Active Components

This session presents the latest developments in high-power technology for HF, VHF, UHF and S band. The techniques include amplifiers based upon a novel serial combiner and a broadband transmission-line combiner. Also included are a kilowatt 27 MHz amplifier with supply modulation and an amplifier based upon new high-voltage GaN FETs. Finally, an S-band magnetron that produces 20 kW of power will be presented.

This session gives an overview of recent advances in the areas of microwave photonics, terahertz photonics, and nanotechnology.
Specifically, new approaches for photonics-assisted nanoantennas, generation, and detection of microwave/terahertz radiation and nearfield microwave scanning microscopy are included in this session.

This session presents techniques for the design and control of power amplifiers for S and C bands including a dual-band Doherty amplifier and a two-level outphasing amplifier. Additionally, techniques for the design and integration of the output filter and matching network are presented. Finally, there is an analysis of a technique for regulating the output power in the presence of a variable load.

This session focuses on state-of-the-art low-noise circuit results with applications to quantum computing, radio astronomy, and millimeter-wave communications. First, a cryogenic SiGe LNA achieving record noise performance for silicon from 4-8 GHz will be presented. Next, the first ever W-band SiGe cryogenic LNA will be described. The third talk will focus on a broadband InP HEMT cryogenic LNA covering the entire 5-35 GHz frequency range. This will be followed by the presentation of a single-chip IQ downconverter MMIC covering the full W-band. In the final talk of the session a state-of-the-art CMOS D-band LNA operating from 125.5-157 GHz will be described.

This session addresses advanced mixed-signal transmitter and optical driver ICs towards 100 Gbit/s. It starts with a 100-Gbit/s 3-bit DAC for PAM signal generation, followed by two 50-Gbit/s class optical drivers for MZ modulator and VCSEL. Finally, a CMOS wideband FMCW radar transmitter is presented as well as a Ka-band phase shifter for 5G applications.

New design techniques for broad/dual-band GaN and GaAs high-performance power amplifiers are presented in this session. This body of work covers DC–20 GHz with efficiencies up to and greater than 60%. Power outputs of less than one watt to over 60 Watts are demonstrated. The methodologies include non-uniform distributed amplifier design for broadband performance, dual band approaches including leveraging the bias circuit for improved performance and broadband techniques for the driver amplifier. Both MMIC and hybrid approaches are covered.

This session focuses on the latest advances in microwave semiconductor devices. Gallium Nitride transistor advancements in power, efficiency, and 3D heterogeneous integration are highlighted. In addition, sub-100nm metamorphic HEMT noise performance and emerging high power diamond-based diodes are discussed.

This session presents LNAs from C to D band: the first paper demonstrates a new gain equalization technique, the second paper addresses the frequency tunability for 5G transceivers, the third paper shows flat gain response at mm-wave, the fourth paper shows a K/Ka/V band variable gain LNA, and the last paper demonstrates a new design exploiting magnetic coupling at E band

This session introduces recent advances in X to G band voltage controlled oscillator design techniques. It includes new design methods for octave-range multi-band oscillators, injection-locked oscillators, and wide tuning range oscillators with advanced technologies such as 16 nm FinFET and 22 nm FD-SOI.

This session presents InP and GaN broadband millimeter-wave power amplifiers up to 150 GHz. Innovations include process development, high power combining techniques, and circuit techniques.

This session presents the latest work on transmitter components including the power amplifiers and frequency multipliers operating at mm-wave and sub-mm-wave frequencies.

This session includes latest work covering high-data-rate wireless transceivers and receivers as well as mm-wave radars.

Load modulation based power amplifiers have been the workhorses in wireless networks for more than two decades. In this session, load modulation techniques are further enhanced, for their RF bandwidth, through the use of balanced structures and inverted DPA topologies. In addition, Doherty efficiency is further improved in power back-off by means of digitally controlled signal injection. 5G MIMO base stations needs are addressed including DPA miniaturization through MMIC integration, as well as, the capability to handle large video bandwidths.

This short session presents works in distributed mixers, sub-terahertz oscillators, and millimeter-wave true-time delay circuits

In this session, we have two papers describing advanced DPD techniques for massive MIMO applications, considering OTA identification and predistorter complexity; and three papers describing novel approaches for envelope tracking power amplifiers, including a GaN MMIC modulator design, a floating source RF PA, and a novel Marx generator-based modulator.

The session will showcase state-of-the-art advancements in silicon-based power amplifier architectures and technology for 5G and automotive applications. The session will demonstrate techniques that range from broadband design and back-off efficiency enhancement to fully digital PA architectures. The first five papers demonstrate these techniques from 22 to 90 GHz and the last paper discusses a novel hybrid digital transmitter architecture combining CMOS and LDMOS technologies for base station applications.

Presentations within this session include integrated front ends for a wide range of frequencies used in phased arrays. This session will commence with two radar papers, followed by a Ka-band communication front end and an 8-channel K-band phase shifter, and will conclude with a wideband GaN front end.

This session covers the key building blocks used in beamformers and phased arrays ranging from novel ultrawideband baluns, multi-bit phase shifters and attenuators, high isolation antenna switches, and large power mm-wave detectors.