Lumped-element analysis and design of CMOS distributed amplifiers with image impedance termination

This paper presents a systematic matrix-based lumped-element analysis of CMOS distributed amplifiers (DAs). Since transmission lines (TLs) of the DAs are artificially constructed from a ladder of a finite number of inductors and capacitors, the conventional TL-based analysis of microwave DAs can not be accurately applied to CMOS DAs. The proposed lumped-analysis method is also more intuitive for analog circuit designers than the TL analysis adapted from microwave amplifiers analysis because it provides the performance characteristics of the amplifiers as functions of circuit elements values, and not the TL characteristics. The image impedance technique is used for the design of input/output terminating networks. A new image impudence matrix is defined to accommodate the extension of the theory from two- to four-port networks, and a practical realization of the image impedance matrix is presented using the available circuit elements in CMOS technology. The simulation results clearly indicate an improved voltage gain and a better gain uniformity over the bandwidth of the proposed DA design terminated at its image impedance compared with the amplifier terminated at its nominal TL characteristics impedance.