Ultra-Compact and Modular 5G Phased-Array 4-Channel Beamformer Front-Ends with <2° RMS Phase Error

This paper presents the state-of-the-art millimeter wave IC development for 5G communication systems in various frequency bands. 2×2 TRX beamformer IC's at 26, 28 and 39 GHz achieve <;2° RMS phase error, high channel-to-channel isolation, low-power consumption (<;250 mW in TX and <;200 mW RX modes, per channel), and include fast T/R switching (<;100 ns), 4-level fast phase and gain weighting memory access (<;30 ns) and temperature reporting. Ultra-compact IC's enable low-cost panel implementations as well as modular and cost effective system-in-package (SiP) solutions for 5G flat panel phased array systems.