60-GHz hybrid system-on-package receiver front-end for low-cost high data rate radios

This paper presents a proof-of-concept low-cost 60-GHz receiver front-end using alumina-based hybrid System-on-Package (H-SoP). The development cycle of the proposed H-SoP is significantly shorter than that of conventional LTCC (Low Temperature Co-fired Ceramic) or IPD (Integrated Passive Devices) packaging technologies, also, the fabrication cost of H-SoP is less than that of LTCC or IPD. As an application of the proposed H-SoP, a 60-GHz receiver front-end which includes bandpass filter, low-noise amplifier, and a mixer is developed using active and passive building blocks from different technologies to optimize cost and performance. The experimental results exhibited an error-vector-magnitude of less than 6% for a 64-QAM OFDM signal over 60-GHz. The measured results confirm the potential of the proposed alumina H-SoP for low-cost, high-performance, short development cycle 60-GHz radio front-ends.