Terahertz CMOS integrated circuits

Advances in circuit techniques, aided by continued lithographic scaling, will deliver CMOS technology capable of operation in the submillimeter-wave bands. Many building blocks operating at near-THz frequencies in silicon-based technologies (SiGe and CMOS) have appeared in the recent literature. Although many significant challenges remain, these results suggest that CMOS THz ICs are an inevitability. Applications that reside in the “terahertz gap,” mapped against the projected capabilities of CMOS, provide a context for identifying the most important remaining problems. The lack of efficient, high-power (watt-level) sources remains the most conspicuous impediment to further progress. The talk concludes with an examination of the potential of vacuum electronic devices to solve the transmit power problem.