Compact and low phase noise LC-VCO design using novel V-shaped inductor in 0.18-m CMOS technology for Ku-band applications

An innovative, high-quality factor, and small-area V-shaped inductor is presented in this article to improve the performance of voltage-controlled oscillators (VCOs). The differential inductance of the suggested V-shaped inductor in the resonator and the buffer is 280 pH and 630 pH, respectively. The inductor area is compacted by 42% and 76% compared to the conventional inductor with the same inductance value. Using 0.18-& mu;m$$ \upmu \mathrm{m} $$ CMOS technology, the proposed V-shaped inductor is employed to design a compact VCO operating at Ku-band. The proposed VCO has a simulated phase noise range of -114 to -114.6 dBc/Hz, which is relatively constant. Also, its simulated frequency tuning range (FTR) is 5.6 % from 14.03 to 14.74 GHz. The power consumption is 2.2 mW. The simulated figure of merit (FoM) ranges from -193.5 to -194.2 dBc/Hz, which is enhanced by 6%. The designed VCO core area is 0.034 mm(2), which is compacted by 35% compared to using a conventional spiral inductor. The achieved area-included figure of merit (FoMA$$ Fo{M}_A $$) is -208.7 dBc/Hz. The VCO has an output power of -6.8 dBm and a good harmonic suppression of 29.4 dB between the fundamental and the second harmonic.