A 77-GHz Receiver Front End for Passive Imaging

A Wideband 77-GHz Front End Receiver for Passive Imaging has been designed and characterized. This system comprises a fully differential LNA, double-balanced mixer and VCO. The LNA achieves 4.9-6.0 dB NF, 18-26 dB gain, and S11, S22 of -13.0 and -12.8 dB, respectively. The double-balanced mixer achieves 12-14 dB NF, 20-26 dB conversion gain and -26 dBm PldB (input-referred). The VCO achieves output power from -2 to 0 tlBm with phase noise of ~-93 dBc/Hz at 72 GHz, and approximately 3 GHz of tuning range. The receiver achieves 40-46 dB max conversion gain, output-referred P1dB of 2 dBm and power dissipation of 195 mW.