MMIC-based chipset for multi-Gigabit satellite links in E-band

In this paper, a chipset for a multi-Gigabit satellite links, supporting both the designated up and downlink frequencies in E-Band, is presented. It consists of I/Q-upand downconversion circuits, frequency multipliers for LO signal generation, a low noise amplifier (LNA) with excellent noise performance and a power amplifier with a saturated output power above 22 dBm, all realized in a metamorphic high electron mobility transistor (mHEMT) MMIC process. Link budget calculations taking into account the measured chip performance show the feasibility of a low earth orbit (LEO) satellite downlink with data rates up to 5 Gbit/s.