Double-Balanced FET Resistive Mixer Using Multilayer Photoimageable Thick-Film Technology

A double-balanced mixer (DBM) using a monolithic FET-quad operating in resistive mode has been designed and realised using multilayer technology. The resistive DBM module integrates bare chip active devices and SMT passive components together with integrated passive structures fabricated using photoimageable thick-film materials. The photoimageable process is a modified thick-film technique that is well-suited for three-dimensional ceramic multi-chip module (MCM-C) packaging technology required for "System-on-Package" (SoP) applications. The mixer measuring 13mm x 13mm and operating in C-band achieved a nominal conversion loss of 10dB and required LO power as low as +5dBm. A high 3rd-order intercept point (IP3) of +24dBm was achieved with LO power set at +13dBm.