reference and
feedback signals. The charge pump is used to either sink or source a current with
the help of the switches driven by the phase frequency detector (PFD). The low
pass filter (LPF) extracts the DC value and applies it to the voltage controlled
oscillator (VCO), which changes the output frequency f out. The frequency divider
(FD) divides down the VCO output frequency to the one comparable to the input
reference frequency. When the loop reaches steady state, the phase difference
between the reference input fref and feedback signal fdiv is constant over time and
the relation fout = Nfref holds true. By changing the value of N, the VCO output
frequency can be changed (Gardener 2005).

43
Fig 2.21 Structure of a phase-locked loop

CHAPTER THREE

METHODOLOGY

44
3.0 INTRODUCTION

From the foregoing discussion on the two major forms of the VCO in the previous
chapter, we decided to use LC tuned circuit for our VCO design because the
frequency is independent of power supply and hence free from power supply
noise and the frequency does not change for changes in ambient temperature. It
also has low power consumption. The VCO was designed using colpitts oscillator
configuration and simulated using Multism 12.0.1.

Since amplifier is an element of oscillator, we started with the design of a

wideband amplifier to be used in our oscillator circuit. The oscillator configuration
we used is colpitts with the feedback element consisting of a varactor diode for
turning. The advantage of this type of tank circuit configuration is that with less
self and mutual inductance in the tank circuit, frequency stability is improved
along with a more simple design (Wayne 2013).

3.1 AMPLIFIER DESIGN

A class A amplifier is designed. The circuit diagram of the amplifier is shown in

figure 3.1a and the DC equivalent circuit is shown in figure 1b.

45
Figure 3.1a Schematic diagram of the amplifier

Figure 3.1b DC equivalent circuit of the amplifier

3.1.1 Biasing Method

We developed the transistor characteristics. The operating point (Q point) was

found to be VCE = 4.5V and IC = 2.6mA. Voltage divider bias technique is employed.
The circuit of figure 3.1 is considered and following calculations were made.
46
3.1.2 Design Equations

Applying Kirchhoff’s law to the output and input side of the D.C. equivalent circuit
of figure 3.1 we have

VCC = ICRC + VCE + IERE …………. (3.1)

VBB = IBRB + VBE + IERE ………….. (3.2)

For thermal stability of the amplifier (Alley and Atwood, 1973).

RB ≤ 0.3βRE ………… (3.3)

and

RE = 0.2RC ………… (3.4)

R2R3
Where R B=
R 2 + R3
………. (3.5)

3.1.3 Design Calculations

From the Q point (Appendix A) we used: VCC = 9v, VCE = 4.5v, IB = 40µA, IC = 2.6mA
and VBE = 0.71V

IC
β= = 65 ……… (3.6)
IB

IE = IC + IB = 2.64Ma …… (3.7)

Substituting the Q point, VCC, IB, VBE, and IE, in (3.1) and (3.2) we have four
equations with four unknown. Solving simultaneously we have

−5 −3
VBB - 0.71 (1 .2 x 10 β+ 2.6 x 10 )RE
= −3 ; VBB = 1.694V ….. (3.8)
4.5 (0.013+2.64 x 10 )R E

47
From (3.2) we have

1.694 – 0.71 = 40 x 10-6RB + 2.64 x 10-3RE ………… (3.9)

Substituting (3.3) in (3.5) gives

0.984 = 40 x 10-6 x 0.3 x 65RE + 2.64 x 10-3RE

0.984
R E= −3
3.42 x 10

RE = 287.7Ω, RB = 5610.15Ω

R2R3
But R B=
R 2 + R3
= 5610.15Ω ……… (3.10)

R2 VCC
VB B= = 1.694 ………….. (3.11)
R2 + R 3

Solving (3.10) and (3.11) simultaneously we have

R2 = 6910.748Ω, R3 = 29809.5112Ω

From (3.4)

RC = RE x 5 = 1438.6

Considering (3.3), we choose R2 and R3 to be 8.25kΩ and 30kΩ respectively.

Coupling Capacitors C2 and C3

The low-frequency cut-off for each coupling capacitor is given by`

1
f min= ………. (3.12)
2 πC Z❑

Where Z is the resistance seen by C (Theraja and Theraja, 2006)

48
Taking 1MHz as our low-frequency cut-off.

R 2 R3 Zin( base)
Z = Zin (base)//R2//R3 = R R +R Z ….. (3.13)
2 3 2 in(base) +R 3 Zin(base)

Zin(base) = βre’ ………. (3.14)

25mV
re’ = I = 625Ω …..(3.15) (Metha and Metha, 2006)
E

Z = 569.9482Ω

1
C 2=
2 π Z❑ f min
……. (3.16)

C2 = 279.12pf

For C3 we have

1
C 3=
2 π R4 f min
= 111.25pf ….. (3.17)

Where R4 = 1430 (i.e. the load resistor).

Bypassed Capacitor C1

A good rule of the thumb is that X C1 of the bypassed capacitor should be at least
10 times smaller than the R E at the minimum frequency of oscillation (Floyd,
2005)

10XC1 ≤ RE ……… (3.18)

10
C 1=
2 π R E f min
………. (3.19)

C1 = 5.5nF

49
This completes the design of our common emitter amplifier circuit.

3.2 RESONATOR DESIGN

For the oscillator, we need a resonator. The schematic diagram of the designed
VCO is as shown in figure 2.2. The resonating circuit is made up of two center
tapped capacitors and one inductor connected in series for colpitt oscillation. The
series combination of the varactor diode and C4 form one of the center tapped
capacitor. The resonant frequency is given by

Fig 2.2 Schematic of the designed VCO

1
f r= ……….. (3.20) (Metha and Metha, 2006)
2 πLC

where C is the series combination of C4 and C5 given by

50
 C4 C5
C❑= ……….. (3.21)
C4 + C5

For oscillation to occur,

C5
Av(min) = ≥ 1 …… (3.22)
C4

Where Av(min) is the minimum gain of the amplifier with feedback (Theraja, and
Theraja, 2006)

RC 1438.6
Av(min) = , Av( min)= =5
RE 287.72

Therefore, C5 = C4 x 5 ………. (3.23)

Substitute (3.23) into (3.21) gives

C = 0.8333C4 …… (3.24)

Let fr = 900MHz and L1 = 5nH

Substituting fr, L1 into (3.16), we have

C = 6.2488pf

Substituting for C in (3.24) and the result into (3.23), we have

C4 = 7.4988pf, C5 = 39.494pf

3.2.1 VARACTOR DIODE DESIGN

The varactor diode used is BB515 which is hyperabrupt junction silicon varactor
diode. The varactor diode is connected in series with C 4. From BB515 datasheet,
the capacitance of the varactor diode for a reverse bias voltage of 1V is 18.7pf.

51
Using this, the value of new C4 was calculated. The new C4 is in series with C var and
their equivalent capacitance is 7.5pf.

CHAPTER FOUR

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

4.0 INTRODUCTION

The result obtained from simulating the VCO design using Multism 12.0.1 is
presented in this chapter followed by discussion which highlight some of the
areas where the designed VCO finds application.

4.1 RESULTS

52
This circuit was simulated using Multism 12.0.1. Figure 4.1 is the result of the AC
analysis using the designed amplifier shown in figure 4.2. This shows that the
designed amplifier is a wide band amplifier.

Figure 4.1 AC analysis of the designed amplifier

Figure 4.2 The circuit of the designed amplifier

53
The complete circuit for the voltage controlled oscillator with the designed values
above is shown in figure 4.3. The designed and simulated VCO (voltage controlled
oscillator) was found to produce sinusoidal signal at uniform voltage level in the
frequency range of 800MHz to 1.5GHz.

Figure 4.3 The circuit diagram of the designed VCO

The simulated tuning range which is the graph of the frequency against reverse
biased voltage (VR) of the VCO is shown in figure 4.4.

54
 1700

1600

1500

1400
Frequency (MHz)

1300

1200

1100

1000

900

800
-35 -30 -25 -20 -15 -10 -5 0

Reverse Biased Voltage (V)

Figure 4.4 Simulated tuning range

The output signal has good tuning flatness for the frequency range of 800MHz to
1.5GHz when the reverse biased voltage changes from 0 to 25V as seen in figures
4.5 through 4.7.

55
Figure 4.5 Output waveform for VR = 1V, frequency = 818MHz

Figure 4.6 Output waveform for VR = 10V, frequency = 1.2GHz

56
Figure 4.7 Output waveform for VR = 24V, frequency = 1.5GHz

The VCO has an average positive tuning slope of 31.07MHz/V throughout the
frequency range. The minimum and maximum values of the tuning sensitivity are
1V and 25V respectively.

4.2 DISCUSSION

We found the designed and simulated VCO to produce sinusoidal signal with a
frequency range of 800MHz to 1.5GHz over a voltage range of 0 to 25V with nice
tuning flatness, tuning slope of 31.MHz/V at a voltage of 2.5V. Furthermore, the
designed VCO has monotonic tuning characteristics and low pushing over the
tuning range of 0 to 25V.

In view of the above features of the designed and simulated high frequency
voltage controlled oscillator, the VCO can be used in the construction of high
speed processors used in data communication for reliable and fast data
transmission because of its frequency range of about 690MHz. This wide range
also makes it very fit for microwave application such as surveillance and very
versatile for many purposes especially when it is used in conjunction with either
frequency divider or multiplier circuits as the case may be. The smoothness of the
VCO waveforms throughout its tuning range indicated the absence of jitter noise
and thus makes it a very good item for accurate timing of electronic
communication activities.

57
58
 CHAPTER FIVE

SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

5.0 INTRODUCTION

In this chapter we summarize some of the excellent features of designed VCO, we

have also highlight the focus of the work under the conclusion in section 5.2 and
finally, the areas of future work is discussed.

5.1 SUMMARY

In this work we designed VCO using colpitt oscillator configuration which operates
in 800MHz to 1.5GHz range. In view of the result it shows that the circuit has a
bandwidth of 690MHz with a tuning flatness of about 95%. Its wide frequency
range, smoothed waveform and positive turning slope throughout its turning
range are excellent features of this design.

5.2 CONCLUSION

Current market demands and continuing trends in the electronics industry

suggest that communication devices will need to support wider bandwidths and
an ever-growing number of frequency bands. This poses interesting challenges for
many components of such devices. This work has focused on one of the key
enabling components of phase-locked loop namely VCO.

5.3 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE WORK

There is still work left to do in the area of fast clock generators design, for
example:

59
1. Designing LC tuned VCO with higher frequency of say 40GHz.

2. Integrating the Designed VCO in PLL

60
 REFERENCE

1. Adrio Communications Ltd, (2013). http://www.radio

electronics.com/info/data/semicond/varactor-varicap-diodes/circuits.php

2. Armstrong E. H., (1921) "A new system of short wave amplification, "Proc.
IRE, vol.9, pp.3-27,.
3. Anthony M. Pavio George D., (1990). Vendelin and Ulrich L. Rohde,
Microwave Circuit Design Using Linear and Nonlinear Techniques, pp. 384–
491, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1990
4. Axel Dominique Berny, (2006). Analysis and Design of Wideband LC VCOs,
Thesis for Doctor of Philosophy, Department of Electrical Engineering and
Computer Science, University of Califonnia Berkeley. Pp 144.
5. Behzad Razavi, 2008. Design of Analog CMOS Integrated Circuits. Tata
McGraw-hill Publishing Company Limited.
6. B.Razavi, (1997). RF Microelectronics, Prentice Hall.
7. C. Sánchez-Azqueta S. Celma, F. Aznar, (2011). A 0.18µm CMOS ring VCO for
clock and data recovery applications. Microelectronics Reliability 51 (2011)
2351–2356.
8. Charles L. Alley and Kenneth W. Atwood, (1973). Electronic Engineering
third Edition, John Wiley & Sons, New York London Sydney Toronto.
9. Chen Huifang, Wang Xiantai, Chen Xiaojuan, Luo Weijun, and Liu Xinyu,
(2010). An 8 GHz high power AlGaN/GaN HEMT VCO. Journal of
Semiconductors Vol. 31, No. 7. Key Laboratory of Microelectronics Device &
Integrated Technology, Institute of Microelectronics, Chinese Academy of
Sciences, Beijing 100029, China) pp 1

61
10.D. Ham and A. Hajimiri, (2001) “concepts and methods in optimization of
integrated LC VCOs”, IEEE J. Solid-State Circuits (JSSC), vol. 36, no.6, pp.
896-909,.
11.Dimitrios N. Loizos, Paul P. Sotiriadis and Gert Cauwenberghs, (2008). A
translinear SiGe BiCMOS current-controlled oscillator with 80 Hz–800 MHz
tuning range. Analog Integr Circ Sig Process. DOI 10.1007/s10470-008-
9185-6
12. F.M. Gardener, (2005). Phase-lock Techniques, Wiley, New York, 3 rd
edition.
13. Jason Breitbarth, (2001). Octave Tuning, High Frequency Varactor
Oscillator Design. Thesis for Master of Science, Department of Electrical and
Computer Engineering, University of Colorado. Pp 38.
14.Lulian,R.,(2013) High frequency VCO design and
schematics.http//www.qsl.net/va3iul/.
15.Malcolm D. Stewart. (2003). A 20-GHz Bipolar Varactor-Tuned VCO using
Switched Capacitors to Add Tuning Range. Thesis for Master of Applied
Science. Department of Electronics. Carleton University Ottawa, Canada.
16.Metha, V.K and Metha R., (2006): Principle of Electronic ,S.Chand &
company Ltd Ram Nagar, New Delhi 11thEdition Pp 286&287, 370&371.
17.Theraja, B.L and Theraja, A.K (2006): Electrical Technology, S.Chand &
company Ltd Ram Nagar, New Delhi 24th Edition Pg 2416-2418.
18.Thomas L. Floyd (2005). Electronic Devices, Seventh Edition. Published by
Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458. Pearson
Prentice Hall. Pg 73 and 74

62
19.Wayne Storr, (2014). Basic Electronics tutorial site. Http://www.electronics-
tutorials.ws/oscillator/colpitts.html. Retrieved 10/11/2013.
20. Z. Shu, K.L. Lee, and B.H. Leung, (2004) “a 2.4 GHz ring-oscillator based
CMOS frequency synthesizer with a fractional divider dual-PLL
architecture”, IEEE J. Solid-State Circuits (JSSC), vol. 39, no.3, pp. 452-462,

63