Broadband packaging solution in embedded wafer level ball grid array technology for D-band PMCW radar

Abstract

A system-in-package for a wideband digital radar, in D-band, requires broadband, high-gain antennas combined with broadband chip-to-package and package-to-printed circuit board (PCB) interconnects. This paper demonstrates a wideband, low-loss quasi-coaxial signal transition, and a novel electric split ring resonator (eSRR)-based antenna-in-package (AiP) with a modified reflector concept, for improved gain, in embedded wafer level ball grid array (eWLB) technology. A complete chip-to-package-to-PCB interconnect is also demonstrated by combining the quasi-coaxial transition with a chip-to-package interconnect. The quasi-coaxial signal transition has the largest impedance bandwidth among ball grid array-based quasi-coaxial signal transitions. For the modified reflector concept, a horn-shaped cavity is micromachined in the PCB substrate and remetallized with aerosol-jet printing, placing the reflector 0.25λ from the antenna. The antenna gain is improved with up to 5.3 dB. The AiP with the horn-shaped reflector is the single element with the highest gain, in eWLB technology, above 100 GHz.