W-Band LNA MMICs Based on a Noise-Optimized 50-nm Gate-Length Metamorphic HEMT Technology

Abstract

In this paper, the design, analysis, and room-temperature performance of two W-band LNA MMICs fabricated in two different technology variations are presented. The investigation demonstrates the noise improvement of the given 50-nm gate-length InGaAs mHEMT technology with reduced necessary drain currents. Therefore, a single-ended and balanced W-band LNA MMIC were designed, fabricated, and characterized. The amplifiers exhibit state-of-the-art noise temperatures with an average value for the single-ended LNA of 159 K (1.9 dB) with lowest values of 132 K (1.6 dB). Due to the technology investigation it was possible to reduce the noise temperature by about 15 K compared to the reference technology in combination with superior MMIC yield.