A review of technologies and design techniques of millimeter-wave power amplifiers

his article reviews the state-of-the-art millimeter-wave (mm-wave) power amplifiers (PAs), focusing on broadband design techniques. An overview of the main solid-state technologies is provided, including Si, gallium arsenide (GaAs), GaN, and other III-V materials, and both field-effect and bipolar transistors. The most popular broadband design techniques are introduced, before critically comparing through the most relevant design examples found in the scientific literature. Given the wide breadth of applications that are foreseen to exploit the mm-wave spectrum, this contribution will represent a valuable guide for designers who need a single reference before adventuring in the challenging task of the mm-wave PA design

A millimeter-wave diode-MMIC chipset for local oscillator generation in the ALMA telescope

A set of MMIC frequency multipliers and balanced mixers have been designed for the local oscillator system of the Atacama large millimeter array (ALMA). These millimeter-wave elements form a critical link in the active multiplier chains between the relatively low frequency microwave oscillators and the very high frequency submillimeter-wave, cooled multipliers of the LO subsystem. A complete chipset for four frequency bands is described, along with preliminary results on prototypes for two additional bands

A millimeter-wave diode-MMIC chipset for local oscillator generation in the ALMA telescope

A set of MMIC frequency multipliers and balanced mixers have been designed for the local oscillator system of the Atacama large millimeter array (ALMA). These millimeter-wave elements form a critical link in the active multiplier chains between the relatively low frequency microwave oscillators and the very high frequency submillimeter-wave, cooled multipliers of the LO subsystem. A complete chipset for four frequency bands is described, along with preliminary results on prototypes for two additional bands

Millimeter-Wave MMICs and Applications

As device technology improves, interest in the millimeter-wave band grows. Wireless communication systems migrate to higher frequencies, millimeter-wave radars and passive sensors find new solid-state implementations that promise improved performance, and entirely new applications in the millimeter-wave band become feasible. The circuit or system designer is faced with a new and unique set of challenges and constraints to deal with in order to use this portion of the spectrum successfully. In particular, the advantages of monolithic integration become increasingly important. This thesis presents many new developments in Monolithic Millimeter-Wave Integrated Circuits (MMICs), both the chips themselves and systems that use them. It begins with an overview of the various applications of millimeter waves, including a discussion of specific projects that the author is involved in and why many of them demand a MMIC implementation. In the subsequent chapters, new MMIC chips are described in detail, as is the role they play in real-world projects. Multi-chip modules are also presented with specific attention given to the practical details of MMIC packaging and multi-chip integration. The thesis concludes with a summary of the works presented thus far and their overall impact on the field of millimeter-wave engineering.</p

Silicon Integrated HBV Frequency Multipliers for THz Applications

This thesis deals with integrated varactor diode circuits for terahertz (THz) applications. In particular hybrid, monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMICs), and heterogeneous integration are explored for frequency multiplier applications. Each of these techniques addresses different requirements for high power and high frequency electronic circuits. Namely: high thermal conductivity (κ) of substrates for enhanced power capabilities, process reproducibility of small diode and circuit component dimensions, and finally machining properties for enhanced robustness and functionality. A fixed tuned 175 GHz frequency quintupler with a flip-chip assembled Heterostructure Barrier Varactor (HBV) diode was demonstrated. The microstrip circuit was fabricated on AlN substrate - a material with high thermal conductivity. The device delivers 60 mW of output power corresponding to 6.3 % conversion efficiency. The heteregeneous integration of In0.53Ga0.47As/Al0.48Ga0.52As HBV material structure onto silicon and silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrate was done in a process employing low temperature plasma assisted wafer bonding. Using this technology a frequency tripler (×3) for W-band (75-110 GHz) and frequency quintupler (×5) for 474 GHz were fabricated. The performance of the W-band frequency tripler delivering more than 180 mW of output power is comparable to the identical design in InP MMIC technology. The 474 GHz frequency quintupler circuit was fabricated on SOI substrate, hence robust and unform 20 μm thick circuits were achieved. This multiplier delivers 2.8 mW of output power, and it represents the highest frequency of operation for HBV-based frequency multipliers. By enabling the integration of compound semiconductors onto a silicon substrate, an increase in the performance and functionality of the device is achieved. Moreover, due to good thermal and mechanical properties of silicon, as well as established process technology for this material, a new generation of THz monolithic integrated circuits is possible

III-V Nanowire MOSFET High-Frequency Technology Platform

This thesis addresses the main challenges in using III-V nanowireMOSFETs for high-frequency applications by building a III-Vvertical nanowire MOSFET technology library. The initial devicelayout is designed, based on the assessment of the current III-V verticalnanowire MOSFET with state-of-the-art performance. The layout providesan option to scale device dimensions for the purpose of designing varioushigh-frequency circuits. The nanowire MOSFET device is described using1D transport theory, and modeled with a compact virtual source model.Device assessment is performed at high frequencies, where sidewall spaceroverlaps have been identified and mitigated in subsequent design iterations.In the final stage of the design, the device is simulated with fT > 500 GHz,and fmax > 700 GHz.Alongside the III-V vertical nanowire device technology platform, adedicated and adopted RF and mm-wave back-end-of-line (BEOL) hasbeen developed. Investigation into the transmission line parameters revealsa line attenuation of 0.5 dB/mm at 50 GHz, corresponding to state-ofthe-art values in many mm-wave integrated circuit technologies. Severalkey passive components have been characterized and modeled. The deviceinterface module - an interconnect via stack, is one of the prominentcomponents. Additionally, the approach is used to integrate ferroelectricMOS capacitors, in a unique setting where their ferroelectric behavior iscaptured at RF and mm-wave frequencies.Finally, circuits have been designed. A proof-of-concept circuit, designedand fabricated with III-V lateral nanowire MOSFETs and mm-wave BEOL, validates the accuracy of the BEOL models, and the circuit design. Thedevice scaling is shown to be reflected into circuit performance, in aunique device characterization through an amplifier noise-matched inputstage. Furthermore, vertical-nanowire-MOSFET-based circuits have beendesigned with passive feedback components that resonate with the devicegate-drain capacitance. The concept enables for device unilateralizationand gain boosting. The designed low-noise amplifiers have matching pointsindependent on the MOSFET gate length, based on capacitance balancebetween the intrinsic and extrinsic capacitance contributions, in a verticalgeometry. The proposed technology platform offers flexibility in device andcircuit design and provides novel III-V vertical nanowire MOSFET devicesand circuits as a viable option to future wireless communication systems

Center for Space Microelectronics Technology. 1993 Technical Report

The 1993 Technical Report of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory Center for Space Microelectronics Technology summarizes the technical accomplishments, publications, presentations, and patents of the Center during the past year. The report lists 170 publications, 193 presentations, and 84 New Technology Reports and patents. The 1993 Technical Report of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory Center for Space Microelectronics Technology summarizes the technical accomplishments, publications, presentations, and patents of the Center during the past year. The report lists 170 publications, 193 presentations, and 84 New Technology Reports and patents

Analytic and Machine Learning Based Design of Monolithic Transistor-Antenna for Plasmonic Millimeter-Wave Detectors

Department of Electrical EngineeringThis thesis reports an advanced analysis on a monolithic transistor-antenna by designing a ring-type asymmetric FET itself as a receiving antenna element which receives millimeter-waves in a loss-less manner with a plasmonic ampli fication for millimeter-wave (mmW) detectors. The proposed transistor-antenna device combines the plasmonic and the electromagnetic (EM) aspects in a single place. As a result, it can absorb the incoming mmW and transfer power directly to the ring-type asymmetric channel without any feeding line and a separate antenna element. Both the charge asymmetry in the device channel and the antenna coupling are contributing to the enhanced photoresponse. Among the two factors, the improved antenna coupling is more dominant in the performance enhancement of our proposed design. Also, our transistor-antenna device have enhanced performance with a uniformly enhanced responsivity of every pixel by characterizing its impedance exactly pursuing real-time mmW imaging. Operation principle of the proposed device is discussed, focusing on how signal transmission through the ring-type structure is available without any feeding line between the antenna and the detector. To determine the antenna geometry aiming for a desired resonant frequency, we present an efficient design procedure based on periodic bandgap analysis combined with parametric electromagnetic simulations. From a fabricated ring-type FET-based monolithic antenna device, we demonstrated the highly enhanced optical responsivity and the reduced optical noise-equivalent power, which are in comparable order with the reported state-of-the-art CMOS-based antenna integrated direct detectors. Another part of the thesis focuses on developing machine learning models to enable fast, accurate design and veri fication of electromagnetic structures. We proposed a novel Bayesian learning algorithm named as Bayesian clique learning, for searching the optimal electromagnetic design parameter by using the structural property of EM simulation data set. Along with this, we also given an inverse problem approach for designing the electromagnetic structures which suggest going in the opposite direction to determine the design parameters from characteristics of the desired output.clos