Low-Power UWB LNA and Mixer using 0.18-μm CMOS Technology

A low-power fully integrated wideband low noise amplifier (LNA) and down-conversion mixer are designed for direct sequence-UWB (DS-UWB) RF front-end using 0.18-μm CMOS technology. The LNA is designed to cover the full UWB bandwidth of 7.5GHz. Measurements show this LNA achieves gain of 14 16.5dB, noise figure (NF) of 4.2 - 4.8dB and IIP3 of -8dBm, consuming 6mA of current from a 1.8-V supply. The mixer is designed using Gilbert-cell topology to work for both DS-UWB bands. Over both bands, the mixer achieves voltage gain of 4 - 6dB, IIP3 of -1dBm, and NF of 14 to 18dB with a supply current of 11.5mA from a 1.8-V supply.