Non-contact probing in millimeter wave transmitter characterizations

The lack of access points to internal circuits can prevent full debug and characterization of highly integrated circuits, such as a receiver or transmitter on a chip. To maximize coverage, prevent costly re-spin and improve time to market, innovative characterization and test solutions need to be developed. In this paper loop antennae have been designed and utilized as a non-contact probe in characterizations of on-chip millimeter wave systems. This non-invasive solution is capable to capture (parasitic) signals radiated from the internal stages of a device under characterization otherwise not measurable. In a case study for a super-heterodyne 60GHz transmitter, the data extracted through this inexpensive approach allows for a thorough investigation of how individual functional blocks within the transmitter chip contribute to the overall system performance.