75 results about "Balanced mixer" patented technology

A triple balanced mixer has a compact size and is readily assembled. The triple balanced mixer has a planar substrate that is formed from several layers of low temperature co-fired ceramic. The substrate has a top layer, a bottom layer and inner layers. Vias extend through the substrate. A local oscillator balun and RF balun are located on the inner layers. An intermediate frequency balun is mounted to the top layer. Diode rings are mounted on the top layer. The diode rings are electrically connected to the local oscillator balun, the RF balun and the intermediate frequency balun through the vias.

Method and apparatus are provided for linearized balanced signal mixing. A signal mixing circuit (10) for translating a radio frequency (RF) signal is provided comprising an input amplifier (12), a mixer network (14), and an output buffer amplifier (18). The input amplifier (12) is configured to produce an amplified RF signal and cancel an input third-order intermodulation (IM3) distortion in the amplified RF signal with a cross-coupled feedback amplifier (13). The mixer network (14) is configured to produce an intermediate frequency (IF) signal based on the amplified RF signal and a local oscillator signal. The output amplifier (18) is configured to buffer the IF signal and cancel an output IM3 distortion in the IF signal with a cross-coupled feedback amplifier (19). The input amplifier (12) and cross-coupled feedback amplifier (13) also serve as a bias current source for the mixer network (14), thus lowering the supply voltage required for the mixing circuit (10).

An active balun circuit is provided for single-ended to differential RF signal conversion with enhanced common-mode rejection which suppresses common mode signal and which achieves phase and amplitude balance without sophisticated tuning or compensation methods. The circuit has a single-ended input and balanced output with phase and amplitude balance error less than 2° and 1.2 dB, respectively, measured from 1.5 GHz to 1.8 GHz at 5V supply. When supply voltage drops down to 1.5V, its phase and amplitude balance error remains within 5° and 2 dB, respectively. The circuit achieves a balanced output via an output network which behaves as an impedance matching network for differential mode signal and is grounded for common mode signal. As a result, common mode signal is suppressed and 180-degree phase balance at output is achieved. The circuit has high-linearity (P1 dBin=5 dBm, IIP3=16.6 dBm) and low residual phase noise (<−155 dBc / Hz at 100 kHz and above) which make it suitable as an active balun / buffer amplifier between LO and balanced mixer for base station receiver applications.

An improved double balanced mixer is provided which in one embodiment includes a first balun for receiving a first single input and providing a first balanced output having two ports, a second balun for receiving a second single input and providing a second balanced output having two ports, and a balanced mixer core responsive to the first and second balanced outputs to provide a mixed signal from the first and second single inputs. The first balun includes an RC network coupled between at least one of the ports of the first balanced output and one of ground and a common mode node of the first balun to improve the linearity of the double balanced mixer.

Method and apparatus are provided for linearized balanced signal mixing. A signal mixing circuit (10) for translating a radio frequency (RF) signal is provided comprising an input amplifier (12), a mixer network (14), and an output buffer amplifier (18). The input amplifier (12) is configured to produce an amplified RF signal and cancel an input third-order intermodulation (IM3) distortion in the amplified RF signal with a cross-coupled feedback amplifier (13). The mixer network (14) is configured to produce an intermediate frequency (IF) signal based on the amplified RF signal and a local oscillator signal. The output amplifier (18) is configured to buffer the IF signal and cancel an output IM3 distortion in the IF signal with a cross-coupled feedback amplifier (19). The input amplifier (12) and cross-coupled feedback amplifier (13) also serve as a bias current source for the mixer network (14), thus lowering the supply voltage required for the mixing circuit (10).

A mixer is designed to operate from a low voltage power source connected via a power terminal and ground and includes a balanced mixer circuit with a balanced input port for receiving local oscillator signals, and a pair of input terminals. A biasing circuit includes, an active voltage divider connected between the power terminal and ground to provide higher and lower voltages at first and second voltage taps. A differential driver circuit includes first and second transistors, collectors of which are each direct coupled to separate ones of the pair of input terminals. The first transistor has a base coupled via a capacitor to a single ended receive signal terminal, and an emitter coupled via a first resistor to ground. The second transistor has a base coupled via a capacitor to grounds, and an emitter coupled via a second resistor to the single ended receive signal terminal. The single ended receive signal terminal is also coupled with ground via an impedance element, in one example third resistor. A fourth resistor is connected between the first voltage tap and the base of the second transistor and, a fifth resistor is connected between the second voltage tap and the base electrode of the first transistor.

A phase-linear wide band converter for frequency conversion from a multi-octave baseband (BB) to an RF band or vice versa and utilizing I / Q signal processing. The converter uses a phase-linear power divider / combiner having three ports, an I / Q mixer stage, an I / Q power divider for an I / Q local oscillator (LO) signal, two wide band balanced mixers, and impedance matching circuits. The improved performance over multi-octave bands is due to the mutually adaptation between an active opamp I / Q power divider / combiner at an extended baseband, a single low-pass filter (LPF) having predetermined amplitude and phase characteristics and being inserted in the baseband signal path to or from the active baseband power divider / combiner, and a baseband phase correction stage.

A balanced mixer circuit (300, 400, 500, 600, 700 and 800) in a baseband receiver (202) includes an oscillator circuit (212), a mixer (214 and 215), a digital-to-analog converter (258 and 259) and a digital signal processor (250). The mixer includes CMOS devices (301, 302, 303 and 304). In response to differential outputs from the mixer, the digital signal processor controls the digital-to-analog converter to output bias voltages for the gate of at least one of the CMOS devices of the mixer to compensate for imbalance in the differential output of the mixer that may be caused by mismatch among two or more CMOS devices of the mixer or caused by other reasons, in order to increase second order intercept point of the mixer.

A calibration device (CC) is coupled to a balanced circuit device (MC) comprising first and second outputs respectively provided with first (Z1) and second (Z2) load impedance means. This calibration device (CC) comprises adjusting means (ADM) arranged to adjust said first (Z1) and second (Z2) load impedance means into a load imbalance for linearization purposes, and a coupling means (CM) inserted between the load impedance adjusting means (ADM) and the first and second outputs and arranged to selectively couple the load impedance adjusting means (ADM) to only a chosen one of the first and second outputs, so that the load impedance adjusting means (ADM) is connected in parallel either to the first load impedance means (Z1) or to the second load impedance means (Z2).

An RF mixer provides extended dynamic range with reduced noise by utilizing degeneration inductors in the RF input section of a doubly balanced mixer. Degeneration inductors are also utilized in a mixer having a class AB input section. A current mirror in the class AB input section is also inductively degenerated for further noise reduction. The input section is biased by an all-NPN bandgap reference cell which is tightly integrated into the input section so as to reduce the power supply voltage required for the reference cell. The mixer can be optimized for wide input voltage ranges or low distortion.

A miniaturized dual-balanced mixer circuit based on a multilayer double spiral layout architecture is proposed, which is designed for use to provide a frequency mixing function for millimeter wave (MMW) signals, and which features a downsized circuit layout architecture that allows IC implementation to be more miniaturized than the conventional star-type dual-balanced mixer (DBM). The proposed miniaturized dual-balanced mixer circuit is distinguished from the conventional star-type DBM particularly in the use of a 3-dimensional double-spiral circuit layout architecture for the layout of two balun circuit units. This feature allows the required layout area to be only about 15% of that of the conventional star-type DBM.

An improved double balanced mixer is provided which in one embodiment includes a first balun for receiving a first single input and providing a first balanced output having two ports, a second balun for receiving a second single input and providing a second balanced output having two ports, and a balanced mixer core responsive to the first and second balanced outputs to provide a mixed signal from the first and second single inputs. The first balun includes an RC network coupled between at least one of the ports of the first balanced output and one of ground and a common mode node of the first balun to improve the linearity of the double balanced mixer.

An improved double balanced mixer is provided which in one embodiment includes a first balun for receiving a first single input and providing a first balanced output having two ports, a second balun for receiving a second single input and providing a second balanced output having two ports, and a balanced mixer core responsive to the first and second balanced outputs to provide a mixed signal from the first and second single inputs. The first balun includes an RC network coupled between at least one of the ports of the first balanced output and one of ground and a common mode node of the first balun to improve the linearity of the double balanced mixer.

The invention discloses a high linearity fully-balanced mixer. The drain of a PMOS transistor PM1 and the drain of a PMOS transistor PM3 are connected to an input signal VRF+; the source of the PMOS transistor PM1 is connected to the source of the PMOS transistor PM4; the source of a PMOS transistor PM3 is connected to the source of a PMOS transistor PM2; the drain of the PMOS transistor PM2 and the drain of the PMOS transistor PM 4 are connected to an input signal VRF-; the gate of the PMOS transistor PM1 and the gate of the PMOS transistor PM2 are connected to a local oscillator signal VLO+; the gate of the PMOS transistor PM3 and the gate of the PMOS transistor PM4 are connected to a local oscillator signal VLO-; the source of the PMOS transistor PM1 is connected to the source of a PMOS transistor PM5; the source of the PMOS transistor PM5 is connected to the inverse input end of an operational amplifier; the drain of the PMOS transistor PM5 is connected to the positive direction input end of the operational amplifier; the gate of the PMOS transistor PM5 is grounded; the source of the PMOS transistor PM2 is connected to the source of a PMOS transistor PM6; the source of the PMOS transistor PM6 is connected to the in-phase input end of the operational amplifier; the drain of the PMOS transistor PM6 is connected to the negative direction output end of the operational amplifier; and the gate of the PMOS transistor PM6 is grounded. The invention is advantaged by improving the linearity of the mixer under low voltage.