GAAS PRESCALERS AND COUNTERS FOR FAST-SETTLING FREQUENCY-SYNTHESIZERS

— A number of low-power GaAs DCFL components have been developed for use in compact, fast-settling, phase-locked-loop-type frequency synthesizer applications. These components include a divide-by-two circuit (2.7 GHz, 1.3 mW), a dual-modulus (÷10/11) prescaler (2.4 GHz, 15 mW), a 4-bit ripple counter (2.4 GHz, 4.6 mW), a 4-bit programmable prescaler (1.7 GHz, 36 mW), a 3-bit programmable counter (1.9 GHz, 57 mW), a 4-bit programmable counter (1.8 GHz, 70 mW), and a 6-bit programmable counter (1.4 GHz, 90 mW). The circuits are fabricated with a high-yield refractory self-aligned gate process and operate over a wide variation in power supply voltage and temperature. When operated over a — 55 to 125° C temperature range, the circuits show less than 20-percent degradation in their maximum clock frequency. The results demonstrate state-of-the-art high-frequency performance at extremely low power dissipation. © 1990 IEEE