Demonstration of a 0.48 THz Amplifier Module Using InP HEMT Transistors

Abstract

In this letter, we present an amplifier module operating at a frequency of 0.48 THz. This represents almost a 50% increase in solid-state amplifier operating frequency compared to prior state of the art, and is the highest reported amplifier to date. The amplifier demonstrates a peak gain of 11.7 dB measured in a waveguide split-block housing. Sub 50-nm InP HEMT transistors with an estimated <i xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">f</i> <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">MAX</sub> > 1 THz are used to achieve this level of performance. The five stage amplifier is realized in coplanar waveguide, and uses monolithically integrated dipole probes to couple the chip from the WR 2.2 waveguide.