An improved on-wafer noise measurement technique

A novel on-wafer resistive noise source useful for noise characterization of microwave devices with the cold noise power measurement technique is described. The noise source enhances measurement accuracy by providing a calibrated noise temperature directly at the device reference plane. A procedure for determining the excess noise ratio of the noise source is presented, and the overall technique is validated up to 40 GHz by comparing receiver noise figure measurements with those obtained using a commercial coaxial noise source. Finally, an example of a high-electron mobility transistor noise parameter measurement is presented to demonstrate an on-wafer application of the method at millimeter-wave frequencies.