A resonant tank includes a first capacitor formed on a semiconductor substrate, a first inductor formed on the semiconductor substrate, a second capacitor formed on the semiconductor substrate, and a second inductor formed on the semiconductor substrate. The first capacitor, the first inductor, the second capacitor, and the second inductor are connected in a ring configuration, with each capacitor connected between a pair of the inductors and with each inductor connected between a pair of the capacitors. An amplifier circuit is coupled to the resonant tank and configured to amplify a signal in the resonant tank.

A variable capacitor circuit includes a capacitor block including a first varactor element comprising a first transistor having a first size, a second varactor element comprising a second transistor having a second size different from the first size, a first terminal commonly connected to a source and a drain of the first transistor, a second terminal commonly connected to a source and a drain of the second transistor, and an RC circuit connected to a gate of the first transistor and a gate of the second transistor.

A phase-locked loop comprises a voltage controlled oscillator. The voltage controlled oscillator comprises an inductor and a capacitor, connected in parallel, and also connected in parallel therewith, a negative resistance structure. A first terminal of the negative resistance structure is connected to respective first terminals of the inductor and the capacitor. A second terminal of the negative resistance structure is connected to respective second terminals of the inductor and the capacitor. The negative resistance structure exhibits a tunable capacitance, such that a frequency of an output of the voltage controlled oscillator can be tuned by a control input signal, and the control input signal is generated in the phase-locked loop. The negative resistance structure comprises first and second transistors. There is a first conduction path between the first terminal of the first transistor and the control terminal of the second transistor, and a second conduction path between the control terminal of the first transistor and the first terminal of the second transistor. The control terminal of at least one of the first and second transistors is biased by the control input signal, such that a parasitic capacitance of said at least one of the first and second transistors can be tuned by the control input signal, in order to tune the frequency of the output of the voltage controlled oscillator, and hence the frequency of oscillation of the phase-locked loop.

VLSI distributed LC resonant clock networks having reduced inductor dimensions as well as simplified decoupling capacitances that are obtained by including one or more compensation capacitors. A compensation capacitor can be added in parallel with a clock capacitance and/or in parallel with a clock inductor. The presence of a compensation capacitance reduces the overhead associated with the inductor and the decoupling capacitor. The compensation capacitor (s) can be selectively switched into the network to create scalable resonant frequencies.

A vibration device includes a base including a semiconductor substrate and through electrodes that pass through the portion between first and second surfaces of the semiconductor substrate, and a vibrator fixed to the first surface via an electrically conductive joining member. The following components are placed at the second surface: an oscillation circuit that is electrically coupled to the vibrator via the through electrodes and generates an oscillation signal by causing the vibrator to oscillate, a temperature sensor circuit, a temperature compensation circuit that performs temperature compensation on the oscillation signal, and an output buffer circuit that outputs a clock signal based on the oscillation signal. Dsx1<Dbx1, a distance between the output buffer circuit and one of the through electrodes is Dbx1, a distance between the temperature sensor circuit and the other through electrode is Dsx1.

An oscillator circuit includes an oscillating circuit coupled to a vibrator, and a control circuit that controls the oscillating circuit. The oscillator circuit has a normal operation mode in which the oscillating circuit oscillates in a state where a negative resistance value is a first value, and a start mode in which the oscillator circuit shifts from a state where oscillation is stopped to the normal operation mode. In the start mode, the control circuit controls the negative resistance value to increase from a second value which is smaller than the first value.

Apparatus and methods for rotary traveling wave oscillators (RTWOs) are disclosed. In certain embodiments, an RTWO system include an RTWO ring that carries a traveling wave, a plurality of selectable capacitors distributed around the RTWO ring and each operable in a selected state and an unselected state, and a decoder system that controls selection of the plurality of selectable capacitors based on a frequency tuning code. The frequency tuning code includes a fine tuning code and a coarse tuning code, and the decoder system is operable to maintain a constant number of capacitors that toggle state for each value of the fine tuning code.

A frequency modulator includes a first pair of diodes with two capacity diodes, and a second pair of diodes with two additional capacity diodes. The second pair of diodes is employed in parallel. The frequency modulator also includes a first modulator input for reception of a first modulation signal and a second modulator input for reception of a symmetrical second modulation signal. Both pairs of diodes are coupled to an oscillator unit.

The multi-modal imaging system, in particular for brain imaging, comprising a pump signal generator which emits at least one pump signal in the radio frequency (RF)-range with a first power P1 and a second power P2, a wireless detection unit, which comprises at least one parametric resonator circuit with multiple resonance modes, wherein the at least one parametric resonator circuit comprises at least two varactors, at least one capacitor and at least one inductance, wherein, in a first detection mode, the pump signal, having a first power P1, induces a first pump current in the at least one parametric resonator circuit, wherein the at least one parametric resonator circuit is operated below its oscillation threshold and generates a first output signal by amplifying a first input signal, which is provided due to a magnetic-resonance (MR) measurement, wherein an external receiving device receives the first output signal, wherein, in a second detection mode, the pump signal, having a second power P2, induces a second pump current in the at least one parametric resonator circuit, wherein the at least one parametric resonator circuit is operated above its oscillation threshold and generates a second output signal, wherein the second output signal is modulated with a second input signal, wherein the second input signal is provided by at least one neuronal probe device, connected to the at least one parametric resonator circuit, wherein the external receiving device receives the second output signal.

A variable capacitor circuit includes a capacitor block including a first varactor element comprising a first transistor having a first size, a second varactor element comprising a second transistor having a second size different from the first size, a first terminal commonly connected to a source and a drain of the first transistor, a second terminal commonly connected to a source and a drain of the second transistor, and an RC circuit connected to a gate of the first transistor and a gate of the second transistor.