Silicon Chips for GSM Base Station

Receivers 2001
Abstract - This paper describes silicon RFICs designed for GSM900/DCS 100 base s!a!ion recei"ers# GSM s!andard and
radio re$%ire&en!s are re"ie'ed( and circ%i!s !ha! &ee! !hose re$%ire&en!s are disc%ssed# ) lo'-phase noise *C+( a high
lineari!, lo' noise a&plifier( a high lineari!, &i-er( and a lo'resid%al phase noise b%ffer a&plifier( all f%ll, in!egra!ed in
0#./%& 0iCM+S !echnolog,( are presen!ed# 1erfor&ance of !hese circ%i!s de&ons!ra!ed !ha! i! is feasible !o %se lo' cos!
silicon !echnolog, for base s!a!ion recei"er radios#
*2D3-)MS Modelling of Trans&ission lines and Ma!ching 4e!'or5s for RF s!age
Connec!ions#
Abstract RF systems are inherently complex mltista!e systems incl"in! principal fnctional
bloc#s li#e Mixer$ limiter$ RF amplifier$ Mo"lator$ %etector etc& '(%)*AMS havin! the
capabilities of mo"ellin! the systems at varios levels of abstraction can be se" for the
mo"ellin! of RF systems& +n case of mltista!e systems li#e RF ,ransmitters$ recievers$ there is a
nee" to also mo"el the interconnection circitry li#e ,ransmission lines& Also$ -hen the circits
are mo"ele" at behavioral level sin! transfer fnctions$ they are fnctionally inaccrate .1/&
,he existence of an impe"ance mismatch bet-een t-o circits at the behavioral level cases a
ma0or effect on the fnctionality of the circit& (ence$ components mo"ele" at the behavioral
level mst incl"e impe"ance matchin! so that a reasonably accrate system behavior is reali1e"
sin! simlation& +mpe"ance matchin! circits are therefore re2ire" only -hen the sb circits
are interconnecte" to mo"el a system& ,his paper "iscsses the mo"ellin! of intersta!e
connectin! me"ims li#e ,ransmission lines an" +mpe"ence matchin! 3et-or#s an" "escribes
the nee" for$ an" a soltion for combinin! analo! sb circits mo"ele" at the behavioral level
sch that the total system behavior is simlate" at a level of accracy as the component level&
S,s!e& Design +rien!ed RF 0loc5 Modeling 6 7hen Top-Do'n Reaches 0o!!o&-8p.009
I:::
RF Design Me!hodologies bridging S,s!e&-IC-Mod%le Design
Abstract * ,here has been a lon!*stan"in! nee" to lin# the RF "esi!n "omains into a connecte"$
common "esi!n environment& Sch a metho"olo!y is possible thro!h implementin! system*
level behavioral mo"els -ith "ifferent levels of abstraction that can be mo"ele" or co*siml ate"
at the +C circit level& At mo"le or boar" "esi!n$ it is possible to lin# an" simlate mltiple
chips -ith boar"*level components an" parastics in an RF+C "esi!n environment& 4ith to"ay5s
more complex +C "esi!ns that are hea"in! to-ar" nanometer*scale" semicon"ctor processes$
the re is a "esire to frther n"erstan" the many sbtle physical +C characteristics$ sch as layot
an" sbstrate parasitics$ RF transistor mo"els$ +R "rops$ electromi!ration$ elctroma!netics$ an"
mo"elin! of on*chip spiral in"ctors& %esi!ners have entere" into an era -here they col"
benefit from a balance bet-een analo!$ "i!ital$ an" %S6 "esi!n all in a fast an" atomate" RF+C
"esi!n environment& ,his paper presents RF "esi!n metho"olo!ies that can bri"!e bet-een
system$ +C$ an" mo"le "esi!n$ provi"in! an efficient$ thoro!h "esi!n flo- sin! a"vance"
7%A tools&

) 0#1 ;& differen!ial 34) 'i!h red%ced po'er cons%&p!ionMa, .01<
ABS,RAC,
,he !ro-th of -ireless services an" other telecom applications has increase" the "eman" of lo-*
cost Ra"io*Fre2ency +nte!rate" Circits 8RF+Cs9 an" pshe" the semicon"ctor in"stry
to-ar"s complete system*on*chip soltions& ,his -or# presents the "esi!n of an in"ctively
sorce "e!enerate" CM:S "ifferential casco"e )o- 3oise Amplifier 8)3A9 an" -ithot sorce
"e!enerate" CM:S "ifferential casco"e )o- 3oise Amplifier 8)3A9 operatin! at 2 G(1
fre2ency& )3A is an electronic "evice se" to amplify -ea# si!nals before it can be fe" to other
parts of the receiver& A !oo" )3A has a lo- noise fi!re 83F9$ a lar!e eno!h !ain an" lo-
po-er consmption& %rin! reception of ra"io si!nal sent by satellite in a commnication
system$ in the receiver section$ secon" element after antenna is )3A& ,he receiver is the most
po-er hn!ry bloc# an" the po-er consmption shol" be as lo- as possible& So$ noise fi!re
an" po-er consmption are no less important isses than !ain& A %ifferential Casco"e )o-
3oise Amplifier can be treate" as a CS*CG t-o sta!e amplifier& An in"ctor is a""e" at the "rain
of the main transistor to re"ce the noise contribtion of the casco"e transistors& Another
in"ctor connecte" at the !ate of the casco"e transistor an" capacitive cross*coplin! are
strate!ically combine" to re"ce the noise an" to increase po-er !ain of the casco"e transistors
in a %ifferential Casco"e )3A& +t can re"ce the po-er consmption$ an" increase the po-er
!ain of the )3A& ,he area occpie" by the propose" "esi!n measre" from the layot is
observe" as 1&111 mm ; 1&2< mm& ,he )3A is "esi!ne" -ith the 0&1= >m stan"ar" CM:S
process& Ca"ence "esi!n tool Spectre?RF is se" to "esi!n an" simlation base" on resistors$
in"ctors$ capacitors an" transistors&
S,s!e&s on Chips Design6 S,s!e& Man%fac!%rer 1oin! of *ie' .00= I:::
+ntro"ction
,he increasin! "iversity of celllar mobile e2ipment as -ell as their enrichin! featre set places
strin!ent re2irements on the efficiency of the -hole "esi!n process startin! from re2irements
an" en"in! to pro"ction +Cs an" systems$ especially as the "esi!n time$ si1e$ cost an" po-er
consmption nee" to be minimi1e" -ithot sacrificin! reliability& ,he tren"s to-ar"s
miniatri1ation an" inte!ration of complex systems containin! RF$ analo! an" "i!ital fnctions
place ti!htenin! "eman"s on "esi!n metho"s an" tools$ specification an" +6 bloc# "esi!n
otsorcin! proce"res$ "esi!n rese an" portability$ co*simlation an" co*verification$
pac#a!in!$ "esi!n for test an" testin! etc&
) *2D3-)MS 3ibrar, of RF 0loc5s Models
Abstract
,his paper presents a behavioral mo"el library of analo!e an" mixe" circits se" in the ra"io*
fre2ency "omain& ,he mo"els are "escribe" in '(%)*AMS an" are careflly "ocmente" an"
vali"ate"$ in or"er to be easily se" by "esi!ners or mo"el "evelopers& ,hese mo"els allo-s to
explore systems architectre easily an" rapi"ly&
@ey-or"s Behavioral Mo"elin!$ '(%)*AMs$ Ra"io*Fre2ency Systems$ Mo"el )ibrary$
Mixe"*Si!nal&
1& +ntro"ction
4ith !ro-in! circit inte!ration$ tomorro-5s challen!e of Microelectronics is the S:C 8System
:n Chip9& Sch complex$ mixe"*si!nal an" mixe"*technolo!y circits impose to reconsi"er
tra"itional "esi!n metho"s& (ierarchical "esi!n 8,op*%o-n$ Bottom*Ap9 an" "esi!n rese
represent some soltions& Behavioral mo"elin! is one #ey$ to explore hi!h*level architectre
possibilities& Stan"ar" "escription lan!a!es for analo!e an" mixe" circits$ li#e '(%)*AMs
.l/$ an" compatible mixe" simlators offer no- the re2ire" tools to "evelop this ne- "esi!n
metho"olo!y& ,he first isse is to "evelop behavioral mo"els libraries that -ill be available in the
"esi!n flo-& ,his paper presents a '(%)*AMs library of analo!e an" mixe" circits se"
to simlate ra"io*fre2ency 8RF9 systems& All mo"els have been elaborate" an" simlate" -ith
A%'anceMS soft-are .2/& :r priorities -asn5t only the mo"els performances bt also the
mo"els "ocmentation an" vali"ation$ -hich are the minimm re2irements for a correct sin!
7ireless S,s!e& *alida!ion %sing *2D3-)MS 0eha"ioral )n!enna Models 6 Radio-
Fre$%enc, Iden!ifica!ion case s!%d, .00=
+n or"er to !enerate a first*time ri!ht "esi!n$ system level mo"elin! an" simlation is a mst&
,hs$ fnctional vali"ation of inte!rate" -ireless systems re2ires the "evelopment of antenna
mo"els compatible -ith the microelectronic "esi!n tools& ,his paper presents the first
'(%)AMS mo"el of a -ireless system that incl"es an RF lin#& Firstly$ a behavioral mo"el of a
simple antenna is presente"$ then$ a complete RF+% system behavioral mo"el is "escribe" at the
system level& Finally$ some examples of system simlation are presente" in or"er to "emonstrate
the interest of or approach
Deep S%b&icron CM+S Technolog, :nables S,s!e&-on-Chip for 7ireless
Co&&%nica!ions ICs.00 I:::
%eep sbmicron CM:S technolo!ies enable sophisticate" system*on*chip technolo!ies$ movin!
beyon" tra"itional inte!ration of "i!ital fnctionality to incl"e mixe"*si!nal$ RF$ an" po-er
mana!ement capabilities& 3e- levels of inte!ration brin! -ith them a""itional challen!es that
nee" to be a""resse" sch as the cross*coplin! of noise from "i!ital s-itchin! circits to
sensitive analo!BRF bloc#s$ an" the han"lin! of hi!h volta!es by the 6MA -ith "ecreasin!
maximm !ateB"rain*sorce volta!es& ,his -or# "escribes SoC inte!ration in local area -ireless
8e&!&$ Bletooth9 as -ell as in celllar applications 8e&!&$ GSM9&
%evelopin! an" +mplementin! 7ncryption Al!orithm for A""ressin! GSM Secrity +sses200C
GSM bears nmeros secrity vlnerabilities& Altho!h GSM5s architectre is "esi!ne" in sch a
-ay to provi"e varios secrity featres li#e athentication$ "ataB si!nalin! confi"entiality$ an"
secrecy of a ser yet the GSM channel is ssceptible to replay$ interleavin! an" man*in*the
mi""le attac#s& ,he GSM speech service is secre p to the point -here speech enters the core
net-or#& (o-ever to achieve en"*to*en" secrity it is "esire" that the GSM sbscriber$ not the
net-or# operator controls the encryption on the speech channel&
) 1&&. 1#<&7 GSM/:DG: Digi!al 0aseband Recei"er )SIC in 0#1< ;& CM+S.010
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Abstract,his paper a""resses complexity isses at al!orithmic an" architectral level of "i!ital
baseban" receiver AS+C "esi!n for GSMBG6RSB7%G7$ in or"er to re"ce po-er an" "ie area as
"esire" for celllar applications& A 2&DG mltimo"e architectre is implemente" in 0&1E >m
CM:S technolo!y occpyin! 1&0mm2 an" "issipatin! only 1&Em4 in fastest 7%G7 "ata
transmission mo"e&
) >/ n& CM+S ?%ad-0and S)7-3ess Recei"er SoC for GSM/G1RS/:DG: .011
AbstractA 2a"*ban" 2&DG receiver is "esi!ne" to replace the front*en" SA4filters -ith on*
chip ban"pass filters an" to inte!rate the )3A matchin! components$ as -ell as the RF balns&
,he receiver achieves a typical sensitivity of 110 "Bm or better$ -hile savin! a consi"erable
amont of B:M& Atili1in! an arran!ement of for baseban" capacitors an" M:S s-itches "riven
by F*phase 2DG "ty*cycle cloc#s$ hi!h*H B6F5s are reali1e" to attenate the 0 "Bm ot*of*ban"
bloc#er& ,he ID nm CM:S SA4*less receiver inte!rate" as a part of a 2&DG SoC$ "ra-s DD mA
from the battery$ an" measres an ot*of*ban" 1 "B*compression of !reater than 2 "Bm&
Measre" as a stan"*alone$ as -ell as the baseban" rnnin! in call mo"e in the platform level$
the receiver passes the EG66 specifications -ith mar!in&
) S)7-3ess GSM/G1RS/:DG: Recei"er :&bedded in >/-n& SoC .011
AbstractA 2a"*ban" GSMBG6RSB7%G7 receiver$ implemente" in ID nm CM:S$ complies
-ith the 7,S+ stan"ar" -ithot the nee" of external SA4 filters& By explorin! the properties of
passive mixers an" crrent*mo"e operation from RF to baseban"$ the receiver can achieve a
SA4*filter*li#e selectivity -ith inexpensive on*chip components sch as resistors an" capacitors&
+n a""ition$ to alleviate the linearity bottlenec# at the )3A inpt sta!e$ Class*AB self*bias )3,A
is employe" to brea# the conventional tra"e*off5s amon! 3F$ linearity an" po-er consmption&
For sin!le*to*"ifferential conversion$ external )C*C) balns 8instea" of on*chip balns9 are se"
to balance the on*chip "ie an" external B:M cost& ,his receiver soltion is embe""e" as a part
of a celllar phone SoC an" achieves 110 "Bm sensitivity$ 1 "Bm :t*of*Ban" ? ?? an"
consmes D=&C mA& +n F,A test$ the receiver passes ot*of*ban" bloc#er test -ith ? "B mar!in&
) >/n& GSM/G1RS/:DG: SoC 'i!h In!egra!ed 0T/FM
Abstract A hi!hly inte!rate" RF transceiver for GSMBG6RSB7%G7 application is
implemente" in a IDnm S:C -ith B, an" FM systems& ,echni2es are employe" to minimi1e
the coplin! an" interference effects amon! three -ireless systems an" reslts sho- the
sensitivity an" the otpt spectrm stay nchan!e"& ,he 7%G7 "i!ital lo-*+F receiver achieves
*110"Bm sensitivity an" *C"Bm ++6EJ -hile the 7%G7 polar transmitter achieves an :RFS of
*II"B at F00#(1& ,his transceiver consmes I1BI0mA in RKB,K
7%G7 mo"es&
T2: CR:)TI+4 +F ST)4D)RDS F+R G3+0)3 M+0I3: C+MM84IC)TI+46
GSM )4D 8MTS ST)4D)RDI@)TI+4 FR+M 19. T+ .000 .01< I:::
) high-le"el *2D3-)MS &odel design &e!hodolog, for analog RF 34) and Mi-er
Abstract'(%)*AMS spports the time an" fre2ency "omain mo"elin! an" noise mo"elin!
-hich ma#e the RF circit an" system mo"elin! in '(%)*AMS possible$ -hile some
restrictions "o exist& For instance$ the parameters of L),F attribte of a 2antity mst be static is
a "ifficlty to mo"el a flexible ban"-i"th specification& 4e represent a metho"olo!y to "esi!n
an" optimi1e the analo! RF circit in '(%)*AMS to !et a RF mo"el -ith flexible specification
inpt an" hi!h fi"elity to noise an" nonlinearity isses& Some s!!estions on the extension of
'(%)*AMS simlator to better spport the RF circit an" system simlation are presente"&
)n IF Digi!iAing Recei"er for a Co&bined G1S/GSM Ter&inal
Abstract For the prpose of traffic telematics 8rote !i"ance$ fleet mana!ement etc&9 one nee"s
terminals on the vehicle for the 2asi*simlteanos reception of celllar phone 8GSM9 an"
satellite navi!ation 8G6S9& A conventional approach ses t-o complete receivers for this t-o
tas#s& 4e "escribe a cost*savin! soltion for a combine" receiver -hich relies on the ,%M
strctre of the GSM si!nal& :r soltion is base" on an ban"pass*si!ma*"elta A%C for +F
"i!iti1in!&
RF Design Technolog, for 2ighl, In!egra!ed Co&&%nica!ion S,s!e&s
,he characteristics of hi!hly inte!rate" (i!h*Spee" %ata* ,ransmission*Systems for near ftre
commnication stan"ar"s are hi!h mobility$ lo- po-er$ reliability$ hi!h performance$ lo- cost
an" short "evelopment time& Recent available RF "evelopment tools "o not allo- the efficient
"esi!n of tailore"$ -ell partitione"$ hi!hly inte!rate"$ hi!h "atarate commnication systems
tar!etin! p to I G(1 carrier fre2ency& Reasons for this are the missin! flexibility an" accracy
in the hierarchical "esi!n process from system "o-n to physical level& +n this session
representatives of system hoses$ a lea"in! 7%A provi"er an" a silicon fon"ry -ill intro"ce
an" "iscss the challen!es relate" to the specific areas& Consi"erin! the mar#et relevance of hi!h
"ata rate -ireless commnication systems the missin! overall "esi!n technolo!y to"ay is a real
hot topic& S!!estions on ho- to improve the existin! sitation a""ressin! the "esi!n technolo!y
as a -hole -ill be "iscsse"& %epen"in! on the representatives perspective conver!in!
re2irements -ill be -or#e" ot an" non*conver!in! re2irements -ill be "ebate" in a
controversial manner&
F%ll !ranscei"er circ%i! si&%la!ion %sing *2D3-)MS Ma, .00.
,his paper "escribes the sccessfl simlation of a complete transceiver circit -ith the ne-
'(%)*AMS stan"ar"& ,he aim -as to verify the fnctionality an" connectivity of a complete
RF transceiver chip n"er actal application con"itions& ,he transceiver circit is "e"icate" to 7*
GSMBG6RS stan"ar"s for mobile phone applications& At sch a level of complexity$ tra"itional
tools "o not allo- simlation of the "esi!n at transistor level& +n a""ition to "i!ital mo"els$
mixe"*si!nal behavioral mo"els of the transmitter$ receiver an" fre2ency synthesiser have
been "evelope" for a hi!h level of abstraction$ as re2ire" in a top*"o-n metho"olo!y& ,he
complete simlation of the chip too# 2E mintes of C6A time for Ims of circit operation& For
the first time -e -ere able to verify an" "eb! sch a circit at the top*level&
)s5 !he )pplica!ions :ngineerB<0 b, )drian Fo- Cadrian#fo-Danalog#co&E 133
SF4T2:SI@:RS ar!icle.00.
) =#. G2A 133 Fre$%enc, S,n!hesiAer 'i!h an )dap!i"el, T%ned Coarse 3oop
A F&2 G(1 inte!er*3 6)) fre2ency synthesi1er for 4)A3s is "escribe"& An analo! split tne"
)C*'C: is controlle" by coarse an" fine loops to achieve both a lar!e fre2ency tnin! ran!e
an" a small 'C: !ain& An avera!in! varactor is employe" to re"ce the amplit"e sensitivity of
the varactor$ thereby re"cin! the AM*to*FM noise conversion& A ne- a"aptively tne" s-itche"
capacitor inte!rator is se" in the coarse loop for a fast loc# time& ,he prototype test chip in a
0&1E*>m CM:S process has a measre" phase noise of *110"BcB(1 at 1M(1 offset$ an" a
settlin! time of D0 >s&
) Co&ple!el, In!egra!ed( 3o' 4oise( 3o' 1o'er CM+S Fre$%enc, S,n!hesiAer for GSM
Co&&%nica!ions
A lo- po-er 22*m4 C00M(1 Fre2ency Synthesi1er 8FS9$ -ith an on*chip )C*tne" volta!e
controlle" oscillator 8'C:9 for GSM applications is presente"& ,he synthesi1er possesses several
novel featres that incl"e a completely inte!rate" strctre$ a lo- phase noise on*chip )C 'C:$
a lo-*po-er %al*Mo"ls %ivi"er 8%M%9 in CM) topolo!y$ a compensate" char!e pmp
-ith balance" s-itchin!$ an on*chip thir" or"er loop filter an" a propose" relatively easy to
implement fractional accmlator base" fre2ency synthesis techni2e& ,he complete
synthesi1er achieves in*ban" phase noise characteristics better than *110 "BcB(1 at 100#(1
offset& ,he channel s-itchin! time is less than D00>s for a 2DM(1 fre2ency hop& ,he
synthesi1er is able to accommo"ate all 1CD transmit an" receive channels in the RGSM
ban"& ,he propose" architectre has been reali1e" sin! the 0&D >m AM+ CD3 technolo!y& ,he
complete inte!rate" synthesi1er occpies less than 1D00 ; <00 >m2 of "ie real estate&
Dependence of 3C *C+ +scilla!ion Fre$%enc, on 0ias C%rren!
Abstract M )C*tne" volta!e controlle" oscillators 8)C 'C:s9 are -i"ely se" in hi!h
performance phase loc#e" loops 86))s9 an" fre2ency synthesi1ers "e to their hi!h spectral
prity& ,he oscillation fre2ency of an )C 'C: is commonly assme" to be the resonant
fre2ency of the )C tan#& (o-ever$ this is not accrate as sho-n in this paper& ,he oscillation
fre2ency is also affecte" by the bias crrent& By applyin! or analysis to
the (e!a1i an" Abi"i5s )C 'C:$ -e propose a ne- "i!ital trimmin! techni2e -hich can
compensate for process variations an" improve the phase noise performance&
D:SIG4 T:C24I?8:S F+R R)DI)TI+4 2)RD:4:D 12)S:-3+CG:D 3++1S
Reliable operation of electronic e2ipment onboar" the spacecraft re2ires ra"iation har"enin!&
,his article presents the "esi!n an" analysis of a ra"iation har"ene" "i!ital phase*loc#e" loop&
,he effects of ra"iation both sin!le event an" total ioni1ation "ose on the phase*loc#e" loops are
briefly "escribe"& ,he constitent parts of "i!ital phase*loc#e" loops 8%6))s9 are "escribe" an"
their impact on the overall ra"iation tolerance is revie-e"& Sin!le event har"enin! "esi!n
techni2es -ere a""itionally intro"ce" into the "i!ital 6)) to improve its ra"iation
performance& ,his 6)) -as fabricate" in the (oney-ell 0&ED>m S:+ CM:S process&
Charac!eriAa!ion of 1#.G2A 1hase 3oc5ed 3oops and *ol!age Con!rolled +scilla!ors in a
To!al Dose Radia!ion :n"iron&en!
Abstract
Ra"iation har"ness is an important consi"eration for 6hase )oc#e" )oops 86))s9 inten"e" for
space applications& ,otal "ose ra"iation har"ness of analo! intensive circits sch as 6))s are of
special interest as they "o not len" themselves to calibration or re"n"ancy techni2es as rea"ily
as "i!ital circitry& ,his -or# smmari1es measrement reslts obtaine" on a set of volta!e
controlle" oscillators 8'C:s9 an" a char!e*pmp 6)) in a total "ose ra"iation environment& ,he
ra"iation -as pro"ce" by a calibrate" lo- ener!y K*ray 8)7KR9 sorce -ith "ose rates of E00*
D00ra"8Si:29Bsec& ,he "esi!ns are complete" in a 0&EDm S:+ process -ithot specific "esi!n
effort to re"ce ra"iation effects& ,he circits are all "esi!ne" to operate nominally at 1&2G(1&
,hey are characteri1e" before an" after irra"iation -ith a total "ose of D00#Ra"8Si:29& ,he
'C:Ns -ere measre" for 0itter an" tnin! ran!e& ,he tnin! ran!e of the passively tne" )C*
'C:s remaine" stable -hile the ran!e of the actively tne" rin! 'C:s varie" si!nificantly& +n
a""ition$ a more in "epth test -as "one on the 6))& +t -as irra"iate" to I&2MRa"8Si:29& ,he
bias crrent as -ell as the tnin! ran!e -ere monitore" thro!hot the test& ,he 6)) -as able to
loc# to a reference even after the I&2MRa"8Si:29 "ose& ,his paper "escribes the metho"olo!y
an" reslts of this testin! an" also presents insi!ht on the "esi!n of hi!h spee"$ ra"*har" 6))s&
+scilla!ors and 1hase 3oc5ed 3oops for Space Radia!ion :n"iron&en!s6-Thesis