A D-band Active Imager in a SiGe HBT Technology

Abstract

In this paper, an amplifier and a detector operating near 140 GHz have been developed and integrated together with an on-chip antenna for an integrated active imager based on a 0.13-mu m SiGe HBT technology. The 5-stage differential common-emitter (CE) amplifier shows a peak gain of 14 dB and noise figure (NF) down to 10 dB around 140 GHz with a DC power dissipation of 18 mW. The common-base (CB) differential detector exhibits a peak responsivity of 52.5 kV/W and a noise equivalent power (NEP) of 3.3 pW/Hz(1/2). For the integrated imager, a peak responsivity of 1,740 kV/W and a minimum NEP of 80 fW/Hz(1/2) were achieved with a DC power dissipation of 18 mW. With the fabricated active imager with on-chip antenna, which occupies an area of 2,200 x 600 mu m(2) including the antenna and bonding pads, images of various objects were successfully acquired.