Title :
A GaAs HEMT MMIC chip set for automotive radar systems fabricated by optical stepper lithography
Author :
Müller, Jan-Erik ; Grave, Thomas ; Siweris, Heinz J. ; Karner, Martin ; Schafer, Andre ; Tischer, Harald ; Riechert, Henning ; Schleicher, Lothar ; Verweyen, Ludger ; Bangert, Axel ; Kellner, Walter ; Meier, Thomas
Author_Institution :
Corp. Res. & Technol., Siemens AG, Munich, Germany
fDate :
9/1/1997 12:00:00 AM
Abstract :
A 77 GHz automotive radar system for collision avoidance and intelligent cruise control has recently gained interest because of its huge market potential. The questions of the optimum technological and system approaches leading to both low cost and high performance have not yet been finally answered. The approach to this problem reported here differs mainly in two aspects from the GaAs monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) solutions described earlier: (1) 0.12 μm gatelength pseudomorphic high electron mobility transistors (PHEMTs) are fabricated by optical stepper lithography, (2) a coplanar design is used. A fully passivated PHEMT MMIC fabrication process is reported with current-gain and power-gain cutoff frequencies exceeding 115 and 220 GHz, respectively. The design and performance of a chip set consisting of four different MMICs [voltage controlled oscillator (VCO), harmonic mixer, transmitter, receiver] are described. The great potential of this MMIC approach to meet all system requirements of an automotive radar sensor in a cost-effective and production-oriented way is shown. To our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of W-band coplanar multifunctional MMICs fabricated by optical stepper lithography
Keywords :
HEMT integrated circuits; III-V semiconductors; MMIC mixers; MMIC oscillators; automotive electronics; field effect MIMIC; gallium arsenide; integrated circuit technology; millimetre wave mixers; millimetre wave oscillators; passivation; photolithography; radar applications; radar equipment; voltage-controlled oscillators; 0.12 micron; 115 GHz; 220 GHz; 77 GHz; EHF; GaAs; GaAs HEMT MIMIC chip set; MM-wave radar; VCO; W-band; automotive radar systems; collision avoidance; coplanar design; fully passivated MIMIC fabrication process; harmonic mixer; high electron mobility transistors; intelligent cruise control; multifunctional MMICs; optical stepper lithography; pseudomorphic HEMT; receiver; transmitter; voltage controlled oscillator; Automotive engineering; Gallium arsenide; HEMTs; Lithography; MMICs; Optical receivers; Optical sensors; Optical transmitters; PHEMTs; Radar;
Journal_Title :
Solid-State Circuits, IEEE Journal of
