A monolithic integrated mHEMT chipset for high-resolution submillimeter-wave radar applications

In this paper, we present the development of a millimeter-wave monolithic integrated circuit (MMIC) chipset for use in a high-resolution radar system operating at 300 GHz. The chipset consists of a frequency multiplier by twelve, a medium power amplifier, a high power amplifier and a fully integrated 300 GHz heterodyne receiver MMIC. The frequency multiplier and the two amplifier circuits have been realized using a 100 nm InAlAs/InGaAs base depletion-type metamorphic high electron mobility transistor (mHEMT) technology and achieve a saturated output power of approximately 20 dBm between 90 and 105 GHz. The 300 GHz receiver S-MMIC was fabricated using a more advanced 35 nm mHEMT technology and demonstrates a conversion gain of more than 7 dB between 270 and 325 GHz. All circuits were successfully packaged into millimeter-wave waveguide modules and used to realize a compact 300 GHz radar demonstrator, which delivers an instantaneous bandwidth of 40 GHz together with an outstanding range resolution of 3.7 mm.