A Ku band converter IC

Abstract

A Ku-band voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) converter IC for direct-broadcast satellite (DBS) and communication satellite (CS) receivers was developed on a 1.2 mm*2.8-mm chip using a 0.5- mu m MESFET process. The IC included five functional blocks, i.e., prescaler, VCO, low-noise amplifier, mixer, and IF buffer. The downconverter IC makes it possible to simplify the RF circuits of the CS receivers by combining a two-stage high-electron-mobility-transistor (HEMT) amplifier and an IF amplifier. This converter IC achieved a phase noise for -80 dBc/Hz at 10-kHz offset from a 10.75 GHz phase locked carrier. A 0.5- mu m-gate-length wafer fabrication process was used for both the digital and analog blocks. The circuit design and wafer fabrication process are discussed, and experimental results are reported.<>