A 3.1 - 6.65 GHz, 933μW impulse radio pulse generator with tuneable spectrum in 0.18μm CMOS

Abstract

A low-power tuneable impulse radio ultra wide band (IR-UWB) pulse generator (PG) for 3.1 - 6.65 GHz band applications is proposed. To provide compensation due to process, voltage and temperature (PVT) variations and achievement of best performance, the PG is capable of adjusting the Power Spectral Density (PSD) modifying the generated pulse amplitude and duration. Furthermore, the spectrum center frequency can be tuned by changing the frequency of the voltage controlled ring oscillator. Post-layout simulations show the pulse amplitude of 315 mV and the pulse duration around 1 ns. The generated signal spectrum fully complies with the FCC spectral regulations. The total power consumption is only 933 μW with supply voltage of 1.8 V. This corresponds to energy consumption of 11.67 pJ/pulse for a 80 MHz pulse repetition frequency (PRF). The PG is designed in UMC 0.18μm CMOS process with the total chip area of 0.35 μm2. © 2013 IEEE.