Multi-frequency reconfigurable voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) and method of providing same
First Claim
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1. A multiple frequency reconfigurable voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) comprising:
- at least one resonator, wherein the at least one resonator is a piezoelectric laterally vibrating contour mode micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) resonator, the at least one resonator comprising a first resonator and a second resonator, wherein the first resonator in the at least one resonator is tunable by about fifteen percent in either direction, and wherein the second resonator in the at least one resonator includes a Q-factor that is greater than about one thousand;
at least one inductor arranged in parallel with the at least one resonator; and
a variable capacitance device coupled in parallel to the at least one inductor and arranged in parallel to the at least one resonator, wherein the at least one resonator is selectably coupled in parallel with the at least one inductor and the variable capacitance device.
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Abstract
A multiple frequency reconfigurable voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) (136) includes a variable capacitance device (112), an inductor (116) coupled in parallel with the variable capacitance device (112), and at least two circuit paths (118, 120, 122) coupled in parallel with the variable capacitance device (112) and the inductor (116). The circuit paths (118, 120, 122) each include a piezoelectric laterally vibrating resonator (126, 130, 134) and a switch (124, 128, 132) for selectably coupling each piezoelectric laterally vibrating resonator (126, 130, 134) in parallel with the inductor (116) and variable capacitance device (112).
13 Citations
32 Claims
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1. A multiple frequency reconfigurable voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) comprising:
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at least one resonator, wherein the at least one resonator is a piezoelectric laterally vibrating contour mode micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) resonator, the at least one resonator comprising a first resonator and a second resonator, wherein the first resonator in the at least one resonator is tunable by about fifteen percent in either direction, and wherein the second resonator in the at least one resonator includes a Q-factor that is greater than about one thousand; at least one inductor arranged in parallel with the at least one resonator; and a variable capacitance device coupled in parallel to the at least one inductor and arranged in parallel to the at least one resonator, wherein the at least one resonator is selectably coupled in parallel with the at least one inductor and the variable capacitance device. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A method of providing a multiple frequency reconfigurable voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) comprising:
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coupling an inductor in parallel with a variable capacitance device; providing a plurality of circuit paths in parallel with the inductor; providing at least one resonator and a switch in each of the plurality of circuit paths, wherein the at least one resonator is a piezoelectric laterally vibrating contour mode micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) resonator, the at least one resonator comprising a first resonator and a second resonator, wherein the first resonator in the at least one resonator is tunable by about fifteen percent in either direction, and wherein the second resonator in the at least one resonator includes a Q-factor that is greater than about one thousand; and closing the switch in at least one of the plurality of circuit paths to produce an oscillating signal. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A multiple frequency reconfigurable voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) comprising:
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a variable capacitance device; an inductor coupled in parallel with the variable capacitance device; and at least two circuit paths coupled in parallel with the variable capacitance device and the inductor, the at least two circuit paths each comprising a resonator and a switch for selectably coupling the resonator in parallel with the inductor and the variable capacitance device, wherein the resonator is a piezoelectric laterally vibrating contour mode micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) resonator, wherein the resonator in one of the at least two circuit paths is tunable by about fifteen percent in either direction, and wherein the resonator in another one of the at least two circuit paths includes a Q-factor that is greater than about one thousand. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18)
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19. A multiple frequency reconfigurable voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) comprising:
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resonator means, wherein the resonator means includes a piezoelectric laterally vibrating contour mode micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) resonator means, the resonator means comprising a first resonator and a second resonator, wherein the first resonator in the at least one resonator is tunable by about fifteen percent in either direction, and wherein the second resonator in the at least one resonator includes a Q-factor that is greater than about one thousand; inductor means arranged in parallel with the resonator means; variable capacitance means coupled in parallel to the inductor means and arranged in parallel to the resonator means; and switch means for selectably coupling the resonator means in parallel with the inductor means. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26)
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27. A method of providing a multiple frequency reconfigurable voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) comprising:
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a step for coupling an inductor in parallel with a variable capacitance device; a step for providing a plurality of circuit paths in parallel with the inductor; a step for providing a resonator and a switch in each of the plurality of circuit paths, wherein the resonator comprises a piezoelectric laterally vibrating contour mode micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) resonator, wherein the resonator in one of the circuit paths is tunable by about fifteen percent in either direction, and wherein the resonator in another one of the circuit paths includes a Q-factor that is greater than about one thousand; and a step for closing the switch in at least one of the plurality of circuit paths to produce an oscillating signal. - View Dependent Claims (28, 29, 30, 31, 32)
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Specification