An InP VCO with Static Frequency Divider for Millimeter Wave Clock Generation

We present the design of an InP millimeter-wave VCO which is coupled to a static frequency divider to produce a millimeter wave clock signal. The VCO has a center frequency of 53.4 GHz, a tuning range of 2.4 GHz, and a phase noise of -89 dBc/Hz (at 1 MHz offset frequency), giving an output clock frequency of 26.7 GHz. This clock is capable of generating single ended, differential, or quadrature output signals, and is designed to be a system clock for Electronic Warfare (2-18 GHz) applications.