A 118-mW 23.3-GS/s dual-band 7.3-GHz and 8.7-GHz impulse-based direct RF sampling radar SoC in 55-nm CMOS

Abstract

Radar sensors find use in a wide range of applications [1–4]. Impulse radars operating below 10GHz offer opportunities in applications including non-contact vital signs monitoring, such as breathing and heart rate, presence detection, and ranging. However, the wide instantaneous bandwidth incurs a power penalty from the ADC, calling for unconventional receiver (RX) architectures [4, 5]. In practical use, the received power from narrowband interferers, such as 802.11, can be much larger than the echo from the targets, requiring an unnecessarily large RX dynamic range. In this paper we report an impulse radar SoC (shown in Fig. 7.7.1), featuring a transmitter (TX) that complies with regulations for unlicensed operation, 1b direct RF sampling, and RF interference rejection. The system is self-contained, including power management and clock generation functions, and requires only an external crystal and antennas to operate.