A MEMS phase detector at X-band based on MMIC technology

A novel integrated phase detector at X-band using MEMS technology is presented. The detector is composed of a power combiner and a thermopile power sensor based on Seebeck effect, both of which are passive devices. It is based on sensing the power of the combined signal. The phase shift is proportional to the output power, which is sensed with the power sensor. Therefore, low DC power consumption is realized with simple structure. This phase detector is compatible with GaAs MMIC technology. It is measured with 23 dBm at 10 GHz, and the sensitivity is 54.5 ¿V/degree.