Design and simulation of Ku-Band Low-Noise Block Down-Converter in 0.18 micrometer CMOS technology

This paper presents a Low-Noise Block (LNB) Down Converter Circuit that converts RF signals in the Ku-Band, 10.5 GHz - 13 GHz, to the L-band, 0.75 GHz - 2.25 GHz using 0.18 micrometer CMOS technology. The LNB consumed 94.06 milliamps from a 1.8 volt power supply. This LNB achieved an overall gain of 62 decibels with a noise figure between 3.85 decibels and 4.55 decibels within the operating frequency range. It has a 1-decibel input compression point of 5.34 dBm and a third-order intercept of 5.26 dB. A detailed analysis of the respective components of the LNB, including the low-noise amplifier, voltage-controlled oscillator, mixer, and intermediate frequency amplifier, will be presented. For each component of the LNB, important figures of merit, their respective contributions to the overall design specifications, and Cadence Virtuoso simulation results are presented.