A decision feedback equalizer with channel-dependent power consumption for 60-GHz receivers

The design of a baseband decision feedback equalizer, featuring a continuous-time digital delay line, is discussed within the context of a wireless, Line-Of-Sight, communication scenario over the 60-GHz band. BER simulations advocate for a critical-tap cancellation scheme, which leads to the realization of an equalizer featuring a small number of taps. A two-step configurable architecture is suggested as the equalizer's feedback path, in order to mitigate the loss of robustness that is caused by the absence of the clock. Simulations reveal the system's channel-dependent power consumption character and a delay line power consumption reduction of 3 to 4 times, when compared with its clocked counterpart.