A 9.5 GHz commercially available 1/4 GaAs dynamic prescaler

A mass-producible 1/4 GaAs monolithic dynamic prescaler operating with a single clock input of 9.5 GHz and a power dissipation of 480 mW has been realized. The phase noise performance is -100 dBc/Hz and -120 dBc/Hz at 100 Hz and 10 kHz offsets, respectively, for a 6.725-GHz input, which is considered to be low enough for practical use. The circuit design and simulation, fabrication, and performance are reported.<>