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This paper presents the first demonstration and comparison of two identical oscillator circuits employing piezoelectric zinc oxide (ZnO) microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) resonators, implemented on conventional printed-circuit-board (PCB) and three-dimensional (3D)-printed acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) substrates. Both oscillators operate simultaneously at dual frequencies (260 MHz and 437 MHz) without the need for additional circuitry. The MEMS resonators, fabricated on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafers, exhibit high-quality factors (Q), ensuring superior phase noise performance. Experimental results indicate that the oscillator packaged using 3D-printed chip-carrier assembly achieves a 2–3 dB improvement in phase noise compared to the PCB-based oscillator, attributed to the ABS substrate’s lower dielectric loss and reduced parasitic effects at radio frequency (RF). Specifically, phase noise values between −84 and −77 dBc/Hz at 1 kHz offset and a noise floor of −163 dBc/Hz at far-from-carrier offset were achieved. Additionally, the 3D-printed ABS-based oscillator delivers notably higher output power (4.575 dBm at 260 MHz and 0.147 dBm at 437 MHz). To facilitate modular characterization, advanced packaging techniques leveraging precise 3D-printed encapsulation with sub-100 μm lateral interconnects were employed. These ensured robust packaging integrity without compromising oscillator performance. Furthermore, a comparison between two transistor technologies—a silicon germanium (SiGe) heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT) and an enhancement-mode pseudomorphic high-electron-mobility transistor (E-pHEMT)—demonstrated that SiGe HBT transistors provide superior phase noise characteristics at close-to-carrier offset frequencies, with a significant 11 dB improvement observed at 1 kHz offset. These results highlight the promising potential of 3D-printed chip-carrier packaging techniques in high-performance MEMS oscillator applications.
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A Programmable CMOS Feedback IC for Reconfigurable MEMS-Referenced Oscillators
MEMS resonators integrated with CMOS feedback networks have a potentially wide field of applications as oscillator circuits in communications and sensor systems. However, considerable advancements to this nascent technology are required to realize such a vision. We present a configurable CMOS chip which facilitates the development of MEMS-referenced oscillators, especially for timing and sensing applications in harsh environments. The chip has been designed in the OnSemi 3M2P 0.5 um process. It supports MEMS resonators with various frequencies (10–120 kHz), resonant modes, and impedance levels, thus allowing interfacing to a wide range of devices. This paper describes analysis, design, and simulation results.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1509721
- PAR ID:
- 10016640
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- New Circuits and Systems Conference (NEWCAS), 2016 IEEE 14th International
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 1-4
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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