Innovative bipolar-CMOS integration for RF communication circuits with low-cost high-performance horizontal current bipolar transistor (HCBT)

The Horizontal Current Bipolar Transistor (HCBT) technology, as an innovative concept of bipolar-CMOS integration, is presented. This low-cost integration, achieved by using only 2 or 3 additional lithography masks, allows the fabrication of HCBTs with high-performance characteristics (i.e., f_T = 51 GHz, f_max = 61 GHz, BV_CEO = 3.4 V). The HCBT reliability analysis based on stress tests usage, as a part of technology optimization, is presented. Several RF communication circuits in HCBT technology are designed and fabricated. The downconversion active mixer exhibits high-linearity performance (IIP3 > 25 dBm and CG > 4 dB) comparable to commercial mixers. The static divide-by-2 divider has maximum operation frequency higher than 11 GHz with only 39 mW of power consumption. The voltage-controlled oscillator with central frequency of 2.41 GHz and tuning range of 235 MHz, as an example of fully-integrated RF circuit, is demonstrated.