Signal generation for millimeter wave and THz applications in InP-DHBT and InP-on-BiCMOS technologies

Increasing research activities in the mm-wave and sub-THz bands using different technologies have reached significant achievements over the past few years. A variety of commercial and defense applications are expected to be based on mm-wave and sub-Terahertz integrated circuits in the near future. Silicon-based technologies such as RF-CMOS and SiGe-BiCMOS have shown steady progress, but they are struggling to fulfill the demands due to their limitations in power-handling capability with increasing device speed. III-V technologies offer a higher potential in this regard, but do not allow high levels of integration. In order to move beyond silicon-based technologies while still providing high level of density and complexity, wafer level integration of III-V technologies has become highly interesting due to the overall benefit in terms of performances and complexities. Accordingly, this work focuses on MMIC signal sources in Transferred Substrate (TS) InP-DHBT technology and successful wafer-level circuit integration in InP-on-BiCMOS technology. It is divided in three major parts. In the first part, it presents 96 GHz and 197 GHz fundamental sources using a 0.8 µm InP TS-DHBT process, which deliver +9 dBm and 0 dBm output power with 25% and 4.6% overall DC-to-RF efficiency, respectively. The first part also comprises a 290 GHz harmonic oscillator, which exhibits -9.5 dBm output power and shows 0.5% overall DC-to-RF efficiency. Furthermore, it demonstrates 162 GHz and 270 GHz push-push sources utilizing InP TS-DHBTs on a BiCMOS process, which achieve -4.5 dBm and -9.5 dBm output power and combined overall DC-to-RF efficiencies of 1.5% and 0.4%, respectively. In the second part, multiplier-based signal sources are demonstrated. It presents a full G-band (140-220 GHz) frequency doubler, which delivers +8.2 dBm at 180 GHz and more than +5 dBm in the range 160-200 GHz as well as +2.5 dBm at 220 GHz. The doubler circuit exhibits a power efficiency of 16 % in this frequency range. Also, a 250 GHz single-ended frequency tripler is presented, with -4.4 dBm output power and 3% of DC-to-RF efficiency. The highest frequency is reached by a wideband 328 GHz quadrupler, which delivers -7 dBm output power at 325 GHz and exhibits 0.5 % DC-to-RF efficiency. The final part is devoted to hetero-integrated circuits and the necessary design considerations. Two 250 GHz and 330 GHz sources are demonstrated that deliver -1.6 dBm and -12 dBm output power, respectively. These are the first hetero-integrated signal sources in this frequency range reported so far.

Author dc:creator

• Hossain, Muhammad Maruf

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Heinrich, Wolfgang

Licence dc:rights.uri

• https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Language dc:language.iso

en

Identifier URI

http://dx.doi.org/10.14279/depositonce-5450

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:depositonce.tu-berlin.de:11303/5851