Advanced Course Ch.

7 Oscillators
de VE1FA 2019

Oscillator: - an amplifier circuit that generates a periodic signal

-an oscillator periodic signal is a continuous wave (CW)
-amplifier circuit with a gain greater than 1
-amplifier with positive feedback
-in addition to a fundamental frequency, harmonics,
other frequencies, and noise usually produced

-heart of every radio transmitter and audio oscillator

-for stable output frequency, need a frequency-selective (+)
feedback loop

You want: frequency stability, purity, and accuracy in a practical

oscillator
Fred Archibald
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 Damped wave
“DW” or
“plain spark”
used ‘til 1920s ➔

Modern TX
continuous wave “CW”
requires oscillator ➔

Audio energy

Positive feedback = oscillation β: phase shift, or frequency-selective,

Fred Archibald
or simple resistive
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 Spark (damped wave) radio technology: beginning to 1920
CW (oscillator-based) technology: 1920-now

E. H. Armstrong invented the following:

Oscillating amplifier tube: -the basis of modern radio

transmitters.

Regeneration (high-gain, near oscillation) as the basis of

sensitive receivers. Patented 1914

Superheterodyne radio circuit : Patented 1919

FM radio system: 5 patents 1933

FM doppler radar + moonbounce: 1946

Fred Archibald
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 Armstrong oscillator circuit

Positive inductive feedback→

Continuous wave
RF output across L3→ OUT

C1-L1 sets output

frequency

Variable C1 makes this a VFO Fred Archibald

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 Regenerative/oscillating receiver of E.H. Armstrong, 1918

This was early commercial + amateur version

The first real DX receiver!

Fred Archibald
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 Oscillator RF purity: determines purity of IF signal, transmitted
signal, number and amplitude of spurious mixer emissions

Fred Archibald
TS-890 Spectral purity
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 Quartz Crystal Oscillators

-”AT” or “SC” cut for most crystals

SiO4
Compared to LC oscillators:
-very stable to mechanical vibration
-temperature + time stable
-only useful very near fundamental frequency,
or harmonics of it (very limited VFO range)
- high Q, low noise
-very high frequency stability, if circuit is
well-designed and ovenized
-”overtone crystal” can be ground specifically
for certain harmonic of its fundamental
Raw crystal, crystal blanks, and crystals
Fred Archibald ready for mounting →
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 Pierce oscillator

Crystal placed between control and output electrodes

C1 small to minimize loading

180° shift between gate and drain

+180° shift between sides of crystal

Equals in-phase (positive) feedback

to gate!

Therefore: oscillation!
Q: Why is each component in the circuit??
Fred Archibald
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 “Electron-coupled “ tube-type Pierce circuit
Compared to previous transistor circuit:
-provides fine tuning of oscillator frequency
-provides better load isolation for crystal

Fred Archibald
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 Colpitts Crystal Oscillator
C1 + C2 split the RF voltage across the crystal and Q1. Some is used for
+ feedback, and some provides the output.

CS trims the frequency to the one wanted

Colpitts especially stable

D
Often used for LC VFOs G
S
C3 should be small

C1 + C2 + CS may be low
temp. coeff. types to
maximize frequency
stability
(eg. NPO) Fred Archibald
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 Overtone oscillator: forces crystal to oscillate on odd harmonic

LC tuned circuit on drain tuned to 3rd, 5th, 7th or 9th harmonic of

crystal fundamental.

Only works on odd harmonics.

Overtone crystals specially cut.

FETs especially good for crystal

oscillators, as high base Z means
low current and cool crystal

Fred Archibald
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 Hartley variable frequency oscillator (VFO)
3 common VFO types: Hartley, Clapp, and Colpitts
-analog VFOs becoming rarer in
commercial radios

-Hartley has tapped inductor

to provide (+)feedback

-RFC should have an XL of several

thousand ohms at the oscillator L1
C1
frequency
L2
-where does bias come from?

-effective Q = circuit Q x FET’s gain

f = 106/2π√LC
-where f = resonant frequency (kHz), L = μH, and C = pF
Fred Archibald
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 Colpitts VFO

-Split capacitor, instead of split

inductor to tap off output and to
provide positive feedback. C4

-C 1-4 all determine the VFO

L1 C3 D1
frequency.

-Popular VFO circuit due to its

Stability.

-D1 aids in producing negative bias on gate

-RFC should be low Q

Fred Archibald
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 Clapp VFO
-series tuned version of Colpitts

Stable VFO (of any type) stability requires:

1. Rigid mechanical design.

2. Low thermal expansion coefficients

(ceramic + teflon much better than phenolic).
Invar much better than Cu, Al, or Fe.

3. Low temp. coefficient inductors and

capacitors.

4. Temp. compensating capacitors.

PTO (permeability tuned oscillator) uses variable L instead of C

-can be designed for very linear tuning Fred Archibald
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 Crystal VFO: varying the capacitance in series or parallel with a
crystal changes its frequency a little
e.g.: a crystal cut for 7040 kHz, may shift from 7038-7042 kHz.

-if the crystal is “pushed” too far it will stop

oscillating.

-used to move crystal-controlled radios off

an occupied frequency.

-also used to set an oscillator on an exact

frequency.

-the master oscillator in a modern TRX can

be precisely set by zero beating with
WWV on 2.5, 5.0 10, 15, or 20 MHz.

-if heavily coupled to another oscillator close to the same frequency,

an oscillator can be pulled and lock on to the other oscillator’s frequency.
Fred Archibald
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 GPS Disciplined Oscillator (GPSDO): a way to make your
oscillator/radio as accurate and stable as GPS or NBS

-oscillators can be pulled by a nearby tuned circuit close to that

circuit’s frequency
-GPS signal → very accurate time, frequency, and near-perfect stability

-will lock transceiver or other master oscillator to GPS signal

-easy to implement with most modern radios, especially if MO
is 10 or 20 MHz
Fred Archibald
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 Unit osc. circuit
Sealed unit oscillators

+/- 0.5 ppm Opened oscillator

Individual crystals
Fred Archibald
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 “TCXO”: -temperature–controlled crystal oscillator
-often set to 60°C
-reduces total drift of current Kenwood HF radios from 5.0 ppm
to 0.5 ppm
-5 ppm = +/- 70 Hz at 20m
-0.5 ppm = +/- 7 Hz at 20m

For best crystal oscillator stability:

1. Constant temperature (above highest operating temp. of radio).

2. Regulated (constant) supply voltage.
3. Well buffered (constant load) output.
4. High quality close tolerance crystal.
5. Well-designed oscillator circuit.
6. Re-check over months/years for crystal drift due to aging.
Fred Archibald
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 Digital oscillators
-Phase-locked loop (PLL) (hybrid between digital and analog)
-Direct digital synthesis (DDS) (true digital generation)
Advantage of digital: stability of signal equals the controlling crystal
while remaining tunable

Clock oscillators: xtal controlled

Y1
-generate square waves
-accurate
7400 a+b: NAND gates connected
as inverters (“TTL” technology)

R1 holds 7400a in linear part of off-on shift needed

to start oscillation.
Y1 shifts signal 180°
-third section of IC could be buffer amp (gain = 1).
Fred Archibald
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 Clock oscillator : stable
-crystal osc. always used with digital frequency gen., because
frequency change shows up as errors or phase noise in output.

VCO (voltage controlled oscillator), usually controlled by voltage

applied to a varactor diode
-not inherently stable, but kept very stable by correcting
tuning voltage

Programmable digital divider →

VCO output kept in constant, precise
relationship to the reference frequency
**
*= “reference output” “clock”
*
** VCO: clock osc. compared to VCO

Fred Archibald PLL frequency generation

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 Implementation of PLL generator
“Loop filter” output produces correction voltages for VCO

Only a finite number of frequencies are available i.e., there is a

minimum step size for VCO control.

Steps obvious + annoying when you tune on a strong signal

Input from divider chain (N) →

Reference output
to PLL→

Fred Archibald
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 PLL: circuit keeps VCO on the closest possible
frequency to the desired frequency
If minimum step = 100Hz, VCO corrected
to nearest 100 Hz

VCO locked in to desired output →

VCO not corrected by reference →

Time →
Fred Archibald
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Direct Digital Synthesis (DDS): pure digital circuits functioning as a VFO
-good modern DDS types are almost indistinguishable from good
analog VFOs (no audible “steps”!).
1. Step-free tuning and clean (low phase noise and distortion) output.
2. Can be far more accurate and stable than analog VFOs.
3. DDS can produce clean sine, or any other arbitrary waveform.
-creates waveform 1 step at a time: the more steps per cycle, the
higher the DDS operating frequency must be.

-uses DAC (Digital to Analog Converter) and ROM circuits.

-high, complex HF waveforms need UHF or GHz DDS frequencies.

How DDS constructs

a frequency →

Fred Archibald
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 DDS frequency synthesis
Minimum number of data points/cycle = 2
More data points = waveform is more accurate

DDS Advantages
1. Stability equals the clock crystal
2. Output exactly what is set by dividers
3. Can be computer-controlled

DDS Disadvantages
1. Phase noise, other noise may occur
2. Output frequencies are in steps. Steps determined by the
smallest division the circuitry will allow
3. Complex, but this reduced by large-scale integration
4. Difficult to troubleshoot and fix.

Fred Archibald
PLL used in receivers + transmitters as far back as 1969
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 DDS generated “sine” wave

Analog generated sine wave

Fred Archibald
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 DDS board of Kenwood TS-850 HF transceiver (1990 technology)
Starting with master oscillator frequency:
-3 local oscillator frequencies
-SSB, CW, digital “BFO” frequencies
-main tuning VFO frequencies
-100+ memories

Fred Archibald
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 DDS generated LO frequency

Fred Archibald
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 Parasitic Oscillations: unintended oscillations
occurring in an amplifier or oscillator circuit

Can be big problem in home-brew + older gear, especially power amplifiers

Neutralization: negative feedback applied an amplifier to improve stability and

kill parasitics
-high gain amplifiers most susceptible
-stray capacitance within and around active device may allow
positive feedback, leading to instability and oscillations

Cbc –stray unintended capacitance

CN- neutralization capacitor, tuned to exactly cancel

parasitic or instability

Fred Archibald
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Parasitic suppressors for big tube linear amplifiers
Tinned copper wire/carbon
resistor (old style) →

Nichrome wire-metal film resistor (new) style

Fred Archibald
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 End of oscillators!

Fred Archibald
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