Integrated 220–260 GHz Radar Frontend

Subject of this paper is an integrated transceiver frontend MMIC that was designed for millimeter-wave wideband radar systems operating at a center frequency of 240 GHz. The MMIC was implemented using a 35 nm InAIAs/InGaAs based metamorphic HEMT technology. The key RF parameters of transmit power, receiver conversion gain and noise figure, are achieved over a 1-dB defined bandwidth of 40 GHz. The MMIC was also packaged and tested in a WR-3 waveguide module. Between 220 and 260 GHz, an output power of 6 dBm with a flatness of better than 1 dB was measured, as well as an average receiver noise figure of 7 dB and a conversion gain of 10 dB. The on-wafer measured output power of the transceiver MMIC reached 8 dBm applying an increased dc drain voltage. Several breakout circuits were manufactured for additional separate on-wafer characterization of sub-functions of the transceiver MMIC. For example, the power amplifier of the transmit path achieved a saturated output power of 10 dBm at 240 GHz while consuming a chip area of only 500 x 225 μm.