A p p l i c a t i o n N o t e , R e v . 2 . 0 , F e b .

2 00 7

A p p li c a t i o n N o t e N o . 0 9 9
A discrete based 315 MHz Oscillator Solution for
R e m o t e K e y l es s E n tr y S y s t e m u s i n g B F R 1 8 2 R F
B i p ol a r T r a ns i s t o r

R F & P r o t e c ti o n D e v i c e s
Edition 2007-02-12
Published by
Infineon Technologies AG
81726 München, Germany
© Infineon Technologies AG 2009.
All Rights Reserved.

LEGAL DISCLAIMER
THE INFORMATION GIVEN IN THIS APPLICATION NOTE IS GIVEN AS A HINT FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION
OF THE INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES COMPONENT ONLY AND SHALL NOT BE REGARDED AS ANY
DESCRIPTION OR WARRANTY OF A CERTAIN FUNCTIONALITY, CONDITION OR QUALITY OF THE
INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES COMPONENT. THE RECIPIENT OF THIS APPLICATION NOTE MUST VERIFY
ANY FUNCTION DESCRIBED HEREIN IN THE REAL APPLICATION. INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES HEREBY
DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL WARRANTIES AND LIABILITIES OF ANY KIND (INCLUDING WITHOUT
LIMITATION WARRANTIES OF NON-INFRINGEMENT OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS OF ANY
THIRD PARTY) WITH RESPECT TO ANY AND ALL INFORMATION GIVEN IN THIS APPLICATION NOTE.

Information
For further information on technology, delivery terms and conditions and prices please contact your nearest
Infineon Technologies Office (www.infineon.com).

Warnings
Due to technical requirements components may contain dangerous substances. For information on the types in
question please contact your nearest Infineon Technologies Office.
Infineon Technologies Components may only be used in life-support devices or systems with the express written
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be endangered.
 Application Note No. 099

Application Note No. 099

Revision History: 2007-02-12, Rev. 2.0

Previous Version: 2006-09-20
Page Subjects (major changes since last revision)
9 – 14 Added typical characteristic vs. both supply voltage and temperature

Application Note 3 Rev. 2.0, 2007-02-12

 Application Note No. 099

Introduction

1 Introduction
This application note gives an introduction on how one can make a simple oscillator for low-cost applications like
remote keyless entry (RKE). For demonstration purposes, the oscillator is designed for a frequency of 315 MHz,
a commonly used frequency for remote keyless entry (RKE) and tire pressure monitoring systems (TPMS). The
oscillator is designed as a Colpitts oscillator, which is stabilized with a SAW-resonator and allows for a simple
design with only a few components besides the transistor and SAW-resonator. The modulation used for such a
design is amplitude shift keying (ASK) or simple on-off keying (OOK). Since the frequency of oscillation is fixed,
frequency shift keying (FSK) is not possible.
The transition frequency fT of the transistor should be several Gigahertz in order to ensure oscillator start-up.
However, using a transistor with too high of a fT will also increase the harmonic levels, and therefore it is not
recommended to use state-of-the-art transistors with transition frequencies far beyond 10 GHz. Furthermore, it
holds for silicon bipolar transistors that the phase noise gets smaller as the transition frequency decreases. Thus,
it appears that using Infineon’s RF transistor BFR182 with a transition frequency of 8 GHz is a good compromise.
It should be noted that phase noise depends not only on the flicker noise of the transistor itself but also on the
flicker noise and loaded Q-factor of the SAW-resonator. In fact, phase noise decreases quadratically with the
loaded Q-factor of the resonator.
Within every transistor family there exists several versions with different emitter areas that provide for different
collector currents. Since the loop gain of the oscillator must be greater than 1 in order to sustain oscillation, a
transistor that provides sufficient gain at the desired DC operating point and frequency of oscillation must be
selected. Infineon’s RF transistor BFR182 is a perfect fit, with enough loop gain, to sustain oscillation.

2 Principles
A principle schematic of a Colpitts oscillator in common-base configuration is shown in Figure 1. The frequency
of oscillation is determined by the resonance frequency of the parallel resonant circuit consisting of L1 and the
serial connection of C1 and C2, thus giving the resonance frequency as follows:
1 -
f0 = ---------------------- , (1)
2π L 1 C

where C is the combined capacitance of C1 and C2 and is expressed as follows:

C1 C 2
C = --------------------
-. (2)
C1 + C2

The serial connection of C1 and C2 acts as a voltage divider, so that not the entire output power of the transistor
is fed back to the input. By this means the harmonics will be kept low. The lower the ratio C1/C2, the higher the
voltage drop across C1 and therefore the lower the power that is fed back to the input. Furthermore, the ratio L1/C
is a figure of merit for the selectivity of the parallel resonance circuit. The higher the ratio L1/C, the lower the
selectivity and therefore the higher the second harmonic. On the other hand, to get the maximum power out of the
transistor, power matching must occur and therefore the output power of the oscillator changes with the
inductance value of L1 for a fixed ratio of L1/C and C1/C2.

C1
R1 L1
C2

AN099_Colpitts_Oscillator.vsd

Figure 1 Small Signal Equivalent Circuit of Colpitts Oscillator

Application Note 4 Rev. 2.0, 2007-02-12

 Application Note No. 099

The Application Board

3 The Application Board

For this application board ease of use and test has been the main consideration and therefore a SMA-connector
was used for measuring the output power directly into a 50 Ω load instead of using a loop antenna to make field-
strength measurements. However, in the actual application the inductance L1 will be realized partially or entirely
with a loop antenna. Antenna design is a complex issue which goes beyond the scope of this application note. For
details on antenna design, please refer to [1].
Figure 2 shows the schematic of the application board and in comparison with Figure 1 additional components
are necessary for proper function. First of all, some resistors for biasing the transistor are required. The voltage
divider consisting of R2 and R3 is designed for a control voltage VON of 3 V, but different voltage levels require
different voltage dividers. Since the Q-factor of a LC-resonator is limited and the resonance frequency can change
by several percent due to tolerances, a SAW-resonator (SAWR) for frequency stabilization is required. The
matching network consisting of L1 and C3 transforms the 50 Ω load to an inductive impedance value and C4 is
simply a DC block. However, the matching network is also part of the LC-resonator, and therefore a clear
separation between matching network and LC-resonator is not possible. As already mentioned in the previous
chapter, output power changes with the inductance value of L1. It has been shown that the maximum output power
is achieved with an inductance value of 40 nH to 50 nH for L1. The RF chokes L2 and L3 as well as the RF bypass
capacitors C5 and C6 are optional and will not be required in the final, battery-powered application. The complete
bill of materials for the application board can be found in Table 1 on the next page.
The frequency of oscillation of the unstabilized oscillator, that is with the SAW-resonator replaced by a 560 pF
capacitor having a series resonant frequency of approximately 300 MHz, shall be roughly the desired frequency
of oscillation. Otherwise, one run the risk of causing a pseudo-oscillation at the unstabilized frequency of
oscillation. This is because of the SAW-resonator’s high Q-factor, which will result in a long settling time that gives
the oscillator enough time to start oscillation at the unstabilized frequency. Furthermore, the oscillator will not
oscillate exactly at the resonant frequency of the unloaded SAW-resonator, but the frequency of oscillation will be
shifted towards the unstabilized one. This is another reason why the unstabilized frequency of oscillation should
be close to the desired one. For this application board the frequency of oscillation of the unstabilized oscillator is
approximately 320 MHz, which results in a frequency shift of approximately 30 kHz compared to the resonant
frequency of the unloaded SAW-resonator.

V CC

C5

L2
C2 C1

R1 L1 C4
T
RFOUT

V ON L3 R3 C3

C6 R2 SAWR

AN099_Schematic.vsd

Figure 2 Schematic of Application Board

Application Note 5 Rev. 2.0, 2007-02-12

 Application Note No. 099

The Application Board

Figure 3 Photo of Application Board

Table 1 Bill of Materials

Designator Value Package Vendor Function
C1 5 pF 0402 LC resonator
C2 33 pF 0402 LC resonator
C3 15 pF 0402 Matching
C4 560 pF 0402 DC block
C5, C6 100 nF 0402 RF bypass (optional)
L1 47 nH 0402 LC resonator
L2, L3 1000 nH 0805 RF choke (optional)
R1 100 Ω 0402 Biasing
R2 1.8 kΩ 0402 Biasing
R3 2.7 kΩ 0402 Biasing
SAWR R961 DCC6E EPCOS SAW resonator, 315 MHz
T BFR182 SOT23 Infineon NPN Silicon RF transistor

Application Note 6 Rev. 2.0, 2007-02-12

 Application Note No. 099

Measurement Results

4 Measurement Results
The (constant) collector voltage is provided through the VCC pin, while the (amplitude-modulated) control voltage
is provided through the VON pin. This makes it easy to measure collector current and control current independently.
All measurements for this application note were done with an unmodulated control voltage, that is in continuous
wave mode. Please note that for start-up time measurements of the oscillator, capacitor C6 has to be removed
first, if the function generator used to supply the control voltage has a source impedance of 50 Ω, rather than
Milliohms. Otherwise, one measures the low-pass filter consisting of capacitor C6 and the generator’s source
impedance.
Table 2 summarizes important electrical parameters of the discrete oscillator. The given values are an average of
six measurements on nominally identical boards. The oscillator is optimized for maximum output power at a low
collector current of only 6 mA. Along with the control current of 0.7 mA, the total DC current consumption of only
6.7 mA results in a high DC-RF conversion efficiency of 35 %.

Table 2 Electrical Characteristics at TA = 25 °C

Parameter Symbol Values Unit Note / Test Condition
Min. Typ. Max.
DC Characteristics (verified by 6 samples)
Supply Voltage VCC 3 V
Control Voltage VON 3 V Unmodulated
Collector Current IC 6 mA
Control Current ION 0.7 mA
Collector Cutoff IC,OFF 2 nA VCC = 3.2 V, VON = 0
Current
AC Characteristics (verified by 6 samples)
Oscillation fOSC 315 MHz
Frequency
Output Power POUT 8.3 dBm 315 MHz
Second Harmonic POUT,2 -34 dBc 630 MHz
Third Harmonic POUT,3 -56 dBc 945 MHz
SSB Phase Noise L(∆f) -110 dBc/Hz ∆f = 1 kHz
1)
Start-up Time tON,3 dB 15 µs 3 dB down (50% output power)
tON,1 dB 22 µs 1 dB down (80% output power)
tON,½ dB 28 µs ½ dB down (90% output power)
1) For start-up time measurements, the capacitor C6 was removed.

Figure 4 shows the harmonic suppression of three out of six boards, one with the lowest collector current
(5.76 mA), one with a typical collector current (6.01 mA) and one with the highest collector current (6.36 mA). The
second harmonic suppression of 34 dBc and even the third and subsequent harmonic suppressions of more than
50 dBc are much greater than the mandatory 20 dBc. A plot of the oscillator’s single sideband (SSB) phase noise
is shown in Figure 5. For comparison reasons, the noise floor of the source signal analyzer (SSA) is also shown.
For phase noise measurements with the SSA a 10 times correlation was used, which improves the SSA’s SSB
phase noise sensitivity by 5 dB. As shown in Figure 5, this simple SAW-resonator based oscillator achieves
exceptional low phase noise levels, much lower than PLL-based oscillators would ever achieve. On Page 9 to
Page 14 average-value curves of important electrical parameters are shown versus supply voltage as well as
versus temperature. The supply voltage for these measurements was varied between 2.5 V and 3.2 V, the typical
battery voltage of a nominal 3 V battery during its lifetime, and the temperature was varied between -40 °C and
85 °C. The shift in frequency of oscillation shown on Page 9 and Page 12 relates to the typical frequency of

Application Note 7 Rev. 2.0, 2007-02-12

 Application Note No. 099

Measurement Results

oscillation at a temperature of 25 °C and a supply voltage of 3 V. Please note that the shift in frequency of
oscillation is only a few kilohertz and this shift depends strongly on the performance of the SAW-resonator used
in the application.

Harmonic Suppression
V =3V, V =3V, T =25°C
CC ON A

20
Sample 1 (5.76 mA)
Sample 2 (6.01 mA)
30 Sample 3 (6.36 mA)

H2
Harmonic Suppression (dBc)

40

50

H3 H H H6 H7 H H9 H
4 5 8 10
60

H H H
11 12 13
70

80
315 630 945 1260 1575 1890 2205 2520 2835 3150 3465 3780 4095 4410
Frequency (MHz)

Figure 4 Harmonic Suppression from Second to Thirteenth Harmonic

SSB Phase noise

V =3V, V =3V, T =25°C
CC ON A

-100
RKE Oscillator
-110 Noise floor

-120
Phase Noise (dBc/Hz)

-130

-140

-150

-160

-170

-180
3 4 5 6 7
10 10 10 10 10
Offset Frequency (Hz)

Figure 5 SSB Phase Noise of RKE Oscillator and Noise Floor of Signal Source Analyzer

Application Note 8 Rev. 2.0, 2007-02-12

 Application Note No. 099

Measurement Results

Typical Characteristic vs. Supply Voltage (verified by 6 samples)

Collector Current IC = f(VCC) Output Power POUT = f(VCC)

V = 3.0V, T = Parameter V = 3.0V, T = Parameter
ON A ON A

7.5 9.5

9 max
7 max

8.5 85°C
85°C
6.5 25°C
Current (mA)

Power (dBm)
25°C 8
6
7.5
-40°C
5.5
7
-40°C
min
5 min 6.5

4.5 6
2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 3 3.1 3.2 3.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 3 3.1 3.2 3.3
Supply Voltage (V) Supply Voltage (V)

Oscillation Frequency Shift ∆fOSC = f(VCC)

VON = 3.0V, TA = Parameter

20
max
10
25°C
0

-10
Frequency Shift (kHz)

-20

-30
-40°C

-40 85°C

-50 min

-60

-70
2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 3 3.1 3.2 3.3
Supply Voltage (V)

Note:
1. The min/max curves show the minimum/maximum measured values and must not be taken to mean
guaranteed minimum/maximum limits.
2. The shift in frequency of oscillation relates to the typical frequency of oscillation at 25 °C and 3 V.

Application Note 9 Rev. 2.0, 2007-02-12

 Application Note No. 099

Measurement Results

Typical Start-up Time vs. Supply Voltage (verified by 6 samples)

CollectorTime
Start-up Current IC ==f(V
tON,3dB f(VCC))
CC
Output Power
Start-up OUT
= =f(Vf(V
Time tPON,1dB ) )
CCCC
V = 3.0V, T = Parameter V = 3.0V, T = Parameter
ON A ON A

7.5
25 9.5
40

9 max
7 max
max 35 max

8.5 85°C
85°C
6.5
20 25°C
30
(mA)

Time (dBm)
25°C 8
s)

(µs)
-40°C
-40°C
Time (µ

6
Current

Power
7.5
25°C 25
-40°C
25°C
5.5
15 85°C
7
-40°C
min
85°C
20
5 min 6.5

4.5
10 15
6
2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 3 3.1 3.2 3.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 3 3.1 3.2 3.3
Supply Voltage (V) Supply Voltage (V)

Start-up Time
Oscillation tON,1/2dB =Shift
Frequency f(VCC∆)fOSC = f(VCC)
V = 3.0V, T = Parameter
ON A

20
50
max
10
45 max
25°C
0
40
-10
(µs) (kHz)

35 -40°C
Time Shift

-20
Frequency

-30
30 25°C
-40°C

-40 85°C
25 85°C
-50 min
20
-60

-70
15
2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 3 3.1 3.2 3.3
Supply Voltage (V)

Note: The max curve shows the maximum measured values and must not be taken to mean guaranteed maximum
limits.

Application Note 10 Rev. 2.0, 2007-02-12

 Application Note No. 099

Measurement Results

Typical Characteristic of Second and Third Harmonic vs. Supply Voltage (verified by 6 samples)

Current IC
CollectorHarmonic
Second = f(VCC
POUT,2 = )f(VCC) Output
Third Power POUT
Harmonic = f(V=CC
POUT,3 f(V
) CC)
V = 3.0V, T = Parameter V = 3.0V, T = Parameter
ON A ON A

-30
7.5 -45
9.5

-31
max
9
7 max
-32 max
-40°C -50
8.5 85°C
-33 85°C -40°C
6.5 25°C
25°C
-34
(mA)

Power (dBm)
Power (dBc)

(dBc)
25°C 8
-35
6 -55 25°C
Current

Power
85°C 7.5
-36
-40°C
5.5
-37 7
-40°C -60 85°C
min
-38
5 min 6.5
-39

-40
4.5 -65
6
2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 3 3.1 3.2 3.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 3 3.1 3.2 3.3
Supply Voltage (V) Supply Voltage (V)

Note: The max curve shows the maximum measured values and must not be taken to mean guaranteed maximum
limits.

Application Note 11 Rev. 2.0, 2007-02-12

 Application Note No. 099

Measurement Results

Typical Characteristic vs. Temperature (verified by 6 samples)

Start-up Time
Collector Current IC ==f(T
tON,3dB f(V
f(VACC
) ))
CC
Time P
Start-upPower
Output OUT
= =f(T
tON,1dB f(Vf(V
A
)) )
CCCC
V = 3.0V, V T ==Parameter
Parameter V = 3.0V, V T ==Parameter
Parameter
ON A
CC ON A
CC

7.5
25 9.5
40

9 max
max
7 max
max
max 35 max
3.2V
8.5 85°C
85°C
6.5
20 3.0V
25°C
3.2V
3.0V 30
(mA)

Time (dBm)
25°C 8
s)

(µs)
-40°C
2.8V
-40°C
Time (µ

6 2.8V
Current

Power
7.5
25°C 25
2.5V -40°C
25°C
5.5
15 85°C
min 7
-40°C 2.5V
min
85°C
20
5 min min
6.5

4.5
10 15
6
-40
2.4 2.5-20 2.6 2.7
0 2.8 252.9 3 55
3.1 3.2 3.3
85 -40
2.4 2.5-20 2.6 2.7
0 2.8 252.9 3 55
3.1 3.2 3.3
85
Supply
Temperature
Voltage
(°C)
(V) Supply
Temperature
Voltage
(°C)
(V)

Start-up Time
Oscillation tON,1/2dB =Shift
Frequency f(VCC∆f)OSC = f(T
f(V ) )
ACC
V = 3.0V, T VACC==Parameter
Parameter
ON

50
20
max
10
45 max max
25°C
0
40
-10 3.2V
(µs) (kHz)

3.0V
35 -40°C
Time Shift

-20 min
Frequency

-30
30 25°C
-40°C

-40 85°C
25 85°C
2.8V
-50 2.5V
min
20
-60

-70
15
-40
2.4 2.5-20 2.6 2.7
0 2.8 252.9 3 55
3.1 3.2 3.3
85
Supply
Temperature
Voltage
(°C)
(V)

Note:
3. The min/max curves show the minimum/maximum measured values and must not be taken to mean
guaranteed minimum/maximum limits.
4. The shift in frequency of oscillation relates to the typical frequency of oscillation at 25 °C and 3 V.

Application Note 12 Rev. 2.0, 2007-02-12

 Application Note No. 099

Measurement Results

Typical Start-up Time vs. Temperature (verified by 6 samples)

CollectorTime
Start-up Current IC ==f(T
tON,3dB f(V
f(VACC
f(T ))))
A
CC
Output Power
Start-up OUT
= =f(T
Time tPON,1dB f(Vf(T
f(V
A
)CC
CCA
)) )
V = 3.0V, V T ==Parameter
Parameter V = 3.0V, V T ==Parameter
Parameter
ON A
CC ON A
CC

7.5
25 9.5
40
35

9 max
max
7 max
max
max 35 max
3.2V
30
8.5 85°C
85°C
6.5
20 3.0V
25°C
3.2V
3.0V 30
(mA)

Time (dBm)
25°C 8
s)

(µs)
-40°C
2.8V
-40°C
Time (µ

6 2.8V 25
Current

Power
7.5
25°C 25
max
2.5V -40°C
3.2V 25°C
max
5.5
15 85°C
2.8V min
3.0V 7 3.2V
-40°C
2.5V 20 2.5V
min
3.0V
85°C
20
5 min 2.8V
min
6.5
2.5V
4.5
10 15
6
-40
2.4 2.5-20 2.6 2.7
0 2.8 252.9 3 55
3.1 3.2 3.3
85 -40
2.4 2.5-20 2.6 2.7
0 2.8 252.9 3 55
3.1 3.2 3.3
85
Supply
Temperature
Voltage
(°C)
(V) Supply
Temperature
Voltage
(°C)
(V)

Start-up Time
Oscillation tON,1/2dB =Shift
Frequency f(VACC
f(T )∆f) = f(T
f(V ) )
OSC ACC
V = 3.0V, V T ==Parameter
Parameter
ON ACC

50
20
45
max
10
45 max max
40 25°C
0
40
-10
35 3.2V
(µs) (kHz)

3.0V
35 -40°C
Time Shift

-20 min
30
Frequency

-30
30 25°C
max
-40°C

-40
25 3.2V
85°C
25 3.0V
85°C
2.8V
-50 2.5V
2.8V
min
20
20
-60 2.5V

-70
15
-40
2.4 2.5-20 2.6 2.7
0 2.8 252.9 3 55
3.1 3.2 3.3
85
Supply
Temperature
Voltage
(°C)
(V)

Note: The max curve shows the maximum measured values and must not be taken to mean guaranteed maximum
limits.

Application Note 13 Rev. 2.0, 2007-02-12

 Application Note No. 099

Measurement Results

Typical Characteristic of Second and Third Harmonic vs. Temperature (verified by 6 samples)

Second Harmonic POUT,2 = f(TA) Output

Start-up
Third Harmonic
Power OUT
= =f(T
Time tPON,1dB
POUT,3 f(V=
f(V
f(T
A
f(T
)CC
CCA
))A))
V = 3.0V, V = Parameter V = 3.0V, V T ==Parameter
Parameter
ON CC ON A
CC

-30 -45
9.5
40
35

-31
9 max
max
-32 35 max
3.2V
-50
30
8.5 85°C
-33
3.0V
25°C
-34 30

Time (dBm)
Power (dBc)

(dBc)
max 8 max

(µs)
2.8V
-40°C
-35 -55
25

Power
Power
3.2V
7.5 3.2V
-36 3.0V 25
-40°C
3.0V 25°C
max
2.8V
-37 7 2.8V 3.2V
-60
20 2.5V
min
3.0V
85°C
-38 20 2.5V
2.5V 2.8V
min
6.5
-39
2.5V
-40 -65
15
6
-40 -20 0 25 55 85 -40
2.4 2.5-20 2.6 2.7
0 2.8 252.9 3 55
3.1 3.2 3.3
85
Temperature (°C) Supply
Temperature
Voltage
(°C)
(V)

Note: The max curve shows the maximum measured values and must not be taken to mean guaranteed maximum
limits.

References
[1] John Kraus, Ronald Marhefka, “Antennas for All Applications,” 3rd Edition, McGraw-Hill, Dec. 2001,
ISBN 0-071-12240-0

Application Note 14 Rev. 2.0, 2007-02-12