Monolithic Voltage Controlled Oscillator for X- and Ku-Bands

A GaAs voltage controlled oscillator circuit that tones from 11.15 to 14.39 GHz and 16 to 18.74 GHz has been designed and fabricated. The 1.1 mm x 1.2-mm chip includes two varactors, a 300-µm FET, bypass capacitors, tuning inductors, and isolation resistors. Wide-band circuit design techniques will be described. Varactor and circuit effects causing the noncontinuous bandwidth will be discussed showing the capability of continuous 11 to 18 GHz tuning using a single GaAs chip.