Wideband 200 GHz injection-locked frequency divide-by-two MMIC in GaAs mHEMT technology

Two G-band (140 to 220 GHz) injection-locked frequency divider (ILFD) monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMICs) have been developed in a 35nm InAlAs/InGaAs metamorphic high electron mobility transistor (mHEMT) process for application in signal sources of next generation multi gigabit per second communication links and high-resolution imaging systems. Both devices are based on a cascode divider core followed by a single-stage post-amplifier, but differ in the 50 and 14 μm ground-to-ground spacing of the applied grounded coplanar waveguide (GCPW) environment. The measured maximum input frequencies at a 0dBm input power level are 206 and 210 GHz with wide operating bandwidths of 26 and 14 GHz and relative bandwidths of 13 and 7 %, respectively. To the authors' best knowledge, this represents the highest operating frequencies obtained by frequency dividers in GaAs HEMT based technologies.