Table 10. Active Blocks

9.3.1 PLL Reference Oscillator Input Pins

There are three basic ways that the OSCin/OSCin* pins may be configured as shown in the table below:

In addition to the way that the OSCin/OSCin* pins are driven, there are also bits that effect the frequency that the chip uses. The OSC_FREQ word needs to be programmed correctly, or the VCO may have issues locking to the proper frequency, because the VCO frequency calibration is based on this word.

Higher slew rates tend to yield the best fractional spurs and phase noise, so a square wave signal is best for OSCin. Single ended mode and differential mode have similar results if a square wave is used to drive the OSCin pin. If using a sine wave, higher frequencies tend to work better due to their higher slew rates.

9.3.2 PLL R Divider

The R divider divides the OSCin frequency down to the phase detector frequency. If the doubler is enabled, then the R divider is bypassed.

9.3.3 PLL Phase Detector and Charge Pump

The phase detector compares the outputs of the R and N dividers and generates a correction current corresponding to the phase error. This charge pump current is software programmable to 32 different levels. The phase detector frequency, f_PD, can be calculated as follows:

9.3.4 PLL N Divider and Fractional Circuitry

The N divider in the LMX2541 includes fractional compensation and can achieve any fractional denominator (PLL_DEN) from 1 to 4,194,303. The integer portion, PLL_N, is the whole part of the N divider value and the fractional portion, PLL_NUM / PLL_DEN, is the remaining fraction. PLL_N, PLL_NUM, and PLL_DEN are software programmable. So in general, the total N divider value, N, is determined by:

The order of the delta-sigma modulator is programmable from integer mode to fourth order. There are also several dithering modes that are also programmable. In order to make the fractional spurs consistent, the modulator is reset any time that the R0 register is programmed.

9.3.5 Partially Integrated Loop Filter

The LMX2541 integrates the third pole (formed by R3_LF and C3_LF) and fourth pole (formed by R4_LF and C4_LF) of the loop filter. The values for these integrated components can be programmed independently through the MICROWIRE interface. The larger the values of these components, the stronger the attenuation of the internal loop filter. The maximum attenuation can be achieved by setting the internal resistors and capacitors to their maximum value and the minimum attenuation can be attained by setting all of these to their minimum setting. This partially integrated loop filter can only be used in full chip mode.

Figure 26. Partially Integrated Loop Filter

9.3.6 Low Noise, Fully Integrated VCO

The LMX2541 includes a fully integrated VCO, including the inductors. The VCO (Voltage Controlled Oscillator) takes the voltage from the loop filter and converts this into a frequency. The VCO frequency is related to the other frequencies and divider values as follows:

In order to the reduce the VCO tuning gain and therefore improve the VCO phase noise performance, the VCO frequency range is divided into many different frequency bands. This creates the need for frequency calibration in order to determine the correct frequency band given a desired output frequency. The frequency calibration routine is activated any time that the R0 register is programmed. It is important that the OSC_FREQ word is set correctly to have this work correctly.

The VCO also has an internal amplitude calibration algorithm to optimize the phase noise which is also activated any time the R0 register is programmed. The optimum internal settings for this are temperature dependent. If the temperature is allowed to drift too much without being re-calibrated, some minor phase noise degradation could result. For applications where this is an issue, the AC_TEMP_COMP word can be used to sacrifice phase noise at room temperature in order to improve the VCO phase noise over all temperatures. The maximum allowable drift for continuous lock, ΔT_CL, is stated in the electrical specifications. For this part, a number of +125 C means the part will never lose lock if the part is operated under recommended operating conditions.

9.3.7 Programmable VCO Divider

The VCO divider can be programmed to any value from 2 to 63 as well as bypass mode if device is in full chip mode. In external VCO mode or divider mode, all values except bypass mode can be used for the VCO divider. The VCO divider is not in the feedback path between the VCO and the PLL and therefore has no impact on the PLL loop dynamics. After this programmable divider is changed, it may be beneficial to reprogram the R0 register to recallibrate the VCO . The frequency at the RFout pin is related to the VCO frequency and divider value, VCO_DIV, as follows:

When this divider is enabled, there will be some far-out phase noise contribution to the VCO noise. Also, it may be beneficial for VCO phase noise to reprogram the R0 register to recalibrate the VCO if the VCO_DIV value is changed from bypass to divided, or vice-versa.

The duty cycle for this divider is always 50%, even for odd divide values. Because of the architecture of this divider that allows it to work to high frequencies and always have a 50% duty cycle, there are a few extra considerations:

• In divider only mode, there must be five clock cycles on the ExtVCOin pin after the divide value is programmed in order to cause the divide value to properly changed. It is fine to use more than 5 clock cycles for this purpose.
• For a divide of 4 or 5 ONLY, the R4 register needs to be programmed one more time after the device is fully programmed in order synchronize the divider. Failure to do so will cause the VCO divider to divide by the wrong value. Furthermore, if the VCO signal ever goes away, as is the case when the part is powered down, it is necessary to reprogram the R4 register again to re-synchronize the divider. Furthermore, if the R0 register is ever programmed in full chip mode, it is also necessary to reprogram the R4 register.

9.3.8 Programmable RF Output Buffer

The output power at the RFout pin can be programmed to various levels as well as on and off states. The output state of this pin is controlled by the RFoutEN pin as well as the RFOUT word. The RF output buffer can be disabled while still keeping the PLL in lock. In addition to this, the actual output power level of this pin can be adjusted using the VCOGAIN, DIVGAIN, and OUTTERM programming words. The reader should note that VCOGAIN controls the gain of the VCO buffer, not the tuning constant in of the VCO.

9.3.9 Powerdown Modes

The LMX2541 can be powered up and down using the CE pin or the POWERDOWN bit. When the device is powered down, the programming and VCO calibration information is retained, so it is not necessary to re-program the device when the device comes out of the powered down state (The one exception is when the VCO_DIV value is 4 or 5, which has already been discussed.). The following table shows how to use the bit and pin.

The device can be programmed in the powerdown state. However, the VCO frequency needs to be changed when the device is powered up because the VCO calibration does not run in the powerdown state. Also, the special programming for VCO_DIV = 4 or 5 has to be done when the part is powered up. In order for the CE pin to properly power the device down when it is held low, the all registers in the device need to have been programmed at least one time.

9.3.10 Fastlock

The LMX2541 includes the Fastlock feature that can be used to improve the lock times. When the frequency is changed, a timeout counter is used to engage the fastlock for a programmable amount of time. During the time that the device is in Fastlock, the FLout pin changes from high impedance to low, thus switching in the external resistor R2pLF with R2_LF as well as changing the internal loop filter values for R3_LF and R4_LF.

Figure 27. Fastlock Schematic

Table 12 shows the charge pump gain, loop filter resistors, and FLout pin change between normal operation and Fastlock.

Once the loop filter values and charge pump gain are known for normal mode operation, they can be determined for fastlock operation as well. In normal operation, one cannot use the highest charge pump gain and still use fastlock because there will be no larger current to switch in. If the resistors and the charge pump current are done simultaneously, then the phase margin can be preserved while increasing the loop bandwidth by a factor of K as shown in the following table:

9.3.11 Lock Detect

The Ftest/LD pin of the LMX2541 can be configured to output a signal that gives an indication for the PLL being locked. There are two styles of lock detect; analog and digital. The analog lock detect signal is more of a legacy feature and consists a series of narrow pulses that correspond to when the charge pump comes on. These pulses can be integrated with an external RC filter to create generate a lock detect signal. Analog lock detect can be configured in a push-pull output or an open drain output. The analog open drain lock detect signal can be integrated with a similar RC filter and requires an additional pullup resistor. This pullup resistor can be much larger than the resistor in the RC filter in order to make unbalanced time constants for improved sensitivity.

The digital lock detect function can also be selected for the Ftest/LD pin to give a logic level indication of lock or unlock. The digital lock detect circuitry works by comparing the difference between the phase of the inputs to the phase detector with a RC generated delay of ε. To indicate a locked state (Lock = HIGH) the phase error must be less than ε for 5 consecutive phase detector cycles. Once in lock (Lock = HIGH), the RC delay is changed to δ. To indicate an out of lock state (Lock = LOW), the phase error must become greater than δ. The values of ε and δ are programmable with the DLOCK word.

Figure 28. Lock Detect

9.3.12 Current Consumption

The current consumption of the LMX2541 has many factors that influence it. Determining the current consumption for the entire device involves knowing which blocks are powered up and adding their currents together. The current in the electrical specifications gives some typical cases, but there could be some variation over factors such as the phase detector frequency. Also, the output buffer current can be impacted by the software controllable settings. By subtracting or adding combinations of the currents for the RFout buffer and VCO divider, the current consumption for the device can be estimated for any usable configuration. The currents for the buffer and VCO divider are as follows:

9.3.13 Fractional Spurs

9.3.14 Impact of VCO_DIV on Fractional Spurs

Because the fractional and sub-fractional spur levels do not depend on output frequency, there is a big benefit to division. In general, every factor of 2 gives a 6 dB improvement to fractional spurs. Also, because the spur offset frequency is not divided, the channel spacing at the VCO can be also increased to improve the spurs. However, if the on-chip VCO is used, crosstalk can cause spurs at a frequency of f_RFout mod f_PD. Consider the following example of a 50 MHz phase detector frequency and VCO_DIV = 2. If the VCO is at 3000.1 MHz and divided by 2 to get 1500.05 MHz, there will be a spur at an offset of 50 kHz (1500.05 MHz mod 50 MHz). However, if the VCO frequency is at 3050.1 MHz, the output will be at 1525.05 MHz, but the spur will be at a much farther offset that can easily be filtered by the loop filter of 25.05 MHz (1525.05 MHz mod 50 MHz).

9.3.15 PLL Phase Noise

9.3.16 Impact of Modulator Order, Dithering, and Larger Equivalent Fractions on Spurs and Phase Noise

To achieve a fractional N value, an integer N divider is modulated between different values. This gives rise to three main degrees of freedom with the LMX2541 delta-sigma engine: the modulator order, dithering, and the way that the fractional portion is expressed. The first degree of freedom, the modulator order, can be selected as zero (integer mode), one, two, three, or four. One simple technique to better understand the impact of the delta-sigma fractional engine on noise and spurs is to tune the VCO to an integer channel and observe the impact of changing the modulator order from integer mode to a higher order. A higher fractional modulator order in theory yields lower primary fractional spurs. However, this can also give rise to sub-fractional spurs in some applications. The second degree of freedom is dithering. Dithering seeks to improve the sub-fractional spurs by randomizing the sequence of N divider values. In theory, a perfectly randomized sequence would eliminate all sub-fractional spurs, but add phase noise by spreading the energy that would otherwise be contained in the spurs. The third degree of freedom is the way that the fraction is expressed. For example, 1/10 can be expressed as a larger equivalent fraction of 100000/1000000. Using larger equivalent fractions tends to increase randomization similar to dithering. In general, the very low phase noise of the LMX2541 exposes the modulator noise when dithering and large fractions are used, so use these with caution. The avid reader is highly encouraged to read application note 1879 for more details on fractional spurs. The following table summarizes the relationships between spur types, phase noise, modulator order, dithering and fractional expression.

9.3.17 Modulator Order

In general, the fractional mode of the PLL enables the use of a higher phase detector frequency relative to the channel spacing, which enables the in-band noise of the PLL to be lower. The choice of modulator order to be used in fractional mode is based on how much higher f_PD can be made relative to the channel spacing and the acceptable spur levels. The LMX2541 has a programmable modulator order which allows the user to make a trade-off between PLL noise and primary and sub-fractional spur performance. The following table provides some general guidelines for choosing modulator order: Note that the spurs due to crosstalk will not be impacted by modulator order.

9.3.18 Programmable Output Power with On/Off

The power level of the RFout pin is programmable, including on/off controls. The RFoutEN pin and RFOUT word can be used to turn the RFout pin on and off while still keeping the VCO running and in lock. In addition to on/off states, the power level can also be programmed in various steps using the VCOGAIN, DIVGAIN, and OUTTERM programming words. There are tables in the Typical Characteristics section that discuss the impact of these words on the output power. In addition to impacting the output power, these words also impact the current consumption of the device. This data was obtained as an average over all frequencies. In general, it is desirable to find the combination of programming words that gives the lowest current consumption for a given output power level. All numbers reported are relative to the case of VCOGAIN = OUTTERM = 12. According to this data, using a VCOGAIN or OUTTERM value of 12 or greater yields only a small increase in output power, but a large increase in current consumption.

9.3.19 Loop Filter

Loop filter design can be rather complicated, but there are design tools and references available at www.ti.com. The loop bandwidth can impact the size of loop filter capacitors and also how the phase noise is filtered. For optimal integrated phase noise, choose the bandwidth to be about 20% wider than the frequency where the in-band PLL phase noise (as described in PLL Phase Noise) and open loop VCO noise cross. This optimal loop bandwidth may need adjustment depending on the application requirements. Reduction of spurs can be achieved by reducing the loop bandwidth. On the other hand, a wider loop bandwidth may be required for faster lock time. Note that using the integrated loop filter components can lead to a significant restriction on the loop bandwidth and should be used with care. 2 kΩ for R3_LF and R4_LF is a good starting point. If the integrated loop filter restricts the loop bandwidth, then first try to relieve this restriction by reducing the integrated loop filter resistors and then reduce the capacitors only if necessary.

9.3.20 Internal VCO Digital Calibration Time

When the LMX2541 is used in full chip mode, the integrated VCO can impact the lock time of the system. This digital calibration chooses the closest VCO frequency band, which typically gets the device within a frequency error 10 MHz or less of the final settling frequency, although this final frequency error can change slightly between the different options of the LMX2541. Once this digital calibration is finished, this remaining frequency error must settle out, and this remaining lock time is dictated by the loop bandwidth.

Based on measured data, this digital calibration time can be approximated by the following formula:

For example, consider the LMX2541SQ3320E changing from 3600 to 3400 with an OSCin frequency of 100 MHz. In this case, ΔF = 200 (direction of frequency change does not matter), f_OSCin = 100 MHz, and OSC_FREQ=100. The calibration circuitry is run at a clock speed of CLK = 100 MHz / 4 = 25 MHz. When this values are substituted in the formula, the resulting lock time is 218 μs. After this time, the VCO will be within about 10 MHz of the final frequency and this final frequency error will settle out in an analog fashion. This final frequency error can be slightly different depending on which option of the LMX2541 is being used.

9.4.1 External VCO Mode

The LMX2541 also has provisions to be driven with an external VCO as well. In this mode, the user has the option of using the RFout pin output, although if this pin is used, the VCO input frequency is restricted to 4 GHz. If not used, the RFout pin should be left open. The VCO input is connected to the ExtVCOin pin. Because the internal VCO is not being used, the part option that is being used does not have a large impact on phase noise or spur performance. It is also possible to switch between both Full Chip mode and External VCO mode.

9.4.2 Digital FSK Mode

The LMX2541 supports 2-level digital frequency shift keying (FSK) modulation. The bit rate is limited by the loop bandwidth of the PLL loop. As a general rule of thumb, it is desirable to have the loop bandwidth at least twice the bit rate. This is achieved by changing the N counter rapidly between two states. The fractional numerator and denominator are restricted to a length of 12 bits. The 12 LSB’s of the numerator and denominator set the center frequency, Fcenter, and the 10 MSB’s of the numerator set the frequency deviation, Fdev. The LMX2541 has the ability to switch between two different numerator values based on the voltage at the DATA pin. When DATA is low, the output frequency will be Fcenter – Fdev and when the DATA pin is high the output frequency will be Fcenter + Fdev. A limitation of the FSK mode is the frequency deviation cannot cause the N counter to cross integer boundaries. When using FSK mode, the FDM bit needs to be set to zero.

There are several other considerations for programming:

• The DATA is clocked into a shift register on each rising edge of the CLK signal. On the rising edge of the LE signal, the data is sent from the shift registers to an actual counter.
• A slew rate of at least 30 V/μs is recommended for the CLK, DATA, and LE signals.
• After the programming is complete, the CLK, DATA, and LE signals should be returned to a low state.
• When using the part in Full Chip Mode with the Integrated VCO, LE should be kept high no more than 1 us after the programming of the R0 register. Failure to do so may interfere with the digital VCO calibration.
• If the CLK and DATA lines are toggled while the in VCO is in lock , as is sometimes the case when these lines are shared with other parts, the phase noise may be degraded during the time of this programming.

9.5.1 General Programming Information

The LMX2541 is programmed using several 32-bit registers used to control the LMX2541 operation. A 32-bit shift register is used as a temporary register to indirectly program the on-chip registers. The shift register consists of a data field and an address field. The last 4 register bits, CTRL[3:0] form the address field, which is used to decode the internal register address. The remaining 28 bits form the data field DATA[27:0]. While LE is low, serial data is clocked into the shift register upon the rising edge of clock (data is programmed MSB first). When LE goes high, data is transferred from the data field into the selected register bank. For initial device programming the register programming sequence must be done in the order as shown in the register map. The action of programming register R7 and bringing LE low resets all the registers to default values, including hidden registers. The programming of register R0 is also special for the device when operating in full chip mode because the action of programming either one of these registers activates the VCO calibration.

In addition to changing the values of various words, the programming of certain registers triggers certain events as described in the table below:

Table 18. Register Map

9.6.1 Register R7

Although Register 7 has no elective bits to program, it is very important to program this register because the action of doing so with the bit sequence shown in the register map resets all the registers, including hidden registers with test bits that are not disclosed. Register 7 should always be programmed first, because it will reset all other programming information. The register reset occurs only after the LE signal has transitioned from low to high and back to low again.