I/Q calibration techniques

• US 8,396,173 B2
• Filed: 09/29/2008
• Issued: 03/12/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/01/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Maxlinear Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Maxlinear Incorporated
• Inventors: Ling, Curtis, Yu, Shuang
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Duc
• Assistant Examiner(s): SHERIF, FATUMA G
• Application Number:
  US12/240,734
• Publication Number:
  US 20090088120A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,625 Days
• Field of Search: 455/266, 455/276.1, 455/278.1, 375/229, 375/327, 375/346, 375/319
• US Class Current: 375/343
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/30 for homodyne or synchrodyne receivers demodulator circuits H03D1/22
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 27/0014 Carrier regulation of chaotic carriers H04L27/001; for multicarrier receivers H04L27/2657

Abstract

A receiver includes a static I/Q calibration block and a correlation/integration block. The static I/Q calibration block is configured to substantially eliminate mismatches between in-phase and quadrature components of a portion of the spectrum having associated I/Q mismatches that are relatively frequency-independent. The correlation/integration block is configured to substantially eliminate mismatches between the in-phase and quadrature components of portions of the spectrum having associated I/Q mismatches that are relatively frequency-dependent in accordance with a pair of signals generated by the static I/C calibration block.

Claims

1. A receiver comprising:

a local oscillator;

a first frequency conversion module responsive to the local oscillator and a received signal to generate an in-phase I signal;

a second frequency conversion module responsive to the local oscillator and the received signal to generate a quadrature Q signal;

a first filter responsive to the first frequency conversion module and adapted to generate a first output signal having first and second portions of a frequency spectrum;

a second filter responsive to the second frequency conversion module and adapted to generate a second output signal having the first and second portions of the frequency spectrum;

a third filter responsive to the first filter;

a fourth filter responsive to the second filter;

a calibration block responsive to outputs of the third and fourth filters and adapted to detect mismatches associated with the first portion of the frequency spectrum; and

a correlator/integrator responsive to the calibration block and adapted to generate a first feedback signal applied to the third filter and a second feedback signal applied to the fourth filter, said first and second feedback signals being operative to vary frequency characteristics of the third and fourth filters so as to compensate for mismatches associated with the second portion of the frequency spectrum in the first and second filters.

2. The receiver of claim 1 wherein said third and fourth filters are digital filters.

3. The receiver of claim 2 wherein said calibration block comprises:

a first low-pass filter responsive to the third filter;

a second low-pass filter responsive to the fourth filter;

a phase detection block adapted to detect a difference between phases of the signals generated by the first and second low-pass filters;

a first multiplier adapted to multiply the detected phase difference by an output of the third filter;

a first signal combiner adapted to subtract an output of the multiplier from an output of the fourth filter to generate a first output signal;

an amplitude detection block adapted to detect a difference between amplitudes of the signals generated by the first and second low-pass filters; and

a second multiplier adapted to multiply the detected amplitude difference by an output of the third filter to generate a second output signal.

4. The receiver of claim 3 wherein said correlator/integrator block comprises:

a first mixer responsive to the first output signal and to a first oscillating signal having an oscillation frequency falling within a frequency band filtered out by the first filter so as to generate a third signal;

a second mixer responsive to the first output signal and to a second oscillating signal having a ninety degrees phase shift with respect to the first oscillating signal, said second mixer generating a fourth signal;

a third mixer responsive to the second output signal and to the first oscillating signal, said third mixer generating a fifth signal, said third and fifth signals defining a first complex signal about an offset frequency;

a fourth mixer responsive to the second oscillating signal, said fourth mixer generating a sixth signal;

said fourth and sixth signal defining a second complex signal about the offset frequency; and

a correlation/integration block adapted to integrate the first and second complex signals to generate the first and second feedback signals.

5. The receiver of claim 4 further comprising:

first, second, third and fourth low-pass filters are respectively responsive to the first, second, third and fourth mixers.

6. A method for performing calibration in a receiver, the method comprising:

frequency converting a received RF signal to a first in-phase signal and a first quadrature signal;

filtering the first in-phase signal in an in-phase signal path to generate a second in-phase signal;

filtering the first quadrature signal in a quadrature signal path to generate a second quadrature phase signal;

performing a first digital filtering operation in response to the second in-phase signal and further in response to a first feedback signal to generate a third in-phase signal;

performing a second digital filtering operation in response to the second quadrature signal and a second feedback signal to generate a third quadrature signal;

detecting mismatches in a first portion of a frequency spectrum of the third in-phase and quadrature signals to generate a first output signal and a second output signal; and

generating the first feedback signal and the second feedback signal in response to the first and second output signals, the first and second feedback signals compensating for mismatches in a second portion frequency portion in the in-phase and quadrature signal paths.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein detecting mismatches in the first portion of the frequency spectrum comprises:

detecting a difference between phases of the second in-phase and quadrature signals;

multiplying the detected phase difference by the second in-phase signal to generate a first multiplied signal;

subtracting the first multiplied signal from the second quadrature signal to generate the first output signal;

detecting a difference between amplitudes of the second in-phase and quadrature signals; and

multiplying the detected amplitude difference by the second in-phase signal to generate the second output signal.

8. The method of claim 7 further comprising:

frequency converting the first output signal to a third in-phase signal in response to a first oscillating signal having an oscillation frequency falling within a frequency band used to filter the in-phase signal;

frequency converting the first output signal to a fourth in-phase signal in response to a second oscillating signal having ninety degrees phase shift with respect to the first oscillation frequency;

frequency converting the second output signal to a third quadrature signal in response to the first oscillating signal, said third in-phase and third quadrature signals defining a first complex signal about an offset frequency;

frequency converting the second output signal to a fourth quadrature signal in response to the second oscillating signal, said fourth in-phase and fourth quadrature signals defining a second complex signal about the offset frequency; and

integrating the first and second complex signals to generate the first and second feedback signals.

9. A method for processing a received signal over wireless communication receiver, the method comprising:

detecting mismatches between in-phase and quadrature components of a first portion of a frequency spectrum of the received signal; and

removing mismatches between the in-phase and quadrature components of a second portion of the frequency spectrum in response to the detected mismatches;

wherein removing the mismatches of the second portion of the frequency spectrum comprises;

adjusting a first transfer function of at least one of the in-phase components in a first direction and adjusting a second transfer function of at least one of the quadrature components in a second direction opposite of the first direction.

10. The method of claim 9 further comprising:

removing the mismatches between the in-phase and quadrature components of the second portion of the frequency spectrum of the received signal in accordance with a pair of feedback signals generated as a result of detecting the mismatches between in-phase and quadrature components of the first portion of a frequency spectrum of the received signal.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein adjusting the first and second transfer functions comprises:

correlating signals associated with the second portion of the frequency spectrum; and

integrating the correlated signals to generate control signals for the at least one of the in-phase components and for at least one of the quadrature components.