A 170GHz 5.5dB NF Low-Noise Amplifier in 55nm SiGe BiCMOS

Silicon low-noise amplifiers (LNA) are key building blocks for the development of phased-array systems. BiCMOS is a promising technology, levering both the higher speed and power handling capability of HBTs and the high density of CMOS nodes, enabling the realization of complex systems on chip working in both the digital and RF domains. This work illustrates a two-stage D-band LNA that targets the integration in a receiver front-end module for dense phased-array systems. Realized in SiGe Bi55X by STM, the amplifier achieves 17.5 dB gain with 50 GHz bandwidth centered at 170GHz and a noise figure ranging from 5.2 dB to 5.5 dB, the lowest value reported in literature to date at the same frequency and with similar technologies. The power consumption is 20 mW from a 2V supply and the area occupation is 0.06 mm
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, Measured results compare favorably against state-of-the-art.