A low power Ku phase locked oscillator in low cost 130 nm CMOS technology

This paper reports on a Ku low-power integer-N phase locked oscillator designed to investigate the potentialities of a low-cost 130 nm CMOS technology for video broadcasting and radiometry applications. The design and the characterization of the prototype are described and the main performances are reported and compared to literature. The PLO generates an output tone in the 14.2 GHz–15.1 GHz frequency range. The phase noise is −68.9 dBc/Hz for an offset frequency of 100 kHz from a 15 GHz carrier, and can be enhanced of about 20 dB. The circuit core sinks 23.7 mA from 1.2 V supply.