The high power capabilities in combination with the low noise performance of Gallium Nitride (GaN) makes this technology an excellent choice for robust receivers. This paper presents the design and measured results of three different LNAs, which operate in C-, Ku-, and Ka-band. The designs are realized in 0.25 μm and 0.15 μm AlGaN/GaN microstrip technology. The measured noise figure is 1.2, 1.9 and 4.0 dB for the C-, Ku-, and Ka-frequency band respectively. The robustness of the LNAs have been tested by applying CW source power levels of 42 dBm, 42 dBm and 28 dBm for the C-band, Ku-band and Ka-band LNA respectively. No degradation in performance has been observed. I. INTRODUCTION Due to the current trends in the global security scenario the interest in secure and robust satellite communication systems is increasing. A space-born receiver is one of the most important, but also one of the most sensitive components in the satellite communication chain. These receivers must also be functional during severe jamming and no degradation is allowed due to high input powers from hostile electromagnetic attacks. Currently enabling technologies like GaN and SiC are being developed for both military as well as governmental and commercial applications. GaN is expected to improve the performance regarding robustness together with microwave capabilities comparable to currently used technologies like GaAs, InP and Si. Due to the combination of high power and low noise operation GaN is very suitable for the realization of secure robust RF front-end (RFFE) modules. In addition, the overdrive capability and survivability levels are exceptionally high. The development of both GaN HEMTs as well as MMIC processes makes it possible to realize GaN low noise receivers at millimeter wave frequencies. Such receivers are very attractive for secure communication systems due to the changing trade-off between performance and cost. Therefore GaN based receivers offer important potential for next generation satellite communication systems. This work aims at technology demonstrations at C-, Ku-and Ka-band by designing, building and testing GaN low noise
Abstract-In this paper a first time right 24 GHz FMCW radar transceiver is presented. The MMIC has a low power consumption of 86 mW and an output power of -10 dBm. Due to the integrated IF amplifier, the conversion gain of the receiver is 51 dB and the base band signals are directly processed with an ADC. The developed antenna is a PCB dipole array with 10 dBi gain. Together with a commercial microcontroller this results in a small presence detection sensor required for future intelligent LED lighting systems.
We have investigated Coplanar Waveguide (CPW) elements on AlN for use in future AlGaN/GaN based power amplifiers. This technology becomes crucial if a via-hole technology is not available. Lines, discontinuities, metal-insulator-metal (MIM) capacitors and resistors were measured and modelled. These elements are embedded between two adaptors for RF probing. A technique was developed to de-embed the adaptors from the overall measurement and hence correctly determine the properties of the element itself. Measurements on elements containing multiple ports with right angles can best be carried out using standard calibration techniques followed by carefully reorienting the probes. It is shown that for accurate design of matching networks operating at 10 GHz each element has to be carefully modelled. The method presented in this paper can be a useful contribution tackling some of the problems related to the design of these networks.
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