VOLTAGE CONTROLLED OSCILLATORS （电压控制的振荡器）.pdfVIP

VOLTAGE CONTROLLED OSCILLATORS By Jeff Wilkin University of Toronto November 12, 2001 Introduction A key circuit used in modern communication systems is the voltage controlled oscillator (VCO). The VCOís output is an AC waveform whose frequency is dependent upon the input voltage. In todayís wireless communication systems, a greater maximum frequency range is required by VCOs. With respect to the digital phones that use these circuits, low power consumption, small size and low fabrication costs are important design factors. This report is an introduction to voltage controlled oscillators. Two styles of VCO (the LC oscillator and the RC relaxation oscillator) are described as well as the factors that influence their design and selection, the recent advances in the design of these circuits, and the next probable advance of these circuits in the state of the art. Background A RC relaxation oscillator consists of two cross coupled transistors with their emitters connected to two ends of a capacitor. Figure 1 shows a bipolar version of the oscillator [1]. Q3 and Q4 are emitter follower buffers. The emitters of Q1 and Q2 are connected to voltage controlled current sources (normally identical bipolar transistors Q7 and Q8). When Q1 is on, its collector voltage holds Q2 off and the emitter current of Q1 charges the capacitor. When the emitter voltage of Q1 rises above two Vbe drops from Vcc Q1 turns off, Q2 turns on and the emitter current of Q2 charges the capacitor. The amount of current that flows into the capacitor is dependent upon the voltage controlled current source (the collector currents of Q7 and Q8). The frequency at which the capacitor voltage oscillates is given by: Fosc = I(Vin)/(4*Vbe*C) I(Vin) is the current from the voltage controlled current source. Vbe is known as a swing v