Review of digital phase-locked loop technology development for frequency modulated continuous wave systems

CHEN Yongli; JI Zichuan; XIAO Yan; ZONG Jiaming

doi:10.20193/j.ices2097-4191.2024.0090

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Integrated Circuits and Embedded Systems ›› 2025, Vol. 25 ›› Issue (5) : 35-44. DOI: 10.20193/j.ices2097-4191.2024.0090

Research Paper

Review of digital phase-locked loop technology development for frequency modulated continuous wave systems

CHEN Yongli ¹ ,
JI Zichuan ² ,
XIAO Yan ¹ ,
ZONG Jiaming ²^,^*

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Abstract

This article first introduces three main requirements of a phase-locked loop (PLL) for Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave (FMCW) radar systems: frequency modulation bandwidth, frequency modulation slope, and linearity. Then, based on highly cited and influential articles from the past decade, it analyzes the advantages and application challenges of digital phase-locked loops (DPLL) in FMCW systems and briefly outlines the existing methods to overcome these challenges. The development trends of phase-locked loops in relation to the three main requirements are summarized, and a new figure of merit definition is proposed to evaluate the performance of PLLs for FMCW systems. Finally, it is pointed out that digital phase-locked loops are a key research direction for developing high-performance FMCW systems in the future.

Key words

Digital phase lock loop / DPLL / FMCW / digital predistortion

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CHEN Yongli , JI Zichuan , XIAO Yan , et al. Review of digital phase-locked loop technology development for frequency modulated continuous wave systems[J]. Integrated Circuits and Embedded Systems. 2025, 25(5): 35-44 https://doi.org/10.20193/j.ices2097-4191.2024.0090

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