A Fully Integrated 0.48 THz FMCW Radar Transceiver MMIC in a SiGe-Technology

Abstract

Radar systems are gaining in popularity and spreading into more and more applications due to their robust measurement method. While single-chip solutions have been published in the last decade in the upper millimetre-wave range, solutions are still very limited in the lower THz range. In this paper, a 0.48 THz FMCW-radar transceiver MMIC in a 130 nm silicon-germanium (SiGe) technology is presented. The MMIC consists of one Tx and Rx channel, respectively. The components for frequency synthesis and on-chip patch antennas are fully integrated into the MMIC. The achievable tuning range of the MMIC is 0.448 - 0.491 THz with a peak on-chip output power of about -9.4 dBm. The MMIC was designed and manufactured with the IHP SG13G3 technoloay,