Low phase-noise sapphire crystal microwave oscillators: current status

This work demonstrates that ultra-low phase-noise oscillators with a single-sideband phase-noise spectral density approaching -160 dBc/Hz at Fourier frequency of 1 kHz can be constructed at microwave frequencies (8 to 10 GHz). Such noise performance has been achieved by frequency locking a conventional loop oscillator to a temperature-stabilized sapphire dielectric resonator operating at a relatively high level of dissipated microwave power (approximately 0.5 W). Principles of microwave circuit interferometry have been employed to generate the error signal for the oscillator frequency control system. No cryogens were used. Two almost identical oscillators were built to perform the classical 2-oscillator phase noise measurements. The phase referencing of one oscillator to another was achieved by varying microwave power dissipated in the sapphire resonator.