Silicon millimeter-wave circuits for receivers and transmitters

Two silicon monolithic circuits, a 90-GHz-band monolithic integrated Schottky diode receiver fabricated on a highly insulating silicon substrate, and a planar W-band oscillator, hybrid integrated on a highly insulating silicon substrate with double drift region IMPATT diodes, are presented. The receiver consists of the monolithic Schottky diode and a planar antenna structure on one silicon chip. The receiver sensitivity is 65 mu W/cm. The receiver antenna half-power beamwidth is 23 degrees and the side-lobe attenuation is 12 dB. The continuous-wave oscillator output power is greater than 20 mW and the efficiency is more than 1%. The hybrid IMPATT oscillators show good characteristics for low current densities. However, for higher current densities bias oscillations occur and the microwave power nearly vanishes.<>