A linear-throw SP6T antenna switch in 180nm CMOS thick-film SOI

This papers presents design and characterization results for a linear-throw SP6T antenna switch fabricated in a high volume 180 nm RF CMOS process on thick-film SOI substrate. The nfet and pfet devices on thick-film SOI retain “bulk substrate-like” characteristics offering the benefits of proven manufacturability for 180 nm high volume CMOS, robust device models and ease of integration of existing design IP. Through process design and back-biasing of transistors in the off-state, excellent channel isolation better -40 dBm, insertion loss of 0.47 dB in low-band and 0.58 dB in high-band, low harmonics of better 75 dBc at cellular power levels and intermodulation distortion of better -98 dBm and as low as -117 dBm are obtained. These results demonstrate the attractiveness of thick-film SOI for the design of multimode cellular switches and monolithically integrated RF transmit modules compared to the incumbent technologies of GaAs pHEMT, silicon-on-sapphire (SOS) and thin-film SOI.