This paper presents a D-band front-end module (FEM) with an integrated transmit/receive (T/R) switch in 22-nm fully-depleted silicon on insulator (FD-SOI) CMOS technology for beyond-5G communication. The asymmetric T/R switch topology with intrinsic ESD protection leverages the Tx- and Rx-mode RF performance. Both the PA and LNA have a differential topology with transformer-based matching networks to eliminate unwanted effects from common-mode parasitics, especially at the antenna port. The adopted stacked-FET PA achieves a high output power while consuming much less area than a PA based on passive power combining. At 140 GHz, the Tx achieves a power gain $G_{p}$ of 33.6 / 35.7 dB, a saturated output power Psat of 12.5 / 14.7 dBm, a peak power-added efficiency PAE of 10.8 / 11.3%, and output 1-dB compression point (OP1dB) of 9.4 / 11.2 dBm with nominal/boosted supplies. At 140 GHz, the Rx achieves a 20-dB $G_{p}$ , a −24-dBm input 1-dB compression point (IP1dB), and a 9.2-dB noise figure (NF) with only 20-mW power consumption from a 0.8-V supply. This compact FEM has a PA / LNA core area of 0.024 / 0.032 mm2, respectively.

A 140 GHz T/R Front-End Module in 22 nm FD-SOI CMOS

Ferroelectricity in crystalline hafnium oxide thin films is strongly investigated for the application in non-volatile memories, sensors and other applications. Especially for back-end-of-line (BEoL) integration the decrease of crystallization temperature is of major importance. However, an alternative method for inducing ferroelectricity in amorphous or semi-crystalline hafnium zirconium oxide films is presented here, using the newly discovered effect of electric field-induced crystallization in hafnium oxide films. When applying this method, an outstanding remanent polarization value of 2P
 $$_{\mathrm{R}}$$
  = 47 
 $$\upmu$$
 C/cm
 $$^{2}$$
 is achieved for a 5 nm thin film. Besides the influence of Zr content on the film crystallinity, the reliability of films crystallized with this effect is explored, highlighting the controlled crystallization, excellent endurance and long-term retention.

Electric field-induced crystallization of ferroelectric hafnium zirconium oxide.

This article presents a systematic empirical modeling approach in fully depleted silicon-on-insulator (FDSOI) CMOS for large-signal simulation in power amplifier applications. The model is constructed from multibias S-parameter measurements up to 67 GHz. The frequency dispersions in transconductance and output conductance are addressed by two independent radio frequency (RF) current sources. Angelov’s current formula is modified to adapt to the FDSOI transistors. Load-pull measurements are performed for the large-signal verification in a non-50- $\Omega $ environment. The model accurately predicts the nonlinear characteristics of the device under test and the harmonic components. The time-domain waveforms also show excellent agreement to the simulation.

Empirical Large-Signal Modeling of mm-Wave FDSOI CMOS Based on Angelov Model

In this article, we investigate the capacitance–voltage (C–V) characteristics of $$\text {Hf}_{x}\text {Zr}_{1-x}\text {O}_{2}$$
 metal-ferroelectric-metal (MFM) thin-film capacitors with various Zr doping for varactor applications. The impact of field cycling during the wake-up process on the capacitance was analyzed. In addition, the effect of antiferroelectric-like (AFE) behavior on tuning was investigated. The transition between ferroelectric (FE) and AFE regime is particularly interesting for varactor application, as a reduced bias is required for tuning. The cycle dependence of the FE and AFE properties at elevated temperatures was also investigated, where it was shown that with an increase of temperature, the tunability is reduced. Temperature measurements also comply with recent studies of ferroelastic nature of AFE behavior.

/pdf/influence-of-antiferroelectric-like-behavior-on-tuning-2qk6f09v68.pdf

Influence of antiferroelectric-like behavior on tuning properties of ferroelectric HZO-based varactors

This article presents novel methodologies and practical design considerations for a <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$D$ </tex-math></inline-formula>-band transmit/receive (T/R) front-end module (FEM) in 22-nm fully depleted silicon-on-insulator (FD-SOI/FDX) CMOS technology for beyond-5G wireless communication. An ABCD-matrix-based synthesis methodology is proposed to co-design the T/R switch (SW) topology, including the power amplifier (PA) output and the low noise amplifier (LNA) input matching networks, to minimize the losses in both Tx and Rx modes. Based on this synthesis, an asymmetric T/R SW topology is realized with intrinsic electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection. Both the stacked-field-effect transistor (FET) PA and LNA adopt differential topologies with transformer-based matching networks to eliminate unwanted effects from common-mode parasitics. Passive gain-boosting techniques are used for both PA and LNA to enhance different TRx specifications. A reusable unit-cell layout strategy is applied for transistor arrays to accelerate the multiple-stage PA implementation and maintain uniform performance and minimal parasitics. At 140 GHz, the Tx achieves a power gain <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$G_{p}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> of 33.6/35.7 dB, a saturated output power <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$P_{\mathrm{ sat}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> of 12.5/14.7 dBm, a peak power-added efficiency (PAE) of 10.8/11.3%, and an output 1-dB compression point (OP1dB) of 9.4/11.2 dBm with nominal/boosted supplies. An average output power (<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">${P_{out}}_{avg}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>)/PAE of 4.9 dBm/2% is obtained for a 4-GHz bandwidth 64-QAM single-carrier signal at an error-vector magnitude (EVM) of −24.8 dB. Moreover, its Tx-mode reliability has been assessed. At 140 GHz, the Rx achieves a 20-dB <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$G_{p}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>, a −24-dBm input 1-dB compression point (IP1dB), and a 9.2-dB noise figure (NF) with only 20-mW power consumption from a 0.8-V supply. This compact FEM has a PA/LNA core area of 0.024/0.032 mm<sup>2</sup>, respectively.

Design and Analysis of a 140-GHz T/R Front-End Module in 22-nm FD-SOI CMOS

This paper presents a 60 GHz phase shifter, based on a coplanar waveguide (CPW) transmission line, loaded with ferroelectric hafnium zirconium oxide (HZO) variable metal-insulator-metal (MIM) varactors, developed for the back-end-of-line (BEoL) on-chip integration. Using the measured data of capacitance-voltage (C-V) characteristics of HZO and implementing the method-of-moments simulation, it was shown, that by changing the bias voltage between 0.95 and -3 V, the device shows a phase shift of 111° and a minimum insertion loss of -5.84 dB at 60 GHz. The chip area of the device is 0.206 mm2, making it the smallest among non-CMOS phase shifters.

A mmWave Phase Shifter Based on Ferroelectric Hafnium Zirconium Oxide Varactors

This paper presents a tunable 60 GHz band-pass filter, based on a coplanar waveguide (CPW) transmission line, periodically loaded with ferroelectric Hafnium Zirconium Oxide (HZO) variable metal-ferroelectric-metal (MIM) capacitors (varactors), developed for back-end-of-line (BEoL) integration. Derived from the nonlinear capacitance of hafnium zirconium oxide and implementing the method-of-moments simulation, it was shown, that with changing the bias voltage between 0.95 and -3 V, the filter’s center frequency can be tuned between 60.5 and 69,7 GHz, respectively. Hereby, a minimum insertion loss of -3.3 dB is realized. The chip area of the filter is only 0.062 mm2, making it the smallest among tunable V-band filters.

A Tunable mmWave Band-Pass Filter Based on Ferroelectric Hafnium Zirconium Oxide Varactors

This work presents a detailed study on the high-frequency performance of 22FDX® FDSOI for 5G front-end power amplifiers. The following report focuses on the S-parameters and large-signal figure-of-merits such as output power, gain and power-added efficiency for an insightful and correct assessment on the device capability. DC characteristics of the test transistors are firstly investigated to determine the optimum operating point. Small-signal characterization is performed up to 110 GHz using a state-of-the-art mm-Wave measurement setup. An overall MSG/MAG of 16 ± 4 dB is recorded in the frequency range 10 - 80 GHz. On the other hand, large-signal performance on non-50 Ohm impedance environment is evaluated thoroughly through vector-receiver load-pull measurement up to 24 GHz. The measured output power and efficiency indicate that the DUTs perform well in the sub-6 GHz band and even in K-band. The outstanding experimental results emphasize the applicability and suitability of the 22FDX® FDSOI technology platform for 5G low-power transmitters.

DC-110 GHz Characterization of 22FDX ® FDSOI Transistors for 5G Transmitter Front-End

This paper presents the W-band noise performance of the 22nm FDSOI CMOS technology. In detail, the mm-wave thin-oxide MOSFETs is characterized comprehensively in term of device geometries using the tuner-based noise measurement approach. To aid the noise analysis and extraction, the following study adopts an accurate small-signal equivalent circuit model validated well with bias-dependence up to 110 GHz. The effects of back-gate bias to the overall noise performance are also addressed in this work. The test devices exhibit low noise figure in the full W-band 75-110 GHz. Besides, NF min of 2.8 dB and 3.6 dB is recorded at 94 GHz respectively for the n- and p-FETs with 18nm gate-length (N f = 32, W f = 1.0 µm). The result of this study indicates the comparable performance of the 22nm FDSOI technology to other candidates for W-band applications.

Dang Khoa Huynh

Papers

A mmWave Phase Shifter Based on Ferroelectric Hafnium Zirconium Oxide Varactors

Empirical Large-Signal Modeling of mm-Wave FDSOI CMOS Based on Angelov Model

A Tunable mmWave Band-Pass Filter Based on Ferroelectric Hafnium Zirconium Oxide Varactors

DC-110 GHz Characterization of 22FDX ® FDSOI Transistors for 5G Transmitter Front-End

W-Band Noise Characterization with Back-Gate Effects for Advanced 22nm FDSOI mm-Wave MOSFETs