Script list Publications
(1) IoT-Ready Millimeter-Wave Radar Sensors
W. Ahmad, J. Wessel, H.J. Ng, D. Kissinger
Proc. IEEE Global Conference on Artificial Intelligence & Internet of Things (IEEE GCAIoT 2020), (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/GCAIoT51063.2020.9345836, (Total Resilience)
(2) Multimode W-Band and D-Band MIMO Scalable Radar Platform
W. Ahmad, M. Kucharski, A. Ergintav, S. Abouzaid, J. Wessel, H.J. Ng, D. Kissinger
IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques 69(1), 1036 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/TMTT.2020.3038532, (Total Resilience)
This article demonstrates the implementation of 80- and 160-GHz four-channel radar sensors employing the modular scalable platform based on a single relaxed 40-GHz local oscillator and cascadable transceiver chips. The first two channels synthesize 2x2 multiple-input–multiple-output (MIMO) radar at 80 GHz with onboard 8x1 patch arrays for enhanced angular resolution, whereas the other two channels employ 160-GHz system-on-chip transceivers with integrated wideband 6-dBi micromachined on-chip antennas for enhanced range resolution. Configurable modulators in each transceiver offer ranging, direction-of-arrival (DoA) estimation, velocity/vibrations measurement, and data communication applications. Frequency-modulated continuous wave (FMCW) is demonstrated with 4-/8-GHz sweep bandwidth at 80/160 GHz corresponding to 3.75-/1.875-cm range resolution. Chirp-sequence FMCW is employed to measure the heartbeat rate of a human, and 78 bpm is measured with 0.06-Hz Doppler resolution. Mechanical vibration rate from a loudspeaker is measured using the CW radar technique, whereas phase-modulated continuous wave is employed for distant selective vibrations measurement. Time-division multiplexing MIMO radar is configured at 80 GHz in a multitarget scenario for DoA estimation, and the targets are distinguished with 25° effective angular resolution. Frequency-division multiplexing MIMO radar technique is demonstrated based on ΔΣ -modulation and binary phase shift keying (BPSK) modulators. Furthermore, the 10-Mb/s BPSK data communication link is evaluated at 80 GHz with a 20-dB signal-to-noise ratio at 1 m. The 160-GHz vector modulators offer additional modulations.
(3) A Planar Differential Wide Fan-Beam Antenna Array Architecture: Modular High-Gain Array for 79-GHz Multiple-Input, Multiple-Output Radar Applications
W. Ahmad, M. Kucharski, A. Ergintav, H.J. Ng, D. Kissinger
IEEE Antennas and Propagation Magazine 63(4), 21 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/MAP.2020.2976913, (EMPHASE)
This article proposes a planar, wide fan-beam differential, corporate-fed patch antenna array architecture for automotive radar applications that mitigates the multipath and multiple reflections effects of its conventional series-fed counterpart. The proposed array architecture offers the merits of wide beamwidth in azimuth, high gain, yet, is applicable in multiple-input, multipleoutput (MIMO) configurations. Two 8 × 1 arrays were developed, built, and measured at the 77-81-GHz band. In design 1, the width of driven 50-Ω patch is optimized for the widest beamwidth and the array feeding network employs impedance transformers for matching. The experimental verification showed an azimuthal half-power beamwidth (HPBW) of 70° with a 15-dBi gain. In design 2, the interelement spacing is increased for wider beamwidth and less mutual coupling, and the feeding network transformers were eliminated to mitigate scattering and radar cross section (RCS) in turn. A 130° azimuthal HPBW was measured. A 2 × 2 MIMO radar hardware was built, employing the proposed array architecture on a scalable radar platform to validate its applicability in MIMO radars. For the sake of comparison, another reference demonstrator with conventional series-fed arrays was built. Frequency-modulated continuous-wave (FMCW) radar range and angle measurements were performed where multiplereflections and multipath effects were mitigated.
(4) Contactless Vital Signs Monitoring by mmWave Efficient Modulatorless Tracking Radar
W. Ahmad, J. Lu, B. Sütbas, H.J. Ng, D. Kissinger
Proc. IEEE Global Conference on Artificial Intelligence & Internet of Things (IEEE GCAIoT 2021), (2021)
(Benchmarking Circuits/Radar Systems)
(5) A Planar Differential Wide Fan-Beam Antenna Array Architecture: Modular High-Gain Array for 79-GHz Multiple-Input, Multiple-Output Radar Applications
W. Ahmad, M. Kucharski, A. Ergintav, H.J. Ng, D. Kissinger
IEEE Antennas and Propagation Magazine 63(4), 21 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/MAP.2020.2976913, (radar4FAD)
This article proposes a planar, wide fan-beam differential, corporate-fed patch antenna array architecture for automotive radar applications that mitigates the multipath and multiple reflections effects of its conventional series-fed counterpart. The proposed array architecture offers the merits of wide beamwidth in azimuth, high gain, yet, is applicable in multiple-input, multipleoutput (MIMO) configurations. Two 8 × 1 arrays were developed, built, and measured at the 77-81-GHz band. In design 1, the width of driven 50-Ω patch is optimized for the widest beamwidth and the array feeding network employs impedance transformers for matching. The experimental verification showed an azimuthal half-power beamwidth (HPBW) of 70° with a 15-dBi gain. In design 2, the interelement spacing is increased for wider beamwidth and less mutual coupling, and the feeding network transformers were eliminated to mitigate scattering and radar cross section (RCS) in turn. A 130° azimuthal HPBW was measured. A 2 × 2 MIMO radar hardware was built, employing the proposed array architecture on a scalable radar platform to validate its applicability in MIMO radars. For the sake of comparison, another reference demonstrator with conventional series-fed arrays was built. Frequency-modulated continuous-wave (FMCW) radar range and angle measurements were performed where multiplereflections and multipath effects were mitigated.
(6) A D-Band Stacked Patch Antenna with Air Trenches in BiCMOS Technology
W. Ahmad, S. Schmitz, H.J. Ng, D. Kissinger
Proc. IEEE International Symposium on Antennas and Propagation (APS 2021), 1637 (2021)
(7) Experimental Evaluation of Millimeter-Wave FMCW Radar Ranging Precision
W. Ahmad, A. Ergintav, J. Wessel, D. Kissinger, H.J. Ng
Proc. IEEE Radio & Wireless Week (RWW 2021), 70 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/RWS50353.2021.9360327, (Total Resilience)
(8) Scalable 2×2 MIMO Radar Demonstrator with BPSK Data Communications at 79 GHz
W. Ahmad, A. Ergintav, M. Kucharski, D. Kissinger, H.J. Ng
Proc. 17th European Radar Conference (EuRAD 2020), 234 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/EuRAD48048.2021.00067, (EMPHASE)
(9) Scalable 2×2 MIMO Radar Demonstrator with BPSK Data Communications at 79 GHz
W. Ahmad, A. Ergintav, M. Kucharski, D. Kissinger, H.J. Ng
Proc. 17th European Radar Conference (EuRAD 2020), 234 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/EuRAD48048.2021.00067, (radar4FAD)
(10) A V-Band Vector Modulator based Phase Shifter in BiCMOS 0.13 μm SiGe Technology
K.E. Drenkhahn, A. Gadallah, A. Franzese, Ch. Wagner, A. Malignaggi
Proc. 15th European Microwave Integrated Circuits Conference (EuMIC 2020), 65 (2021)
(11) A Monolithic-Integrated Broadband Low-Noise Optical Receiver with Automatic Gain Control in 0.25μm SiGe BiCMOS
G. Dziallas, A. Fatemi, A. Malignaggi, G. Kahmen
Proc. 21st IEEE Topical Meetings on Silicon Monolithic Integrated Circuits in RF Systems (SiRF 2021), 1 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/SiRF51851.2021.9383400
In this paper we present a broadband low-noise monolithic-integrated silicon photonic receiver with automatic gain control that shows state-of-the-art performance. The electronic and photonic components are fabricated monolithically on one chip using IHP's 0.25μm SiGe BiCMOS EPIC technology. The optical receiver features a high tunable transimpedance gain of 66 dBΩ at a large opto-electrical BW of 34 GHz, and an input-referred noise current of of 2.81 μArms while consuming 205 mW of power. Comparing key performance metrics and the functional complexity of similar devices found in the literature, the optical receiver presented in this work achieves an overall superior performance.
(12) A -115 dBc/Hz Integrated Optoelectronic Oscillator in a BiCMOS Silicon Photonic Technology
G. Dziallas, A. Fatemi, A. Peczek, M. Tarar, D. Kissinger, L. Zimmermann, A. Malignaggi, G. Kahmen
Proc. IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium (IMS 2021), 23 (2021)
(13) A 97 GHz 66 dBΩ SiGe BiCMOS Low-Noise Transimpedance Amplifier for Optical Receivers
G. Dziallas, A. Fatemi, A. Malignaggi, G. Kahmen
IEEE Solid-State Circuits Letters 31(12),1295 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/LMWC.2021.3103106
In this paper a transimpedance amplifier is presented, which features a bandwidth of 97 GHz, 66 dBΩ maximum transimpedance gain, and 6.3 pA/√Hz integrated noise current density, operating at up to 120 Gb/s and consuming only 145mW. Reaching a higher bandwidth at a noise performance comparable to the state-of-the-art, is the novelty of this work. It was achieved by combining a low-bandwidth input stage, reducing the total noise, and a multi-stage post equalization. The gain peaking technique through cascading emitter follower stages is employed in a broadband transimpedance amplifier as a post equalizer. To the best of the author’s knowledge, the presented design shows the best performance in terms of overall gain, bandwidth, and noise for the lowest power consumption compared to state-of-the-art designs.
(14) A 96-Gb/s PAM-4 Receiver using Time-Interleaved Converters in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS
A. Fatemi, G. Kahmen, A. Malignaggi
IEEE Solid-State Circuits Letters 4, 60 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/LSSC.2021.3059254
This letter describes a 96-Gb/s PAM-4 receiver, suitable for silicon photonics application, designed and fabricated in a 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS technology. The low-power receiver includes a TIA and a VGA, two slices of time-interleaved track and hold amplifier and two-bit folding ADC circuits, and multiplexers to deliver full-rate decoded NRZ output signals. The track and hold amplifier is based on a switched emitter–follower topology optimized for low-power operation to sample at 24 GSample/s. Half-rate PAM-4 to NRZ converters are implemented as a bandwidth-enhanced two-bit folding ADC in order to consume less power compared to flash competitors. The receiver chip consumes 545 mW, leading to an energy efficiency of 5.67 mW/Gb/s, which is one of the best among the state-of-the-art works at this data-rate.
(15) A Multi-Mode Linear Optical Modulator Driver Circuit in 130 nm SiGe BiCMOS Technology
A. Fatemi, G. Kahmen, A. Malignaggi
Proc. IEEE BiCMOS and Compound Semiconductor Integrated Circuits and Technology Symposium (BCICTS 2021), (2021)
(16) 2x4 VGA-Less Bidirectional Dual-Polarization 28 GHz Beamformer in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS
A. Franzese, N. Maletic, M.H. Eissa, R. Negra, A. Malignaggi
IEEE Microwave and Wireless Components Letters 31(8), 981 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/LMWC.2021.3087245, (Taranto)
This letter presents a dual-polarization beamformer chip for fifth-generation (5G) applications. The chip leverages a vector-sum phase shifter (VSPS) approach and single-ended design, allowing a reduced control circuitry complexity. The use of the VSPS translates in both phase shift and gain control, as shown in the system analysis. This beamformer is suitable for four dual-polarized antennas, achieving high gain control for each element. The performance can be summarized as a 1-dB compression point of 11dBm, while having an rms phase and amplitude error lower than 0.5° and 0.4 dB, respectively, at the maximum constant magnitude gain circle. Moreover, it is shown that the design can afford tapering despite relying only on the VSPS for gain control.
(17) Vector Modulator Phase Shifters in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS Technology for 5G Applications
A. Franzese, M.H. Eissa, D. Kissinger, A. Malignaggi
Proc. IEEE Radio and Wireless Week (RWW 2021), 64 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/RWS50353.2021.9360395, (Taranto)
(18) A 4-Channel V-Band Beamformer Featuring a Switchless PALNA for Scalable Phased Array Systems
A. Gadallah, A. Franzese, M.H. Eissa, K.E. Drenkhahn, D. Kissinger, A. Malignaggi
Proc. IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium (IMS 2021), 839 (2021)
(19) A 112 Gb/s Radiation-Hardened Mid-Board Optical Transceiver in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS for Intra-Satellite Links
S. Giannakopoulos, I. Sourikopoulos, L. Stampoulidis, P. Ostrovskyy, F. Teply, K. Tittelbach-Helmrich, G. Panic, G. Fischer, A. Grabowski, H. Zirath, P. Ayzac, N. Venet, A. Maho, M. Sotom, S. Jones, G. Wood, I. Oxtoby
Frontiers in Physics 9, 672941 (2021)
DOI: 10.3389/fphy.2021.672941, (SIPhoDiAS)
We report the design of a 112 Gb/s radiation-hardened (RH) optical transceiver applicable to intra-satellite optical interconnects. The transceiver chipset comprises a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) driver and transimpedance amplifier (TIA) integrated circuits (ICs) with four channels per die, which are adapted for a flip-chip assembly into a mid-board optics (MBO) optical transceiver module. The ICs are designed in the IHP 130 nm SiGe BiCMOS process (SG13RH) leveraging proven robustness in radiation environments and high-speed performance featuring bipolar transistors (HBTs) with fT/fMAX values of up to 250/340 GHz. Besides hardening by technology, radiation-hardened-by-design (RHBD) components are used, including enclosed layout transistors (ELTs) and digital logic cells. We report design features of the ICs and the module, and provide performance data from post-layout simulations. We present radiation evaluation data on analog devices and digital cells, which indicate that the transceiver ICs will reliably operate at typical total ionizing dose (TID) levels and single event latch-up thresholds found in geostationary satellites.
(20) Heterodyne Spectroscopy with a 225 – 255 GHz SiGe BiCMOS Receiver for Space Applications
A. Glück, K. Schmalz, N. Rothbart, H.-W. Hübers
Proc. 46th International Conference on Infrared, Millimeter, and Terahertz Waves (IRMMW-THz 2021), (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/IRMMW-THz50926.2021.9567358, (DFG-AGS)
(21) Low-Complexity Subspace Method for I/Q Imbalance Estimation in Low-IF Receivers with Unknown Fading
A. Gomaa, A. Elezabi, M.H. Eissa
Transactions on Emerging Telecommunications Technologies 32(3), e4181 (2021)
DOI: 10.1002/ett.4181
In low-intermediate-frequency (low-IF) receivers, I/Q imbalance (IQI) causes interference on the desired signal from the blocker signal transmitted over the image frequencies. Conventional approaches for pilot-aided IQI estimation in zero-IF receivers are not applicable to low-IF receivers, where the image interference is unknown at the receiver. We propose a low-complexity subspace method for the estimation of IQI parameters in low-IF receivers in the presence of unknown fading, where we utilize knowledge of the pilots to null out the signal part. This reduces the variance of the sample mean estimate and leads to faster convergence. The proposed nulling method offers significantly better image rejection at low input signal-to-interference power ratio (SIR) than existing methods. Performance analysis of the output SIR as well as computer simulations are also provided.
(22) A 440 – 540-GHz Transmitter in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS
A. Güner, T. Mausolf, J. Wessel, D. Kissinger, K. Schmalz
Proc. IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium (IMS 2021), (2021)
(DFG-AGS)
(23) A 440 - 540-GHz Transmitter in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS
A. Güner, T. Mausolf, J. Wessel, D. Kissinger, K. Schmalz
IEEE Microwave and Wireless Components Letters 31(6), 779 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/LMWC.2021.3060820
This letter presents a four-way combined frequency multiplier chain (FMC), which converts a single-ended 110–135-GHz input signal to a differential 440–540-GHz output signal. The four-way combined FMC uses four identical FMCs, which consist of two amplification and two frequency doubling stages. These blocks are designed with optimized parameters to be used as the transmitter of a gas spectroscopy system at 440–540 GHz. The four-way combined FMC has 0.5 dBm measured maximum output power at 450 GHz and −4.5 dBm at 500 GHz
(24) A Novel Approach to Fractional-N PLLs Generating Ultra-Fast Low-Noise Chirps for FMCW Radar
F. Herzel, A. Ergintav, G. Fischer
Integration, the VLSI Journal 76, 139 (2021)
DOI: 10.1016/j.vlsi.2020.09.009, (Benchmarking Circuits/Radar Systems)
This paper presents a novel approach to generate ultra-fast chirps for frequency-modulated continuous wave (FMCW) radar systems. A symmetric triangular frequency chirp is analyzed. A very large loop bandwidth could minimize the PLL settling time, but would result in a high phase noise and in large spurs. This work minimizes the settling times without using an excessive loop bandwidth. Rather, the initial condition of the dynamic phase error after the turn-around points (TAPs) is minimized by switching the reference phase in conjunction with one of the two methods: Firstly, a well-defined offset current is added to the charge pump output current, and its sign is switched at the TAPs. Secondly, a binary weighted loop filter capacitor array is used in the loop filter, and the total capacitance is adapted to the slope of the frequency sweep. While the first method lends itself to a fully integrated PLL design including the loop filter, the second method achieves a lower in-band phase noise.
(25) Transfer Printable 64 Gbps Lumped Driver for Optical Communication
M. Inac, A. Fatemi, F. Gerfers, A. Malignaggi
Proc. 9. MikroSystemTechnik Kongress (MST 2021), 547 (2021)
(CALADAN)
(26) Performance Comparison of Broadband Traveling Wave Amplifiers in 130 nm SiGe:C SG13G2 and SG13G3 BiCMOS Technologies
M. Inac, A. Fatemi, F. Korndörfer, H. Rücker, F. Gerfers, A. Malignaggi
Proc. IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium (IMS 2021), (2021)
(27) Compact and Transfer Printable 64 Gb/s Differential Transimpedance Amplifier in 130-nm BiCMOS
M. Inac, A. Fatemi, F. Gerfers, A. Malignaggi
Proc. 50th European Microwave Week (EuMW 2021), 1166 (2021)
(CALADAN)
(28) Performance Comparison of Broadband Traveling Wave Amplifiers in 130 nm SiGe:C SG13G2 and SG13G3 BiCMOS Technologies
M. Inac, A. Fatemi, F. Korndörfer, H. Rücker, F. Gerfers, A. Malignaggi
IEEE Microwave and Wireless Components Letters 31(6), 744 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/LMWC.2021.3067099
In this letter, a comparison between two ultra-wideband traveling wave amplifiers (TWAs) designed in two different SiGe:C technologies consuming only 500 mW is presented. The first design utilizes the IHP’s 130-nm SiGe:C BiCMOS SG13G2 technology, featuring fT /fMAX =300 /500 GHz, while the second design uses the IHP’s 130-nm SiGe:C BiCMOS SG13G3 technology, featuring fT /fMAX =470/700 GHz. For a fair comparison, the same architecture has been used for the design of both amplifiers. On-wafer measurements of the SG13G2 amplifier show 15.3 dB gain and 87.4 GHz bandwidth, while the design in SG13G3 technology reaches 16.9 dB gain and more than 110 GHz bandwidth. There is a 1% difference in the output power efficiency where it is 4.1% and 5.1% on SG13G2 and SG13G3 technologies, respectively. In both cases, time-domain measurements show a reliable 120 Gbps non-return-to-zero (NRZ) operation. The presented SG13G3-based TWA shows state-of-the-art performance among similar SiGe BiCMOS amplifiers.
(29) A Broadband 110-170-GHz Stagger-Tuned Power Amplifier with 13.5-dBm Psat in 130-nm SiGe
A. Karakuzulu, M.H. Eissa, D. Kissinger, A. Malignaggi
IEEE Microwave and Wireless Components Letters 31(1), 56 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/LMWC.2020.3036937, (Taranto)
This letter presents a fully integrated three-stage single-ended D-band power amplifier (PA) designed in 0.13-μm silicon-germanium (SiGe) BiCMOS technology. Several bandwidth extension techniques and matching networks are mutually exploited to maximize Bandwidth (BW) performance while assuring unconditional stability. Its measured 3-dB bandwidth covers the entire D-band (110-170 GHz). The PA has a small-signal peak gain of 21 dB at 151 GHz. Its saturated output power (Psat) in the D-band varies from 11.8 to 13.9 dBm and its output referred 1-dB compression point (OP1 dB) from 9.2 to 12.5 dBm within the D-band. The presented amplifier occupies 0.65x0.47 mm2 (including pads) and draws a current of 115 mA from a 3.3-V supply. To the best of our knowledge, these performances represent the state of the art in silicon technology with a minimum (Psat) of 11.8 dBm and (OP1 dB) of 9.2 dBm covering the entire D-band.
(30) Full D-Band Transmit-Receive Module for Phased Array Systems in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS
A. Karakuzulu, M.H. Eissa, D. Kissinger, A. Malignaggi
IEEE Solid-State Circuits Letters 4, 40 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/LSSC.2021.3054512, (Taranto)
This letter presents a D-band (110 to 170 GHz) transmit–receive module in 0.13- μm silicon–germanium (SiGe) BiCMOS for phased-array applications. The module includes single-pole double throw (SPDT) switches, a low noise amplifier (LNA), a power amplifier (PA), and two variable gain amplifiers (VGAs). A broadband quarter-wave SPDT is designed with power handling capacity of 17 dBm and a state-of-the-art insertion loss of 2 dB at 140 GHz. The three-stage cascode LNA and PA and the two-stage phase-compensated VGA cover the entire D-band. In the receive mode, the module has a measured peak gain of 28.3 dB with a 3-dB bandwidth (BW) of 110–170 GHz, along with a minimum noise figure (NF) of 9 dB (at 120 GHz) and an IP1dB of −21 dBm. In the transmit mode, the peak gain is 22.4 dB within a 3-dB BW of 113–170 GHz, while the OP1dB is 7 dBm and the Psat 9.5 dBm at 140 GHz.
(31) Full D-Band Transmit-Receive Module for Phased Array Systems in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS
A. Karakuzulu, M.H. Eissa, D. Kissinger, A. Malignaggi
IEEE Solid-State Circuits Letters 4, 40 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/LSSC.2021.3054512, (6GKom)
This letter presents a D-band (110 to 170 GHz) transmit–receive module in 0.13- μm silicon–germanium (SiGe) BiCMOS for phased-array applications. The module includes single-pole double throw (SPDT) switches, a low noise amplifier (LNA), a power amplifier (PA), and two variable gain amplifiers (VGAs). A broadband quarter-wave SPDT is designed with power handling capacity of 17 dBm and a state-of-the-art insertion loss of 2 dB at 140 GHz. The three-stage cascode LNA and PA and the two-stage phase-compensated VGA cover the entire D-band. In the receive mode, the module has a measured peak gain of 28.3 dB with a 3-dB bandwidth (BW) of 110–170 GHz, along with a minimum noise figure (NF) of 9 dB (at 120 GHz) and an IP1dB of −21 dBm. In the transmit mode, the peak gain is 22.4 dB within a 3-dB BW of 113–170 GHz, while the OP1dB is 7 dBm and the Psat 9.5 dBm at 140 GHz.
(32) A Broadband 110-170 GHz Frequency Multiplier by 4 Chain with 8 dBm Output Power in 130 nm BiCMOS
A. Karakuzulu, M.H. Eissa, D. Kissinger, A. Malignaggi
Proc. 47th IEEE European Solid-State Circuits Conference (ESSCIRC 2021), 451 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/ESSCIRC53450.2021.9567797, (6GKom)
(33) A Broadband 110-170 GHz Frequency Multiplier by 4 Chain with 8 dBm Output Power in 130 nm BiCMOS
A. Karakuzulu, M.H. Eissa, D. Kissinger, A. Malignaggi
Proc. 47th IEEE European Solid-State Circuits Conference (ESSCIRC 2021), 451 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/ESSCIRC53450.2021.9567797, (Taranto)
(34) Millimeter-Wave and Terahertz Transceivers in SiGe BiCMOS Technologies
D. Kissinger, G. Kahmen, R. Weigel
IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques 69(10), 4541 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/TMTT.2021.3095235
This invited paper reviews the progress of silicon–germanium (SiGe) bipolar-complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (BiCMOS) technology-based integrated circuits (ICs) during the last two decades. Focus is set on various transceiver (TRX) realizations in the millimeter-wave range from 60 GHz and at terahertz (THz) frequencies above 300 GHz. This article discusses the development of SiGe technologies and ICs with the latter focusing on the commercially most important applications of radar and beyond 5G wireless communications. A variety of examples ranging from 77-GHz automotive radar to THz sensing as well as the beginnings of 60-GHz wireless communication up to THz chipsets for 100-Gb/s data transmission are recapitulated. This article closes with an outlook on emerging fields of research for future advancement of SiGe TRX performance.
(35) Monostatic and Bistatic G-Band BiCMOS Radar Transceivers with On-Chip Antennas and Tunable TX-to-RX Leakage Cancellation
M. Kucharski, W. Ahmad, H.J. Ng, D. Kissinger
IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits 56(3), 899 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/JSSC.2020.3041045, (EMPHASE)
This article presents G -band monostatic and bistatic radar transceivers (TRX) incorporating on-chip antennas for short-range high-precision applications. The circuits were fabricated using a silicon–germanium (SiGe) BiCMOS technology offering heterojunction bipolar transistors (HBTs) with fT /fMAX of 300/500 GHz. The monostatic TRX implements a tunable leakage canceller (LC) for enhanced transmitter (TX)-to-receiver (RX) leakage compensation and hence improved detectability of weakly reflecting near targets. A standalone monostatic TRX characterized at on-wafer level achieves 4-dBm maximum output power (PTX) and 19-dB peak conversion gain (GRX) with 3-dB bandwidths of 18 and 17GHz for the TX and the RX, respectively. The bistatic version reaches PTX of 13 dBm and GRX of 24 dB expanding the 3-dB bandwidths to 32 and 34 GHz for the TX and RX, respectively. A double-folded dipole antenna providing 5-dBi gain at 170 GHz was implemented using localized backside etching (LBE) and integrated with the transceivers. A frequency-modulated continuous-wave (FMCW) radar demonstrator incorporating an external phase-locked loop (PLL) was built to evaluate both TRXs and tunable leakage cancellation feature available in the monostatic variant. The maximum equivalent isotropic radiated power (EIRP), including on-chip antennas, is 8 and 18 dBm for the monostatic and bistatic TRX, respectively. The radars support sweep bandwidth up to 20 GHz reaching 2.1 cm spatial resolution. For a target at 1 m distance the measured ranging precision is 105 μm and 13 μm for monostatic and bistatic TRX, accordingly. Activation of leakage cancellation effectively suppresses close-in noise and extends the minimum detectable range remarkably.
(36) OFDM Transmission over a Short-Range 240 GHz Wireless Link: Performance Analysis
N. Maletic, M.H. Eissa, L. Lopacinski, V. Sark, J. Gutierrez Teran, E. Grass
Proc. 25th International ITG Workshop on Smart Antennas (WSA 2021), 71 (2021)
(5GENESIS)
(37) OFDM Transmission over a Short-Range 240 GHz Wireless Link: Performance Analysis
N. Maletic, M.H. Eissa, L. Lopacinski, V. Sark, J. Gutierrez Teran, E. Grass
Proc. 25th International ITG Workshop on Smart Antennas (WSA 2021), 71 (2021)
(IHP - Humboldt-Universität Joint-Lab)
(38) OFDM Transmission over a Short-Range 240 GHz Wireless Link: Performance Analysis
N. Maletic, M.H. Eissa, L. Lopacinski, V. Sark, J. Gutierrez Teran, E. Grass
Proc. 25th International ITG Workshop on Smart Antennas (WSA 2021), 71 (2021)
(5G-COMPLETE)
(39) High Efficiency, Good Phase Linearity 0.18 μm CMOS Power Amplifier for MBAN-UWB Applications
H. Mosalam, A. Gadallah
International Journal of Electrical and Computer Engineering Systems (IJECES) 12(3), 131 (2021)
DOI: 10.32985/ijeces.12.3.2
This paper presents the design of a 3.1-10.6 GHz class AB power amplifier (PA) suitable for medical body area network (MBAN) Ultra-Wide Band (UWB) applications in TSMC 0.18 µm technology. An optimization technique to simultaneously maximize power added efficiency(PAE) and minimize group delay variation is employed. Source and Load-pull contours are used to design inter and output stage matching circuits. The post-layout simulation results indicated that the designed PA has a maximum PAE of 32 % and an output 1-dB compression of 10 dBm at 4 GHz. In addition, a small group delay variation of ± 50 ps was realized over the whole required frequency band. Moreover, the proposed PA has small-signal power gain (S21) of 13 dB with ripple less than 1.2 dB over the frequency range between 3.1 GHz to 10.6 GHz, while consuming 36 mW.
(40) A D-Band Radio Module for Hybrid-Beamforming MIMO Communication and Localization
G. Panic, N. Maletic, V. Sark, A. Karakuzulu
Proc. 29th Telecommunications Forum (TELFOR 2021), (2021)
(6GKom)
(41) Design Considerations on the Realization of Signal Sources at mm-Waves
L. Pantoli, H. Bello, G. Leuzzi, H.J. Ng, D. Kissinger
Proc. 15th European Microwave Integrated Circuits Conference (EuMIC 2020), 129 (2021)
(42) A Portable Terahertz/Millimeter-Wave Spectrometer based on SiGe BiCMOS Technology for Gas Sensing Applications
N. Rothbart, K. Schmalz, H.-W. Hübers
Proc. 45th International Conference on Infrared, Millimeter, and Terahertz Waves (IRMMW-THz 2020), (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/IRMMW-THz46771.2020.9370917, (DFG-AGS)
(43) Dual-Band Transmitter and Receiver with Bowtie-Antenna in 0.13 μm SiGe BiCMOS for Gas Spectroscopy at 222-270 GHz
K. Schmalz, N. Rothbart, A. Glück, M.H. Eissa, T. Mausolf, E. Turkmen, S.B. Yilmaz, H.-W. Hübers
IEEE Access 9, 124805 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/ACCESS.2021.3110210, (DFG-AGS)
This paper presents a transmitter (TX) and a receiver (RX) with bowtie-antenna and silicon lens for gas spectroscopy at 222-270 GHz, which are fabricated in IHP’s 0.13 μm SiGe BiCMOS technology. The TX and RX use two integrated local oscillators for 222 – 256 GHz and 250 – 270 GHz, which are switched for dual-band operation. Due to its directivity of about 27 dBi, the single integrated bowtie-antenna with silicon lens enables an EIRP of about 25 dBm for the TX, and therefore a considerably higher EIRP for the 2-band TX compared to previously reported systems. The double sideband noise temperature of the RX is 20,000 K (18.5 dB noise figure) as measured by the Y-factor method. Absorption spectroscopy of gaseous methanol is used as measure for the performance of the gas spectroscopy system with TX- and RX-modules.
(44) Ultra-Wideband Silicon Photonic BiCMOS Coherent Receiver for O- and C-Band
P.M. Seiler, K. Voigt, St. Lischke, A. Malignaggi, L. Zimmermann
Proc. 47th European Conference on Optical Communications (ECOC 2021), (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/ECOC52684.2021.9606051, (ORIONAS)
(45) Towards Coherent O-Band Data Center Interconnects
P.M. Seiler, G. Georgieva, G. Winzer, A. Peczek, K. Voigt, St. Lischke, A. Fatemi, L. Zimmermann
Frontiers of Optoelectronics (2021)
DOI: 10.1007/s12200-021-1242-0, (DFG EPIDAC)
Upcoming generations of coherent intra-/inter data center interconnects currently lack a clear path towards a reduction of cost and power consumption, which are the driving factors for these data links. In this work, the trade-offs associated with a transition from coherent C-band to O-band silicon photonics are addressed and evaluated. The discussion includes the fundamental components of coherent data links, namely the optical components, fiber link and transceivers. As a major component of these links, a monolithic silicon photonic BiCMOS O-band coherent receiver is evaluated for its potential performance and compared to an analogous C-band device in the same technology.
(46) Ultra-Wideband Silicon Photonic BiCMOS Coherent Receiver for O- and C-Band
P.M. Seiler, K. Voigt, St. Lischke, A. Malignaggi, L. Zimmermann
Proc. 47th European Conference on Optical Communications (ECOC 2021), (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/ECOC52684.2021.9606051, (DFG EPIDAC)
(47) Ultra-Wideband Silicon Photonic BiCMOS Coherent Receiver for O- and C-Band
P.M. Seiler, K. Voigt, St. Lischke, A. Malignaggi, L. Zimmermann
Proc. 47th European Conference on Optical Communications (ECOC 2021), (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/ECOC52684.2021.9606051, (PEARLS)
(48) Towards Coherent O-Band Data Center Interconnects
P.M. Seiler, G. Georgieva, G. Winzer, A. Peczek, K. Voigt, St. Lischke, A. Fatemi, L. Zimmermann
Frontiers of Optoelectronics (2021)
DOI: 10.1007/s12200-021-1242-0, (ORIONAS)
Upcoming generations of coherent intra-/inter data center interconnects currently lack a clear path towards a reduction of cost and power consumption, which are the driving factors for these data links. In this work, the trade-offs associated with a transition from coherent C-band to O-band silicon photonics are addressed and evaluated. The discussion includes the fundamental components of coherent data links, namely the optical components, fiber link and transceivers. As a major component of these links, a monolithic silicon photonic BiCMOS O-band coherent receiver is evaluated for its potential performance and compared to an analogous C-band device in the same technology.
(49) Towards Coherent O-Band Data Center Interconnects
P.M. Seiler, G. Georgieva, G. Winzer, A. Peczek, K. Voigt, St. Lischke, A. Fatemi, L. Zimmermann
Frontiers of Optoelectronics (2021)
DOI: 10.1007/s12200-021-1242-0, (PEARLS)
Upcoming generations of coherent intra-/inter data center interconnects currently lack a clear path towards a reduction of cost and power consumption, which are the driving factors for these data links. In this work, the trade-offs associated with a transition from coherent C-band to O-band silicon photonics are addressed and evaluated. The discussion includes the fundamental components of coherent data links, namely the optical components, fiber link and transceivers. As a major component of these links, a monolithic silicon photonic BiCMOS O-band coherent receiver is evaluated for its potential performance and compared to an analogous C-band device in the same technology.
(50) The H2020-SPACE-SIPHODIAS Project: Space-Grade Opto-Electronic Interfaces for Photonic Digital and Analogue Very-High-Throughput Satellite Payloads
I. Sourikopoulos, L. Stampoulidis, S. Giannakopoulos, H. Zirath, P. Ostrovskyy, G. Fischer, M. Faugeron, A. Maho, L. Cyrille, G. Bouisset, N. Venet, M. Sotom, M. Irion, F. Schaub, J.Barbero, D. Lopez, R.G. Walker, Y. Zhou, I. Oxtoby, S. Duffy
Proc. SPIE International Conference on Space Optics (ICSO 2021), 11852, 1185254 (2021)
DOI: 10.1117/12.2599927, (SIPhoDiAS)
(51) A V-Band Low-Power Compact LNA in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS Technology
B. Sütbas, H.J. Ng, J. Wessel, A. Koelpin, G. Kahmen
IEEE Microwave and Wireless Components Letters 31(5), 497 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/LMWC.2021.3062983, (iCampus)
This letter presents the design of a V-band low-power compact low-noise amplifier in a 130 nm SiGe BiCMOS technology. For the low-power and low-noise requirements, transistors need to operate with low voltage supply and low current density which comes at the cost of lower gain per stage. We use a technique to cancel the Miller capacitance in a single-stage differential amplifier and achieve high-gain, low-power, and low-noise simultaneously. The circuit topology is analyzed and the transistor core layout as well as the matching network design considerations are discussed. The measured circuit shows a peak gain of 14.1 dB in a 3 dB bandwidth from 44 GHz to 67 GHz while consuming 5.1 mW. Experimental results show an output power of 7.1 dBm at 1 dB compression with an associated power-added efficiency of 30%. The simulated noise figure is 3.3 dB at the center frequency. To the best of our knowledge, the highest figure of merit among V-band LNAs based on silicon is reported.
(52) Accurate Isolation Networks in Quadrature Couplers and Power Dividers
B. Sütbas, E. Ozbay, A. Atalar
IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems II 68(4), 1148 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/TCSII.2020.3035667
When quadrature couplers and power dividers are implemented in integrated circuits, accurate isolation networks can not be realized due to the nonideal resistors and the process variations. We present an isolation network design technique which cancels the resistor parasitic effects and also increases the tolerance to variations in the resistance values. A Lange coupler and a power divider are designed at Ka-band using the proposed accurate and process-tolerant isolation networks. The improvement is analytically shown and empirically verified with our in-house GaN-based microstrip MMIC process. For the coupler, the measured return losses and isolation are better than 20 dB from DC to 40 GHz. The power divider achieves 20 dB return losses and isolation in a fractional bandwidth of 50%. Both devices maintain 20 dB performance even when the variation in sheet resistance is as high as 30%.
(53) 240-GHz Reflectometer-Based Dielectric Sensor with Integrated Transducers in a 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS Technology
D. Wang, M.H. Eissa, K. Schmalz, T. Kämpfe, D. Kissinger
IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques 69(1), 1027 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/TMTT.2020.3038382
This article presents a reflectometer-based on-chip dielectric sensor with integrated transducers at 240 GHz. The chip simplifies the measurement of a vector network analyzer (VNA) to sense the incident and reflected waves by using two heterodyne mixer-based receivers with a dielectric sensing element. Radio frequency (RF) and local oscillator (LO) submillimeter waves are generated by two frequency multiplier chains, respectively. Two back-to-back identical differential side-coupled directive couplers are proposed to separate the incident and reflected signals and couple them to mixers. Both transmission line and coplanar stripline transducers are proposed and integrated with reflectometer to investigate the sensitivity of dielectric sensors. The latter leads to a larger power variation of the reflectometer by providing more sufficient operating bands for the magnitude and phase slope of S11. The readout of the transducers upon exposure to liquids is performed by the measurement of their reflected signals using two external excitation sources. The experimental dielectric sensing is demonstrated by using binary methanol–ethanol mixture placed on the proposed on-chip dielectric sensor in the assembled printed circuit board. It enables a maximum 8 dB of the power difference between the incident and reflected channels on the measurement of liquid solvents. Both chips occupy an area of 4.03 mm2 and consume 560 mW. Along with a wide operational frequency range from 200 to 240 GHz, this simplified one-port-VNA-based on-chip device makes it feasible for the use of handle product and suitable for the submillimeter-wave dielectric spectroscopy applications.
(54) SiGe HBTs and BiCMOS Technology for Present and Future Millimeter-Wave Systems
T. Zimmer, J. Böck, F. Buchali, P. Chevalier, M. Collisi, B. Debaillie, M. Deng, P. Ferrari, S. Fregonese, C. Gaquiere, H. Ghanem, H. Hettrich, A. Karakuzulu, T. Maiwald, M. Margalef-Rovira, C. Maye, M. Möller, A. Mukherjee, H. Rücker, P. Sakalas, R. Schmid, K. Schneider, K. Schuh, W. Templ, A. Visweswaran, T. Zwick
IEEE Journal of Microwaves 1(1), 288 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/JMW.2020.3031831
This paper gives an overall picture from BiCMOS technologies up to THz systems integration, which were developed in the European Research project TARANTO. The European high performance BiCMOS technology platforms are presented, which have special advantages for addressing applications in the submillimeter-wave and THz range. The status of the technology process is reviewed and the integration challenges are examined. A detailed discussion on millimeter-wave characterization and modeling is given with emphasis on harmonic distortion analysis, power and noise figure measurements up to 190 GHz and 325 GHz respectively and S-parameter measurements up to 500 GHz. The results of electrical compact models of active (HBTs) and passive components are presented together with benchmark circuit blocks for model verification. BiCMOS-enabled systems and applications with focus on future wireless communication systems and high-speed optical transmission systems up to resulting net data rates of 1.55 Tbit/s are presented.
W. Ahmad, J. Wessel, H.J. Ng, D. Kissinger
Proc. IEEE Global Conference on Artificial Intelligence & Internet of Things (IEEE GCAIoT 2020), (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/GCAIoT51063.2020.9345836, (Total Resilience)
(2) Multimode W-Band and D-Band MIMO Scalable Radar Platform
W. Ahmad, M. Kucharski, A. Ergintav, S. Abouzaid, J. Wessel, H.J. Ng, D. Kissinger
IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques 69(1), 1036 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/TMTT.2020.3038532, (Total Resilience)
This article demonstrates the implementation of 80- and 160-GHz four-channel radar sensors employing the modular scalable platform based on a single relaxed 40-GHz local oscillator and cascadable transceiver chips. The first two channels synthesize 2x2 multiple-input–multiple-output (MIMO) radar at 80 GHz with onboard 8x1 patch arrays for enhanced angular resolution, whereas the other two channels employ 160-GHz system-on-chip transceivers with integrated wideband 6-dBi micromachined on-chip antennas for enhanced range resolution. Configurable modulators in each transceiver offer ranging, direction-of-arrival (DoA) estimation, velocity/vibrations measurement, and data communication applications. Frequency-modulated continuous wave (FMCW) is demonstrated with 4-/8-GHz sweep bandwidth at 80/160 GHz corresponding to 3.75-/1.875-cm range resolution. Chirp-sequence FMCW is employed to measure the heartbeat rate of a human, and 78 bpm is measured with 0.06-Hz Doppler resolution. Mechanical vibration rate from a loudspeaker is measured using the CW radar technique, whereas phase-modulated continuous wave is employed for distant selective vibrations measurement. Time-division multiplexing MIMO radar is configured at 80 GHz in a multitarget scenario for DoA estimation, and the targets are distinguished with 25° effective angular resolution. Frequency-division multiplexing MIMO radar technique is demonstrated based on ΔΣ -modulation and binary phase shift keying (BPSK) modulators. Furthermore, the 10-Mb/s BPSK data communication link is evaluated at 80 GHz with a 20-dB signal-to-noise ratio at 1 m. The 160-GHz vector modulators offer additional modulations.
(3) A Planar Differential Wide Fan-Beam Antenna Array Architecture: Modular High-Gain Array for 79-GHz Multiple-Input, Multiple-Output Radar Applications
W. Ahmad, M. Kucharski, A. Ergintav, H.J. Ng, D. Kissinger
IEEE Antennas and Propagation Magazine 63(4), 21 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/MAP.2020.2976913, (EMPHASE)
This article proposes a planar, wide fan-beam differential, corporate-fed patch antenna array architecture for automotive radar applications that mitigates the multipath and multiple reflections effects of its conventional series-fed counterpart. The proposed array architecture offers the merits of wide beamwidth in azimuth, high gain, yet, is applicable in multiple-input, multipleoutput (MIMO) configurations. Two 8 × 1 arrays were developed, built, and measured at the 77-81-GHz band. In design 1, the width of driven 50-Ω patch is optimized for the widest beamwidth and the array feeding network employs impedance transformers for matching. The experimental verification showed an azimuthal half-power beamwidth (HPBW) of 70° with a 15-dBi gain. In design 2, the interelement spacing is increased for wider beamwidth and less mutual coupling, and the feeding network transformers were eliminated to mitigate scattering and radar cross section (RCS) in turn. A 130° azimuthal HPBW was measured. A 2 × 2 MIMO radar hardware was built, employing the proposed array architecture on a scalable radar platform to validate its applicability in MIMO radars. For the sake of comparison, another reference demonstrator with conventional series-fed arrays was built. Frequency-modulated continuous-wave (FMCW) radar range and angle measurements were performed where multiplereflections and multipath effects were mitigated.
(4) Contactless Vital Signs Monitoring by mmWave Efficient Modulatorless Tracking Radar
W. Ahmad, J. Lu, B. Sütbas, H.J. Ng, D. Kissinger
Proc. IEEE Global Conference on Artificial Intelligence & Internet of Things (IEEE GCAIoT 2021), (2021)
(Benchmarking Circuits/Radar Systems)
(5) A Planar Differential Wide Fan-Beam Antenna Array Architecture: Modular High-Gain Array for 79-GHz Multiple-Input, Multiple-Output Radar Applications
W. Ahmad, M. Kucharski, A. Ergintav, H.J. Ng, D. Kissinger
IEEE Antennas and Propagation Magazine 63(4), 21 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/MAP.2020.2976913, (radar4FAD)
This article proposes a planar, wide fan-beam differential, corporate-fed patch antenna array architecture for automotive radar applications that mitigates the multipath and multiple reflections effects of its conventional series-fed counterpart. The proposed array architecture offers the merits of wide beamwidth in azimuth, high gain, yet, is applicable in multiple-input, multipleoutput (MIMO) configurations. Two 8 × 1 arrays were developed, built, and measured at the 77-81-GHz band. In design 1, the width of driven 50-Ω patch is optimized for the widest beamwidth and the array feeding network employs impedance transformers for matching. The experimental verification showed an azimuthal half-power beamwidth (HPBW) of 70° with a 15-dBi gain. In design 2, the interelement spacing is increased for wider beamwidth and less mutual coupling, and the feeding network transformers were eliminated to mitigate scattering and radar cross section (RCS) in turn. A 130° azimuthal HPBW was measured. A 2 × 2 MIMO radar hardware was built, employing the proposed array architecture on a scalable radar platform to validate its applicability in MIMO radars. For the sake of comparison, another reference demonstrator with conventional series-fed arrays was built. Frequency-modulated continuous-wave (FMCW) radar range and angle measurements were performed where multiplereflections and multipath effects were mitigated.
(6) A D-Band Stacked Patch Antenna with Air Trenches in BiCMOS Technology
W. Ahmad, S. Schmitz, H.J. Ng, D. Kissinger
Proc. IEEE International Symposium on Antennas and Propagation (APS 2021), 1637 (2021)
(7) Experimental Evaluation of Millimeter-Wave FMCW Radar Ranging Precision
W. Ahmad, A. Ergintav, J. Wessel, D. Kissinger, H.J. Ng
Proc. IEEE Radio & Wireless Week (RWW 2021), 70 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/RWS50353.2021.9360327, (Total Resilience)
(8) Scalable 2×2 MIMO Radar Demonstrator with BPSK Data Communications at 79 GHz
W. Ahmad, A. Ergintav, M. Kucharski, D. Kissinger, H.J. Ng
Proc. 17th European Radar Conference (EuRAD 2020), 234 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/EuRAD48048.2021.00067, (EMPHASE)
(9) Scalable 2×2 MIMO Radar Demonstrator with BPSK Data Communications at 79 GHz
W. Ahmad, A. Ergintav, M. Kucharski, D. Kissinger, H.J. Ng
Proc. 17th European Radar Conference (EuRAD 2020), 234 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/EuRAD48048.2021.00067, (radar4FAD)
(10) A V-Band Vector Modulator based Phase Shifter in BiCMOS 0.13 μm SiGe Technology
K.E. Drenkhahn, A. Gadallah, A. Franzese, Ch. Wagner, A. Malignaggi
Proc. 15th European Microwave Integrated Circuits Conference (EuMIC 2020), 65 (2021)
(11) A Monolithic-Integrated Broadband Low-Noise Optical Receiver with Automatic Gain Control in 0.25μm SiGe BiCMOS
G. Dziallas, A. Fatemi, A. Malignaggi, G. Kahmen
Proc. 21st IEEE Topical Meetings on Silicon Monolithic Integrated Circuits in RF Systems (SiRF 2021), 1 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/SiRF51851.2021.9383400
In this paper we present a broadband low-noise monolithic-integrated silicon photonic receiver with automatic gain control that shows state-of-the-art performance. The electronic and photonic components are fabricated monolithically on one chip using IHP's 0.25μm SiGe BiCMOS EPIC technology. The optical receiver features a high tunable transimpedance gain of 66 dBΩ at a large opto-electrical BW of 34 GHz, and an input-referred noise current of of 2.81 μArms while consuming 205 mW of power. Comparing key performance metrics and the functional complexity of similar devices found in the literature, the optical receiver presented in this work achieves an overall superior performance.
(12) A -115 dBc/Hz Integrated Optoelectronic Oscillator in a BiCMOS Silicon Photonic Technology
G. Dziallas, A. Fatemi, A. Peczek, M. Tarar, D. Kissinger, L. Zimmermann, A. Malignaggi, G. Kahmen
Proc. IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium (IMS 2021), 23 (2021)
(13) A 97 GHz 66 dBΩ SiGe BiCMOS Low-Noise Transimpedance Amplifier for Optical Receivers
G. Dziallas, A. Fatemi, A. Malignaggi, G. Kahmen
IEEE Solid-State Circuits Letters 31(12),1295 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/LMWC.2021.3103106
In this paper a transimpedance amplifier is presented, which features a bandwidth of 97 GHz, 66 dBΩ maximum transimpedance gain, and 6.3 pA/√Hz integrated noise current density, operating at up to 120 Gb/s and consuming only 145mW. Reaching a higher bandwidth at a noise performance comparable to the state-of-the-art, is the novelty of this work. It was achieved by combining a low-bandwidth input stage, reducing the total noise, and a multi-stage post equalization. The gain peaking technique through cascading emitter follower stages is employed in a broadband transimpedance amplifier as a post equalizer. To the best of the author’s knowledge, the presented design shows the best performance in terms of overall gain, bandwidth, and noise for the lowest power consumption compared to state-of-the-art designs.
(14) A 96-Gb/s PAM-4 Receiver using Time-Interleaved Converters in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS
A. Fatemi, G. Kahmen, A. Malignaggi
IEEE Solid-State Circuits Letters 4, 60 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/LSSC.2021.3059254
This letter describes a 96-Gb/s PAM-4 receiver, suitable for silicon photonics application, designed and fabricated in a 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS technology. The low-power receiver includes a TIA and a VGA, two slices of time-interleaved track and hold amplifier and two-bit folding ADC circuits, and multiplexers to deliver full-rate decoded NRZ output signals. The track and hold amplifier is based on a switched emitter–follower topology optimized for low-power operation to sample at 24 GSample/s. Half-rate PAM-4 to NRZ converters are implemented as a bandwidth-enhanced two-bit folding ADC in order to consume less power compared to flash competitors. The receiver chip consumes 545 mW, leading to an energy efficiency of 5.67 mW/Gb/s, which is one of the best among the state-of-the-art works at this data-rate.
(15) A Multi-Mode Linear Optical Modulator Driver Circuit in 130 nm SiGe BiCMOS Technology
A. Fatemi, G. Kahmen, A. Malignaggi
Proc. IEEE BiCMOS and Compound Semiconductor Integrated Circuits and Technology Symposium (BCICTS 2021), (2021)
(16) 2x4 VGA-Less Bidirectional Dual-Polarization 28 GHz Beamformer in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS
A. Franzese, N. Maletic, M.H. Eissa, R. Negra, A. Malignaggi
IEEE Microwave and Wireless Components Letters 31(8), 981 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/LMWC.2021.3087245, (Taranto)
This letter presents a dual-polarization beamformer chip for fifth-generation (5G) applications. The chip leverages a vector-sum phase shifter (VSPS) approach and single-ended design, allowing a reduced control circuitry complexity. The use of the VSPS translates in both phase shift and gain control, as shown in the system analysis. This beamformer is suitable for four dual-polarized antennas, achieving high gain control for each element. The performance can be summarized as a 1-dB compression point of 11dBm, while having an rms phase and amplitude error lower than 0.5° and 0.4 dB, respectively, at the maximum constant magnitude gain circle. Moreover, it is shown that the design can afford tapering despite relying only on the VSPS for gain control.
(17) Vector Modulator Phase Shifters in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS Technology for 5G Applications
A. Franzese, M.H. Eissa, D. Kissinger, A. Malignaggi
Proc. IEEE Radio and Wireless Week (RWW 2021), 64 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/RWS50353.2021.9360395, (Taranto)
(18) A 4-Channel V-Band Beamformer Featuring a Switchless PALNA for Scalable Phased Array Systems
A. Gadallah, A. Franzese, M.H. Eissa, K.E. Drenkhahn, D. Kissinger, A. Malignaggi
Proc. IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium (IMS 2021), 839 (2021)
(19) A 112 Gb/s Radiation-Hardened Mid-Board Optical Transceiver in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS for Intra-Satellite Links
S. Giannakopoulos, I. Sourikopoulos, L. Stampoulidis, P. Ostrovskyy, F. Teply, K. Tittelbach-Helmrich, G. Panic, G. Fischer, A. Grabowski, H. Zirath, P. Ayzac, N. Venet, A. Maho, M. Sotom, S. Jones, G. Wood, I. Oxtoby
Frontiers in Physics 9, 672941 (2021)
DOI: 10.3389/fphy.2021.672941, (SIPhoDiAS)
We report the design of a 112 Gb/s radiation-hardened (RH) optical transceiver applicable to intra-satellite optical interconnects. The transceiver chipset comprises a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) driver and transimpedance amplifier (TIA) integrated circuits (ICs) with four channels per die, which are adapted for a flip-chip assembly into a mid-board optics (MBO) optical transceiver module. The ICs are designed in the IHP 130 nm SiGe BiCMOS process (SG13RH) leveraging proven robustness in radiation environments and high-speed performance featuring bipolar transistors (HBTs) with fT/fMAX values of up to 250/340 GHz. Besides hardening by technology, radiation-hardened-by-design (RHBD) components are used, including enclosed layout transistors (ELTs) and digital logic cells. We report design features of the ICs and the module, and provide performance data from post-layout simulations. We present radiation evaluation data on analog devices and digital cells, which indicate that the transceiver ICs will reliably operate at typical total ionizing dose (TID) levels and single event latch-up thresholds found in geostationary satellites.
(20) Heterodyne Spectroscopy with a 225 – 255 GHz SiGe BiCMOS Receiver for Space Applications
A. Glück, K. Schmalz, N. Rothbart, H.-W. Hübers
Proc. 46th International Conference on Infrared, Millimeter, and Terahertz Waves (IRMMW-THz 2021), (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/IRMMW-THz50926.2021.9567358, (DFG-AGS)
(21) Low-Complexity Subspace Method for I/Q Imbalance Estimation in Low-IF Receivers with Unknown Fading
A. Gomaa, A. Elezabi, M.H. Eissa
Transactions on Emerging Telecommunications Technologies 32(3), e4181 (2021)
DOI: 10.1002/ett.4181
In low-intermediate-frequency (low-IF) receivers, I/Q imbalance (IQI) causes interference on the desired signal from the blocker signal transmitted over the image frequencies. Conventional approaches for pilot-aided IQI estimation in zero-IF receivers are not applicable to low-IF receivers, where the image interference is unknown at the receiver. We propose a low-complexity subspace method for the estimation of IQI parameters in low-IF receivers in the presence of unknown fading, where we utilize knowledge of the pilots to null out the signal part. This reduces the variance of the sample mean estimate and leads to faster convergence. The proposed nulling method offers significantly better image rejection at low input signal-to-interference power ratio (SIR) than existing methods. Performance analysis of the output SIR as well as computer simulations are also provided.
(22) A 440 – 540-GHz Transmitter in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS
A. Güner, T. Mausolf, J. Wessel, D. Kissinger, K. Schmalz
Proc. IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium (IMS 2021), (2021)
(DFG-AGS)
(23) A 440 - 540-GHz Transmitter in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS
A. Güner, T. Mausolf, J. Wessel, D. Kissinger, K. Schmalz
IEEE Microwave and Wireless Components Letters 31(6), 779 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/LMWC.2021.3060820
This letter presents a four-way combined frequency multiplier chain (FMC), which converts a single-ended 110–135-GHz input signal to a differential 440–540-GHz output signal. The four-way combined FMC uses four identical FMCs, which consist of two amplification and two frequency doubling stages. These blocks are designed with optimized parameters to be used as the transmitter of a gas spectroscopy system at 440–540 GHz. The four-way combined FMC has 0.5 dBm measured maximum output power at 450 GHz and −4.5 dBm at 500 GHz
(24) A Novel Approach to Fractional-N PLLs Generating Ultra-Fast Low-Noise Chirps for FMCW Radar
F. Herzel, A. Ergintav, G. Fischer
Integration, the VLSI Journal 76, 139 (2021)
DOI: 10.1016/j.vlsi.2020.09.009, (Benchmarking Circuits/Radar Systems)
This paper presents a novel approach to generate ultra-fast chirps for frequency-modulated continuous wave (FMCW) radar systems. A symmetric triangular frequency chirp is analyzed. A very large loop bandwidth could minimize the PLL settling time, but would result in a high phase noise and in large spurs. This work minimizes the settling times without using an excessive loop bandwidth. Rather, the initial condition of the dynamic phase error after the turn-around points (TAPs) is minimized by switching the reference phase in conjunction with one of the two methods: Firstly, a well-defined offset current is added to the charge pump output current, and its sign is switched at the TAPs. Secondly, a binary weighted loop filter capacitor array is used in the loop filter, and the total capacitance is adapted to the slope of the frequency sweep. While the first method lends itself to a fully integrated PLL design including the loop filter, the second method achieves a lower in-band phase noise.
(25) Transfer Printable 64 Gbps Lumped Driver for Optical Communication
M. Inac, A. Fatemi, F. Gerfers, A. Malignaggi
Proc. 9. MikroSystemTechnik Kongress (MST 2021), 547 (2021)
(CALADAN)
(26) Performance Comparison of Broadband Traveling Wave Amplifiers in 130 nm SiGe:C SG13G2 and SG13G3 BiCMOS Technologies
M. Inac, A. Fatemi, F. Korndörfer, H. Rücker, F. Gerfers, A. Malignaggi
Proc. IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium (IMS 2021), (2021)
(27) Compact and Transfer Printable 64 Gb/s Differential Transimpedance Amplifier in 130-nm BiCMOS
M. Inac, A. Fatemi, F. Gerfers, A. Malignaggi
Proc. 50th European Microwave Week (EuMW 2021), 1166 (2021)
(CALADAN)
(28) Performance Comparison of Broadband Traveling Wave Amplifiers in 130 nm SiGe:C SG13G2 and SG13G3 BiCMOS Technologies
M. Inac, A. Fatemi, F. Korndörfer, H. Rücker, F. Gerfers, A. Malignaggi
IEEE Microwave and Wireless Components Letters 31(6), 744 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/LMWC.2021.3067099
In this letter, a comparison between two ultra-wideband traveling wave amplifiers (TWAs) designed in two different SiGe:C technologies consuming only 500 mW is presented. The first design utilizes the IHP’s 130-nm SiGe:C BiCMOS SG13G2 technology, featuring fT /fMAX =300 /500 GHz, while the second design uses the IHP’s 130-nm SiGe:C BiCMOS SG13G3 technology, featuring fT /fMAX =470/700 GHz. For a fair comparison, the same architecture has been used for the design of both amplifiers. On-wafer measurements of the SG13G2 amplifier show 15.3 dB gain and 87.4 GHz bandwidth, while the design in SG13G3 technology reaches 16.9 dB gain and more than 110 GHz bandwidth. There is a 1% difference in the output power efficiency where it is 4.1% and 5.1% on SG13G2 and SG13G3 technologies, respectively. In both cases, time-domain measurements show a reliable 120 Gbps non-return-to-zero (NRZ) operation. The presented SG13G3-based TWA shows state-of-the-art performance among similar SiGe BiCMOS amplifiers.
(29) A Broadband 110-170-GHz Stagger-Tuned Power Amplifier with 13.5-dBm Psat in 130-nm SiGe
A. Karakuzulu, M.H. Eissa, D. Kissinger, A. Malignaggi
IEEE Microwave and Wireless Components Letters 31(1), 56 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/LMWC.2020.3036937, (Taranto)
This letter presents a fully integrated three-stage single-ended D-band power amplifier (PA) designed in 0.13-μm silicon-germanium (SiGe) BiCMOS technology. Several bandwidth extension techniques and matching networks are mutually exploited to maximize Bandwidth (BW) performance while assuring unconditional stability. Its measured 3-dB bandwidth covers the entire D-band (110-170 GHz). The PA has a small-signal peak gain of 21 dB at 151 GHz. Its saturated output power (Psat) in the D-band varies from 11.8 to 13.9 dBm and its output referred 1-dB compression point (OP1 dB) from 9.2 to 12.5 dBm within the D-band. The presented amplifier occupies 0.65x0.47 mm2 (including pads) and draws a current of 115 mA from a 3.3-V supply. To the best of our knowledge, these performances represent the state of the art in silicon technology with a minimum (Psat) of 11.8 dBm and (OP1 dB) of 9.2 dBm covering the entire D-band.
(30) Full D-Band Transmit-Receive Module for Phased Array Systems in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS
A. Karakuzulu, M.H. Eissa, D. Kissinger, A. Malignaggi
IEEE Solid-State Circuits Letters 4, 40 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/LSSC.2021.3054512, (Taranto)
This letter presents a D-band (110 to 170 GHz) transmit–receive module in 0.13- μm silicon–germanium (SiGe) BiCMOS for phased-array applications. The module includes single-pole double throw (SPDT) switches, a low noise amplifier (LNA), a power amplifier (PA), and two variable gain amplifiers (VGAs). A broadband quarter-wave SPDT is designed with power handling capacity of 17 dBm and a state-of-the-art insertion loss of 2 dB at 140 GHz. The three-stage cascode LNA and PA and the two-stage phase-compensated VGA cover the entire D-band. In the receive mode, the module has a measured peak gain of 28.3 dB with a 3-dB bandwidth (BW) of 110–170 GHz, along with a minimum noise figure (NF) of 9 dB (at 120 GHz) and an IP1dB of −21 dBm. In the transmit mode, the peak gain is 22.4 dB within a 3-dB BW of 113–170 GHz, while the OP1dB is 7 dBm and the Psat 9.5 dBm at 140 GHz.
(31) Full D-Band Transmit-Receive Module for Phased Array Systems in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS
A. Karakuzulu, M.H. Eissa, D. Kissinger, A. Malignaggi
IEEE Solid-State Circuits Letters 4, 40 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/LSSC.2021.3054512, (6GKom)
This letter presents a D-band (110 to 170 GHz) transmit–receive module in 0.13- μm silicon–germanium (SiGe) BiCMOS for phased-array applications. The module includes single-pole double throw (SPDT) switches, a low noise amplifier (LNA), a power amplifier (PA), and two variable gain amplifiers (VGAs). A broadband quarter-wave SPDT is designed with power handling capacity of 17 dBm and a state-of-the-art insertion loss of 2 dB at 140 GHz. The three-stage cascode LNA and PA and the two-stage phase-compensated VGA cover the entire D-band. In the receive mode, the module has a measured peak gain of 28.3 dB with a 3-dB bandwidth (BW) of 110–170 GHz, along with a minimum noise figure (NF) of 9 dB (at 120 GHz) and an IP1dB of −21 dBm. In the transmit mode, the peak gain is 22.4 dB within a 3-dB BW of 113–170 GHz, while the OP1dB is 7 dBm and the Psat 9.5 dBm at 140 GHz.
(32) A Broadband 110-170 GHz Frequency Multiplier by 4 Chain with 8 dBm Output Power in 130 nm BiCMOS
A. Karakuzulu, M.H. Eissa, D. Kissinger, A. Malignaggi
Proc. 47th IEEE European Solid-State Circuits Conference (ESSCIRC 2021), 451 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/ESSCIRC53450.2021.9567797, (6GKom)
(33) A Broadband 110-170 GHz Frequency Multiplier by 4 Chain with 8 dBm Output Power in 130 nm BiCMOS
A. Karakuzulu, M.H. Eissa, D. Kissinger, A. Malignaggi
Proc. 47th IEEE European Solid-State Circuits Conference (ESSCIRC 2021), 451 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/ESSCIRC53450.2021.9567797, (Taranto)
(34) Millimeter-Wave and Terahertz Transceivers in SiGe BiCMOS Technologies
D. Kissinger, G. Kahmen, R. Weigel
IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques 69(10), 4541 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/TMTT.2021.3095235
This invited paper reviews the progress of silicon–germanium (SiGe) bipolar-complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (BiCMOS) technology-based integrated circuits (ICs) during the last two decades. Focus is set on various transceiver (TRX) realizations in the millimeter-wave range from 60 GHz and at terahertz (THz) frequencies above 300 GHz. This article discusses the development of SiGe technologies and ICs with the latter focusing on the commercially most important applications of radar and beyond 5G wireless communications. A variety of examples ranging from 77-GHz automotive radar to THz sensing as well as the beginnings of 60-GHz wireless communication up to THz chipsets for 100-Gb/s data transmission are recapitulated. This article closes with an outlook on emerging fields of research for future advancement of SiGe TRX performance.
(35) Monostatic and Bistatic G-Band BiCMOS Radar Transceivers with On-Chip Antennas and Tunable TX-to-RX Leakage Cancellation
M. Kucharski, W. Ahmad, H.J. Ng, D. Kissinger
IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits 56(3), 899 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/JSSC.2020.3041045, (EMPHASE)
This article presents G -band monostatic and bistatic radar transceivers (TRX) incorporating on-chip antennas for short-range high-precision applications. The circuits were fabricated using a silicon–germanium (SiGe) BiCMOS technology offering heterojunction bipolar transistors (HBTs) with fT /fMAX of 300/500 GHz. The monostatic TRX implements a tunable leakage canceller (LC) for enhanced transmitter (TX)-to-receiver (RX) leakage compensation and hence improved detectability of weakly reflecting near targets. A standalone monostatic TRX characterized at on-wafer level achieves 4-dBm maximum output power (PTX) and 19-dB peak conversion gain (GRX) with 3-dB bandwidths of 18 and 17GHz for the TX and the RX, respectively. The bistatic version reaches PTX of 13 dBm and GRX of 24 dB expanding the 3-dB bandwidths to 32 and 34 GHz for the TX and RX, respectively. A double-folded dipole antenna providing 5-dBi gain at 170 GHz was implemented using localized backside etching (LBE) and integrated with the transceivers. A frequency-modulated continuous-wave (FMCW) radar demonstrator incorporating an external phase-locked loop (PLL) was built to evaluate both TRXs and tunable leakage cancellation feature available in the monostatic variant. The maximum equivalent isotropic radiated power (EIRP), including on-chip antennas, is 8 and 18 dBm for the monostatic and bistatic TRX, respectively. The radars support sweep bandwidth up to 20 GHz reaching 2.1 cm spatial resolution. For a target at 1 m distance the measured ranging precision is 105 μm and 13 μm for monostatic and bistatic TRX, accordingly. Activation of leakage cancellation effectively suppresses close-in noise and extends the minimum detectable range remarkably.
(36) OFDM Transmission over a Short-Range 240 GHz Wireless Link: Performance Analysis
N. Maletic, M.H. Eissa, L. Lopacinski, V. Sark, J. Gutierrez Teran, E. Grass
Proc. 25th International ITG Workshop on Smart Antennas (WSA 2021), 71 (2021)
(5GENESIS)
(37) OFDM Transmission over a Short-Range 240 GHz Wireless Link: Performance Analysis
N. Maletic, M.H. Eissa, L. Lopacinski, V. Sark, J. Gutierrez Teran, E. Grass
Proc. 25th International ITG Workshop on Smart Antennas (WSA 2021), 71 (2021)
(IHP - Humboldt-Universität Joint-Lab)
(38) OFDM Transmission over a Short-Range 240 GHz Wireless Link: Performance Analysis
N. Maletic, M.H. Eissa, L. Lopacinski, V. Sark, J. Gutierrez Teran, E. Grass
Proc. 25th International ITG Workshop on Smart Antennas (WSA 2021), 71 (2021)
(5G-COMPLETE)
(39) High Efficiency, Good Phase Linearity 0.18 μm CMOS Power Amplifier for MBAN-UWB Applications
H. Mosalam, A. Gadallah
International Journal of Electrical and Computer Engineering Systems (IJECES) 12(3), 131 (2021)
DOI: 10.32985/ijeces.12.3.2
This paper presents the design of a 3.1-10.6 GHz class AB power amplifier (PA) suitable for medical body area network (MBAN) Ultra-Wide Band (UWB) applications in TSMC 0.18 µm technology. An optimization technique to simultaneously maximize power added efficiency(PAE) and minimize group delay variation is employed. Source and Load-pull contours are used to design inter and output stage matching circuits. The post-layout simulation results indicated that the designed PA has a maximum PAE of 32 % and an output 1-dB compression of 10 dBm at 4 GHz. In addition, a small group delay variation of ± 50 ps was realized over the whole required frequency band. Moreover, the proposed PA has small-signal power gain (S21) of 13 dB with ripple less than 1.2 dB over the frequency range between 3.1 GHz to 10.6 GHz, while consuming 36 mW.
(40) A D-Band Radio Module for Hybrid-Beamforming MIMO Communication and Localization
G. Panic, N. Maletic, V. Sark, A. Karakuzulu
Proc. 29th Telecommunications Forum (TELFOR 2021), (2021)
(6GKom)
(41) Design Considerations on the Realization of Signal Sources at mm-Waves
L. Pantoli, H. Bello, G. Leuzzi, H.J. Ng, D. Kissinger
Proc. 15th European Microwave Integrated Circuits Conference (EuMIC 2020), 129 (2021)
(42) A Portable Terahertz/Millimeter-Wave Spectrometer based on SiGe BiCMOS Technology for Gas Sensing Applications
N. Rothbart, K. Schmalz, H.-W. Hübers
Proc. 45th International Conference on Infrared, Millimeter, and Terahertz Waves (IRMMW-THz 2020), (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/IRMMW-THz46771.2020.9370917, (DFG-AGS)
(43) Dual-Band Transmitter and Receiver with Bowtie-Antenna in 0.13 μm SiGe BiCMOS for Gas Spectroscopy at 222-270 GHz
K. Schmalz, N. Rothbart, A. Glück, M.H. Eissa, T. Mausolf, E. Turkmen, S.B. Yilmaz, H.-W. Hübers
IEEE Access 9, 124805 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/ACCESS.2021.3110210, (DFG-AGS)
This paper presents a transmitter (TX) and a receiver (RX) with bowtie-antenna and silicon lens for gas spectroscopy at 222-270 GHz, which are fabricated in IHP’s 0.13 μm SiGe BiCMOS technology. The TX and RX use two integrated local oscillators for 222 – 256 GHz and 250 – 270 GHz, which are switched for dual-band operation. Due to its directivity of about 27 dBi, the single integrated bowtie-antenna with silicon lens enables an EIRP of about 25 dBm for the TX, and therefore a considerably higher EIRP for the 2-band TX compared to previously reported systems. The double sideband noise temperature of the RX is 20,000 K (18.5 dB noise figure) as measured by the Y-factor method. Absorption spectroscopy of gaseous methanol is used as measure for the performance of the gas spectroscopy system with TX- and RX-modules.
(44) Ultra-Wideband Silicon Photonic BiCMOS Coherent Receiver for O- and C-Band
P.M. Seiler, K. Voigt, St. Lischke, A. Malignaggi, L. Zimmermann
Proc. 47th European Conference on Optical Communications (ECOC 2021), (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/ECOC52684.2021.9606051, (ORIONAS)
(45) Towards Coherent O-Band Data Center Interconnects
P.M. Seiler, G. Georgieva, G. Winzer, A. Peczek, K. Voigt, St. Lischke, A. Fatemi, L. Zimmermann
Frontiers of Optoelectronics (2021)
DOI: 10.1007/s12200-021-1242-0, (DFG EPIDAC)
Upcoming generations of coherent intra-/inter data center interconnects currently lack a clear path towards a reduction of cost and power consumption, which are the driving factors for these data links. In this work, the trade-offs associated with a transition from coherent C-band to O-band silicon photonics are addressed and evaluated. The discussion includes the fundamental components of coherent data links, namely the optical components, fiber link and transceivers. As a major component of these links, a monolithic silicon photonic BiCMOS O-band coherent receiver is evaluated for its potential performance and compared to an analogous C-band device in the same technology.
(46) Ultra-Wideband Silicon Photonic BiCMOS Coherent Receiver for O- and C-Band
P.M. Seiler, K. Voigt, St. Lischke, A. Malignaggi, L. Zimmermann
Proc. 47th European Conference on Optical Communications (ECOC 2021), (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/ECOC52684.2021.9606051, (DFG EPIDAC)
(47) Ultra-Wideband Silicon Photonic BiCMOS Coherent Receiver for O- and C-Band
P.M. Seiler, K. Voigt, St. Lischke, A. Malignaggi, L. Zimmermann
Proc. 47th European Conference on Optical Communications (ECOC 2021), (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/ECOC52684.2021.9606051, (PEARLS)
(48) Towards Coherent O-Band Data Center Interconnects
P.M. Seiler, G. Georgieva, G. Winzer, A. Peczek, K. Voigt, St. Lischke, A. Fatemi, L. Zimmermann
Frontiers of Optoelectronics (2021)
DOI: 10.1007/s12200-021-1242-0, (ORIONAS)
Upcoming generations of coherent intra-/inter data center interconnects currently lack a clear path towards a reduction of cost and power consumption, which are the driving factors for these data links. In this work, the trade-offs associated with a transition from coherent C-band to O-band silicon photonics are addressed and evaluated. The discussion includes the fundamental components of coherent data links, namely the optical components, fiber link and transceivers. As a major component of these links, a monolithic silicon photonic BiCMOS O-band coherent receiver is evaluated for its potential performance and compared to an analogous C-band device in the same technology.
(49) Towards Coherent O-Band Data Center Interconnects
P.M. Seiler, G. Georgieva, G. Winzer, A. Peczek, K. Voigt, St. Lischke, A. Fatemi, L. Zimmermann
Frontiers of Optoelectronics (2021)
DOI: 10.1007/s12200-021-1242-0, (PEARLS)
Upcoming generations of coherent intra-/inter data center interconnects currently lack a clear path towards a reduction of cost and power consumption, which are the driving factors for these data links. In this work, the trade-offs associated with a transition from coherent C-band to O-band silicon photonics are addressed and evaluated. The discussion includes the fundamental components of coherent data links, namely the optical components, fiber link and transceivers. As a major component of these links, a monolithic silicon photonic BiCMOS O-band coherent receiver is evaluated for its potential performance and compared to an analogous C-band device in the same technology.
(50) The H2020-SPACE-SIPHODIAS Project: Space-Grade Opto-Electronic Interfaces for Photonic Digital and Analogue Very-High-Throughput Satellite Payloads
I. Sourikopoulos, L. Stampoulidis, S. Giannakopoulos, H. Zirath, P. Ostrovskyy, G. Fischer, M. Faugeron, A. Maho, L. Cyrille, G. Bouisset, N. Venet, M. Sotom, M. Irion, F. Schaub, J.Barbero, D. Lopez, R.G. Walker, Y. Zhou, I. Oxtoby, S. Duffy
Proc. SPIE International Conference on Space Optics (ICSO 2021), 11852, 1185254 (2021)
DOI: 10.1117/12.2599927, (SIPhoDiAS)
(51) A V-Band Low-Power Compact LNA in 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS Technology
B. Sütbas, H.J. Ng, J. Wessel, A. Koelpin, G. Kahmen
IEEE Microwave and Wireless Components Letters 31(5), 497 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/LMWC.2021.3062983, (iCampus)
This letter presents the design of a V-band low-power compact low-noise amplifier in a 130 nm SiGe BiCMOS technology. For the low-power and low-noise requirements, transistors need to operate with low voltage supply and low current density which comes at the cost of lower gain per stage. We use a technique to cancel the Miller capacitance in a single-stage differential amplifier and achieve high-gain, low-power, and low-noise simultaneously. The circuit topology is analyzed and the transistor core layout as well as the matching network design considerations are discussed. The measured circuit shows a peak gain of 14.1 dB in a 3 dB bandwidth from 44 GHz to 67 GHz while consuming 5.1 mW. Experimental results show an output power of 7.1 dBm at 1 dB compression with an associated power-added efficiency of 30%. The simulated noise figure is 3.3 dB at the center frequency. To the best of our knowledge, the highest figure of merit among V-band LNAs based on silicon is reported.
(52) Accurate Isolation Networks in Quadrature Couplers and Power Dividers
B. Sütbas, E. Ozbay, A. Atalar
IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems II 68(4), 1148 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/TCSII.2020.3035667
When quadrature couplers and power dividers are implemented in integrated circuits, accurate isolation networks can not be realized due to the nonideal resistors and the process variations. We present an isolation network design technique which cancels the resistor parasitic effects and also increases the tolerance to variations in the resistance values. A Lange coupler and a power divider are designed at Ka-band using the proposed accurate and process-tolerant isolation networks. The improvement is analytically shown and empirically verified with our in-house GaN-based microstrip MMIC process. For the coupler, the measured return losses and isolation are better than 20 dB from DC to 40 GHz. The power divider achieves 20 dB return losses and isolation in a fractional bandwidth of 50%. Both devices maintain 20 dB performance even when the variation in sheet resistance is as high as 30%.
(53) 240-GHz Reflectometer-Based Dielectric Sensor with Integrated Transducers in a 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS Technology
D. Wang, M.H. Eissa, K. Schmalz, T. Kämpfe, D. Kissinger
IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques 69(1), 1027 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/TMTT.2020.3038382
This article presents a reflectometer-based on-chip dielectric sensor with integrated transducers at 240 GHz. The chip simplifies the measurement of a vector network analyzer (VNA) to sense the incident and reflected waves by using two heterodyne mixer-based receivers with a dielectric sensing element. Radio frequency (RF) and local oscillator (LO) submillimeter waves are generated by two frequency multiplier chains, respectively. Two back-to-back identical differential side-coupled directive couplers are proposed to separate the incident and reflected signals and couple them to mixers. Both transmission line and coplanar stripline transducers are proposed and integrated with reflectometer to investigate the sensitivity of dielectric sensors. The latter leads to a larger power variation of the reflectometer by providing more sufficient operating bands for the magnitude and phase slope of S11. The readout of the transducers upon exposure to liquids is performed by the measurement of their reflected signals using two external excitation sources. The experimental dielectric sensing is demonstrated by using binary methanol–ethanol mixture placed on the proposed on-chip dielectric sensor in the assembled printed circuit board. It enables a maximum 8 dB of the power difference between the incident and reflected channels on the measurement of liquid solvents. Both chips occupy an area of 4.03 mm2 and consume 560 mW. Along with a wide operational frequency range from 200 to 240 GHz, this simplified one-port-VNA-based on-chip device makes it feasible for the use of handle product and suitable for the submillimeter-wave dielectric spectroscopy applications.
(54) SiGe HBTs and BiCMOS Technology for Present and Future Millimeter-Wave Systems
T. Zimmer, J. Böck, F. Buchali, P. Chevalier, M. Collisi, B. Debaillie, M. Deng, P. Ferrari, S. Fregonese, C. Gaquiere, H. Ghanem, H. Hettrich, A. Karakuzulu, T. Maiwald, M. Margalef-Rovira, C. Maye, M. Möller, A. Mukherjee, H. Rücker, P. Sakalas, R. Schmid, K. Schneider, K. Schuh, W. Templ, A. Visweswaran, T. Zwick
IEEE Journal of Microwaves 1(1), 288 (2021)
DOI: 10.1109/JMW.2020.3031831
This paper gives an overall picture from BiCMOS technologies up to THz systems integration, which were developed in the European Research project TARANTO. The European high performance BiCMOS technology platforms are presented, which have special advantages for addressing applications in the submillimeter-wave and THz range. The status of the technology process is reviewed and the integration challenges are examined. A detailed discussion on millimeter-wave characterization and modeling is given with emphasis on harmonic distortion analysis, power and noise figure measurements up to 190 GHz and 325 GHz respectively and S-parameter measurements up to 500 GHz. The results of electrical compact models of active (HBTs) and passive components are presented together with benchmark circuit blocks for model verification. BiCMOS-enabled systems and applications with focus on future wireless communication systems and high-speed optical transmission systems up to resulting net data rates of 1.55 Tbit/s are presented.
