Showing papers presented at "European Microwave Integrated Circuit Conference in 2012"

120-GHz-band 20-Gbit/s transmitter and receiver MMICs using quadrature phase shift keying

Abstract: This paper describes a 120-GHz-band quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK) transmitter and receiver fabricated on microwave monolithic integrated circuits (MMICs). The MMICs were fabricated using 0.1-µm-gate InP HEMTs and can handle 20-Gbit/s data streams. The transmitter MMIC consists of a QPSK modulator with direct modulation, differential amplifiers for data, a power amplifier, and an output-power monitor circuit. A differentially coherent detector, voltage-controlled phase shifter, and low-noise amplifier are monolithically integrated on a receiver MMIC. The QPSK transmitter and receiver MMICs were mounted in WR-8 waveguide modules to evaluate the data transmission performance. The bit error rate (BER) for 22.2-Gbit/s pseudorandom binary sequence (PRBS) 27−1 data is smaller than 10−10 at a receiver power of −35 dBm.

W-band power amplifier MMIC with 400 mW output power in 0.1 µm AlGaN/GaN technology

Abstract: The 0.1 μm AlGaN/GaN technology and design of two W-band power amplifiers in this technology are described. The dual-stage amplifier reaches an output power of 400 mW at 90 GHz at an operation bias of 20 V. Two designs with different driver to final stage gate width ratio are discussed. More than 10 dB of power gain is reached for a compression level of around 2 dB per stage.

A high efficiency 140W power amplifier based on a single GaN HEMT device for space applications in L-band

Abstract: This paper deals with the design, manufacture and test of a high efficiency power amplifier for L-band space borne applications. The circuit operates with a single 36 mm gate periphery GaN HEMT power bar die allowing both improved integration and performance as compared with standard HPA design in a similar RF power range. A huge effort dedicated to the device's characterization and modeling has eased the circuit optimization leaning on the multi-harmonics impedances synthesis. Test results demonstrate performance up to 140 W RF output power with an associated 60% PAE for a limited 3.9 dB gain compression under 50 V supply voltage using a single GaN power bar.

70–105 GHz wideband GaN power amplifiers

Abstract: We report a new 70-105 GHz wideband GaN power amplifier which can enable the next generation of E and W-band transmitter modules. Two versions of the amplifier are presented. Across the 70-105 GHz range the balanced design demonstrates excellent S11 and S22 at -20 dB, small signal gain above 16 dB, output power above 20 dBm with associated gain higher than 16 dB and power added efficiency over 6%. By increasing the compression levels of the amplifier at 90 GHz we achieved output power of 24.5 dBm with associated gain of 12.4 dB and power added efficiency of 13.2%. The presented amplifier can be utilized in wideband transmitter modules covering E and W-band or in application specific modules covering narrower sections of the band (71-76 GHz, 81-86 GHz, 90-96 GHz) where they can be combined with higher power GaN amplifiers.

Millimeter wave dielectric spectroscopy and breast cancer imaging

Abstract: In this paper, millimeter wave free-space quasi-optical spectroscopy technique is applied to determine the transmittance, complex refractive index and complex dielectric permittivity over 30 GHz to 120 GHz range. The imaging procedure is based on using these data for a solvable inverse imaging reconstructing problem. An image reconstruction is achieved to give the high resolution reconstructed images of the sample over a wide frequency range.

Development of GaN based MMIC for next generation X-Band space SAR T/R module

Abstract: This paper deals with the development of GaN-based solution for X Band T/R Module of future SAR generations. In Particular HPA and LNA MMIC solutions have been investigated and produced using a 0,25 µm GaN HEMT process provided by SELEX-SI featured by a 4W/mm power density. Obtained results demonstrate promising performance both in Output Power and Noise characteristics and open the wider perspectives of medium-term GaN adoption in next generation SAR systems. The present work has been carried out in the frame of a general research and development activity sponsored by Italian Space Agency on the implementation of new technologies for next generation Spaceborn SAR.

120 GHz radar mixed-signal transceiver

Abstract: The design of a complex integrated transceiver for 121–124 GHz is presented. The transceiver consists of the transmitter with VCO, power amplifier and power detectors, the receiver with LNA, two mixers for quadrature receive path and variable gain amplifiers for IF-output and the digital control circuits with SPI-interface. A central part is the VCO with DAC and memory for on-chip storage of programmable frequency ramps for FMCW radar applications. The oscillator phase noise is −92 dBc/Hz at 1MHz offset. For calibration of the radar-system on chip, a frequency measurement unit is integrated. The radar chip has power consumption of 380 mW and occupies an area of 1.8 mm × 1.5 mm. Several examples of frequency ramp generation are presented. The chip is intended for integration together with antenna in a single package.

New qualified industrial AlGaN/GaN HEMT process: Power performances & reliability figures of merit

Abstract: This paper describes the performances of a new power 0.5 µm gate length AlGaN / GaN HEMT process named GH50_10. This process has been developed to address applications and market needs up to 7 GHz. A specific emphasis has been attached to find a trade- off in between power / efficiency and linearity. After an introduction of the context, a short description of the process manufacturing is given including spread of the DC parameters. From the qualification procedure, key reliability figures of the process are presented like the main energy of activation and an evaluation of the Median Time to Failure, evaluated respectively to 1.95ev and 106 hours at 200°C. Power performances are presented from L to C bands from 15W for the elementary power transistors to 50W for high power packaged transistors. This technology is presently available at industrial level to address products requirements for telecom and military needs. Compliance to space requirement is underway

122 GHz radar sensor based on a monostatic SiGe-BiCMOS IC with an on-chip antenna

Abstract: In this paper, a short range monostatic radar sensor operating at 122 GHz is presented. The millimeter-wave frontend, including the on-chip antenna, is based on an integrated circuit realized in SiGe BiCMOS technology. The setup of the radar sensor is introduced and measurement results for FMCW modulation demonstrate the performance of the radar frontend.

Wideband injection-locked divide-by-3 frequency divider design with regenerative second-harmonic feedback technique

Abstract: This paper presents an integration of wideband injection-locked divide-by-3 frequency divider with regenerative second-harmonic feedback technique. By using the proposed feedback technique, a divider with a wide input locking range over 10% can be achieved at Ka-band, which performs near the device maximum oscillation frequency (f MAX ) in a CMOS 0.18- µm process. The divider can operate from 33.9 GHz to 37.7 GHz with an input injection power of 0 dBm. The measured input locking range is 3.8 GHz (10.6%). The chip area of the divider core is 0.22 mm2. The core power consumption is 11.9 mW at a supply voltage of 0.9 V. At an offset frequency of 200 KHz, the measured output phase noise under lock is −121 dBc/Hz as the input signal with phase noise of −111.5 dBc/Hz is applied. The difference of 9.5 dB in phase noise is close to the theoretical value predicted by the theorem of division-by-3.

A 60-GHz sub-harmonic IQ modulator and demodulator using drain-body feedback technique

Abstract: A 50-to-62 GHz sub-harmonic IQ de/modulator using 90-nm CMOS technology is presented in this paper. A passive sub-harmonic gate mixer for both up-conversion and down-conversion simultaneously is used as the sub-circuit of this IQ de/modulator, which can achieve high isolation without baluns and quadrature phase dividers, therefore the required LO power is lower than those of other passive modulators. The modulator exhibits an up-conversion gain of −13 dB and a down-conversion gain of −15 dB from 50 to 62 GHz with LO power of 4 dBm. The 2LO-to-RF isolation is better than 40 dB. The sideband suppression is better than −20 dBc from 50 to 62 GHz.

Noise modeling of GaN HEMT devices

Abstract: GaN HEMT technology is increasingly used not only for power applications, but also for low-noise amplification. However, systematic assessment of the validity of common noise models like the Pucel and Pospieszalski approaches are rarely found in the literature. This paper aims at closing this gap by validating the two model approaches for different devices and bias points.

Harmonically-tuned octave bandwidth 200 W GaN power amplifier

Abstract: In this paper, the design, implementation, and experimental results of a 200 W high efficiency broadband GaN HEMT power amplifier (PA) are presented. Power combining was used to combine the outputs of two individual octave bandwidth 100 W power amplifiers. Optimum fundamental and harmonic load impedances were obtained using load-pull simulations for the active device across the design band. A systematic approach was applied for the design of wideband output and input matching networks. From continuous wave large-signal measurements a maximum output power of greater than 200 W was obtained over almost an octave bandwidth. The corresponding drain efficiency (power-added efficiency) ranged between 45–56% (40–52 %).

A 31.5 %, 26 dBm LTE CMOS power amplifier with harmonic control

Abstract: A 1.85GHz linear differential CMOS power amplifier with a printed board circuit based transformer is developed. A 2nd harmonic short circuit at an input is proposed to achieve high linearity. Simulation result shows that the third-order intermodulation distortion level decreases throughout the low and mid power regions, indicating that the 2nd harmonic short compresses the C gs nonlinearity effectively. The proposed CMOS PA is fabricated using 0.18 µm RF CMOS technology. This PA delivers a power-added efficiency of 31.5 % and the adjacent channel leakage ratio of −32 dBc at an output power of 26 dBm for the 10 MHz bandwidth long-term evolution signal.

High efficiency X-band AlGaN/GaN MMICs for space applications with lifetimes above 10 5 hours

Abstract: We report on technology, performance and reliability of state-of-the-art AlGaN/GaN MMICs for space applications. Our quarter-micron gate length HEMTs have breakdown voltages beyond 150 V and deliver 5 W/mm output power density at 30 V drain bias with 50% PAE at 10 GHz operating frequency. Packaged two-stage MMICs with 8 W output power for telemetry applications have a PAE above 40% with a lifetime above 105 h at a channel temperature of 200°C. Initial space evaluation tests indicate a suitable stability of our technology in space.

A 24GHz wideband single-channel SiGe bipolar transceiver chip for monostatic FMCW radar systems

Abstract: In this paper a monostatic fully integrated singlechannel SiGe transceiver chip around a center frequency of 24 GHz is presented. The architecture consists of a fundamental VCO, a receive mixer, a divider chain, and coupling/matching networks. All circuits, except for the divider, are designed with the extensive use of on-chip monolithic integrated spiral inductors. The chip is fabricated in a SiGe bipolar production technology which offers an f T of 170 GHz and f max of 250 GHz. The phase noise at 1 MHz offset is better than −100 dBc/Hz in a wide frequency range of 8 GHz. The peak output power of the chip is −1 dBm while the receive mixer offers a 1 dBm input referred compression point to keep it from being saturated. The chip has a power consumption of 245 mW and uses an area of 1.51 mm2. A complete FMCW radar system prototype is also presented with a power consumption below 1.6 W and a range error of ≈± 250 µm.

Wideband GaN FET based limiter MMICs

Abstract: The design and performance of wideband FET limiter MMICs utilizing GaN on SiC technology are presented. Two different single pole single throw (SPST) switch based circuit architectures are investigated, both of which are designed to cover the 1–6 GHz frequency range. Measured on-wafer s-parameter data demonstrates a maximum insertion loss of 0.6dB and minimum return loss of 14dB for both design variants. Continuous wave (CW) power data measured from 2–4GHz shows a linear transfer characteristic until about 16dBm input power. The feedback limiter exhibited less than 25dBm of flat leakage for a 40W input signal level while the feedforward design demonstrated less than 22dBm of leakage for a 50W CW input.

0.1µm GaAs pHEMT technology and associated modelling for millimeter wave low noise amplifiers

Abstract: Applications in the range of E to W bands are emerging during the last years specially in the field of Radio and security for active scanning systems. It required both low noise receiver and medium power amplifier which needs to use high performances, reliable millimeter wave technology. This paper describes basic fundamental of a 0.1 μm gate length process in term of process, characteristics and modelling. A specific emphasis is attached to the modelling issue in this domain of frequency and the difficulty to get reliable analysis. It is stressed at the end that thanks to accurate modelling in the low frequency part (Ka to Q bands), it allows to predict the behaviour of the device in E band. This methodology has been successfully applied to the design of a wideband LNA and HPA.

An efficient AlGaN/GaN HEMT power amplifier MMIC at K-Band

Abstract: This paper presents an efficient power amplifier MMIC at K-Band (20 GHz) designed for a 0.25 µm AlGaN/GaN HEMT process on three-inch s.i.-SiC substrates. A low-loss network topology is used for second-harmonic output matching to achieve high PAE. The measured amplifier has a maximum PAE of 41% and an associated output power of 31.4dBm when operated at a drain voltage of 20V. At 35V drain voltage, the amplifier exhibits a PAE of 34% and an associated output power of 34 dBm.

A compact V-band active SiGe power detector

Abstract: A compact V-band active power detector using Infineon 0.35 µm SiGe HBT process (f T / f max =170/250 GHz) is described. The total chip area is only 0.35×0.8 mm2 including all pads. This design exhibits a dynamic range larger than 20 dB over the frequency range from 55 GHz to 67 GHz. It also offers a simple and low-power application potential as an envelop detector in multi-Gbps high data rate demodulators for OOK/ASK etc.

A new genetic-algorithm-based technique for low noise amplifier synthesis

Abstract: A new technique for automated synthesis of linear and low noise amplifiers (LNAs) based on genetic algorithm and morphological approach is presented. It accounts for a simultaneous set of LNA performances; also, it allows the precise control of amplifier structure and element values leading to practical solutions. The technique is implemented in the software tool GENEAMP. Example designs of 2–10 GHz one-stage LNA and Ka-band two-stage MMIC LNA are demonstrated.

A high linearity I/Q mixer for high data rate E-band wireless communication links

Abstract: A high linearity I/Q bi-directional mixer MMIC using a Lange coupler to generate the 90° phase shift between the I and Q ports for E-band communication systems has been successfully realized in a 50nm mHEMT technology. The mixer achieves a measured conversion gain of −11 dB without pre- or post-amplification and an IF bandwidth of 6 GHz. An on-wafer linearity measurement shows no compression behavior up to an RF input power of 2 dBm, which is higher than the 1 dB-compression point of other reported E-band mixers.

Miniaturized ultra-broadband G-band frequency doubler MMIC

Abstract: A compact broadband balanced frequency doubler with a novel integrated balanced FET is presented. The MMIC operates at second harmonic output frequencies from 128 to 220GHz with a maximum output power of 1.8dBm at 154GHz and an input power of 9dBm. Due to the balanced topology the MMIC is able to provide second harmonic output power over the entire G-band (140 to 220 GHz) using only a single 4-finger device. The MMIC is realized in a metamorphic HEMT technology with 35 nm gate-length for convenient integration into multifunctional MMICs.

A 10 GHz low-power multi-modulus frequency divider using Extended True Single-Phase Clock (E-TSPC) Logic

Abstract: This paper presents a multi-modulus frequency divider (MMD) based on the Extended True Single-Phase Clock (E-TSPC) Logic. The MMD consists of four cascaded divide-by-2/3 E-TSPC cells. The basic functionality of the MMD and the E-TSPC 2/3 divider are explained. The whole design was implemented in an [0.13] m CMOS process from IBM. Simulation and measurement results of the MMD are shown. Measurement results indicates a maximum operating frequency of [10] GHz and a power consumption of [4] mW for each stage. These results are compared to other state of the art dual modulus E-TSPC dividers, showing the good position of this design relating to operating frequency and power consumption.

Improved tunable performance of high Q-factor Ba x Sr 1−x TiO 3 film bulk acoustic wave resonators

Abstract: Improved tunable performance of high Q-factor BaxSr1-xTiO3 film bulk acoustic wave resonators (FBARs), achieved by varying Ba concentration, is demonstrated. The Ba0.5Sr0.5TiO3 FBARs reveal tunability of series resonance frequency up to 2.4%, electromechanical coupling coefficient up to 7.5% and rather high figure of merit, Qf≈1300 GHz. Correlations between the measured electroacoustic parameters are analyzed using the theory of dc bias induced piezoelectric effect in paraelectric phase ferroelectrics.

A novel latching RF MEMS SPST switch

Abstract: A novel latching RF MEMS Switch is proposed. The single pole single throw (SPST) switch is built on a 20 µm thick nickel layer eliminating any potential warping due to thermal mismatch. The switch exhibits a 40 µm displacement with a power consumption of 175 mW at 80K under vacuum. The measurement was done over ambient and vacuum and over wide range of temperatures from 300 K to 80 K. The switch demonstrates an excellent RF performance up to 26 GHz.

An efficient computer-aided design procedure for interpolating filter dimensions using least squares methods

Abstract: This paper proposes a very efficient algorithm based on least squares (LSQ) methods to provide final dimensions of microwave filters. This algorithm just needs to start from very few accurate designs of practical filters, in order to provide the dimensions of any similar filter (same order and return loss values) with different center frequency f 0 and bandwidth BW. Variations in f 0 and BW have been studied to give models for the filter physical dimensions. Finally, both variables are included in a bivariate model allowing to directly obtain the filter dimensions for any combination of f 0 and BW of the filter.

A terahertz micromachined on-wafer probe for WR-1.2 waveguide

Abstract: A micromachined on-wafer probe designed for WR-1.2 rectangular waveguide is demonstrated in this paper to further enable submillimeter-wave integrated circuits testing. Initial measurements of a prototype WR-1.2 micromachined on-wafer probe exhibit an insertion loss better than 9 dB for the lower half of the WR-1.2 band.

New concepts for a Photonic Vector Network Analyzer based on THz heterodyne phase-coherent techniques

Abstract: The scheme for a Photonic Vector Network Analyzer (PVNA) up to THz frequencies is presented It is based on the combination of a continuous wave (CW) THz photonic transmitter and a CW THz photonic front-end receiver that serve as THz interface extensions for a radiofrequency Vector Network Analyzer (VNA) The proposed PVNA would be able to perform measurements in the THz range where both magnitude and phase are directly measured, eliminating all the delays associated with typical time domain schemes by adding phase control and measurement to existing photonic THz heterodyne receivers The proposed scheme makes use of COTS components to achieve a compact and cost effective system To the best of our knowledge, this is the first scheme for vectorial measurements of THz radiation using a photonic approach for both generation and detection, combining in a single scheme the RF, THz and optical frequency regions

10 Gbps 16QAM transmission over a 70/80 GHz (E-band) radio test-bed

Abstract: A millimeter-wave radio test-bed is implemented which demonstrates 16QAM transmission over 70/80 GHz band for data rate up to 10 Gbps. Performance of the 16QAM transmitter and receiver is evaluated in a loop-back lab set-up. With the proposed 10 Gbps on single carrier system architecture, it is possible to achieve 40 Gbps over a 5 GHz bandwidth when combined with polarization and spatial multiplexing.