Improved double balanced mixer

Abstract

An improved double balanced mixer is provided which in one embodiment includes a first balun for receiving a first single input and providing a first balanced output having two ports, a second balun for receiving a second single input and providing a second balanced output having two ports, and a balanced mixer core responsive to the first and second balanced outputs to provide a mixed signal from the first and second single inputs. The first balun includes an RC network coupled between at least one of the ports of the first balanced output and one of ground and a common mode node of the first balun to improve the linearity of the double balanced mixer.

Description

[0001] related application [0002] This application hereby claims the benefit and benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61 / 398,149 filed June 22, 2010 pursuant to 35 U.S.C. §§ 119,120,363,365 and 37 CFR §§ 1.55 and 1.78. priority, this application is incorporated herein by reference. technical field [0003] The present invention relates to double balanced mixers. Background technique [0004] In communication systems and other electronic systems, it is often necessary to convert signals in one radio frequency (RF) band to another intermediate frequency (IF) band, and vice versa, using circuits known as frequency converters or mixers. During this signal frequency conversion process at the mixer, the ratio between the converted output signal power level and the pre-converted input signal power level is called the conversion gain (CG), which measures the efficiency of the conversion process. efficiency. The operating bandwidth of a mixer is often defined as th...

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

But these stripline baluns require multiple metal layers with finely controlled three-dimensional profiles, which introduces greater processing difficulty and higher cost to most planar and semiconductor integrated circuit manufacturing processes.

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