A 26 GHz coplanar stripline-based current sharing CMOS oscillator

A coplanar stripline (CPS) based oscillator topology is introduced that is capable of achieving a low phase noise at extremely high frequencies. This oscillator uses a symmetric current sharing active topology and a high quality factor CPS design in a standard CMOS process without relying on any advanced process features such as the thick analog metal layer option. A 26 GHz prototype oscillator, fabricated in a 0.18 /spl mu/m CMOS process, achieves a phase noise of -110 dBc/Hz at 1 MHz offset frequency, while drawing a current of 3.36 mA from a 1.8 V supply.