Low phase noise millimeter-wave frequency sources using InP-based HBT MMIC technology

A family of millimeter-wave sources based on InP heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT) monolithic microwave/millimeter-wave integrated circuit (MMIC) technology has been developed. These sources include 40-GHz, 46-GHz, 62-GHz MMIC fundamental mode oscillators, and a 95-GHz frequency source module using a 23.8-GHz InP HBT MMIC dielectric resonator oscillator (DRO) in conjunction with a GaAs-based high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) MMIC frequency quadrupler and W-band output amplifiers. Good phase noise performance was achieved due to the low 1/f noise of the InP-based HBT devices. To our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of millimeter-wave sources using InP-based HBT MMIC's.