Quantum mechanics

Oscillator phase noise

Control (management)

Phase (matter)

Voltage

Engineering

Bandwidth (computing)

Noise figure

Telecommunications

Amplifier

Computer science

Acoustics

Capacitor

Phase noise

Transistor

Physics

Offset (computer science)

LC circuit

Optics

Image (mathematics)

Electronic engineering

Resonator

Artificial intelligence

Figure of merit

Programming language

Voltage-controlled oscillator

Control theory (sociology)

Noise (video)

CMOS

Optoelectronics

Electrical engineering

IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits

Based on a physical understanding of phase-noise mechanisms, a passive LC filter is found to lower the phase-noise factor in a differential oscillator to its fundamental minimum. Three fully integrated LC voltage-controlled oscillators (VCOs) serve as a proof of concept. Two 1.1-GHz VCOs achieve -153 dBc/Hz at 3 MHz offset, biased at 3.7 mA from 2.5 V. A 2.1-GHz VCO achieves -148 dBc/Hz at 15 MHz offset, taking 4 mA from a 2.7-V supply. All oscillators use fully integrated resonators, and the first two exceed discrete transistor modules in figure of merit. Practical aspects and repercussions of the technique are discussed.

A filtering technique to lower LC oscillator phase noise