A 1 GHz, very linear, CMOS up-conversion mixer is presented. The circu
it is able to operate at a 2-V power supply. The topology has a true s
ingle-ended output stage which avoids the use of any balun. The total
power consumption in both the mixers and the output stage is only 22 m
W at 2 V. A profound analysis of the origins of distortion in the mixe
r has been performed. This study has resulted in the optimization of t
he linearity of the realized up-conversion mixer. The low power consum
ption, the low supply voltage, the high frequency performance, and the
relatively large amplitude and low distortion single-ended off-chip o
utput signal make the presented topology very suitable for wireless ap
plications.