Design and Characterization of W-Band SiGe RFICs for Passive Millimeter-Wave Imaging

This paper describes the design and measurement of a wideband (W-band) passive radiometer chip developed in a standard 0.12-mu m SiGe BiCMOS technology (IBM8HP, f(t)/f(max) = 200/265 GHz). Design equations, simulations, and measurements are presented for a 94-GHz square-law detector and wideband low noise amplifier, and an 80-110-GHz single-pole double-throw switch. A total-power radiometer is presented, which can achieve a temperature resolution of approximate to 0.69 K (30-ms integration time) with periodic calibration or chopping above 10 kHz. A switched Dicke radiometer chip is also presented, which addresses the 1/f noise of the total-power radiometer, and can achieve a temperature resolution of 0.83 K with a 30-ms integration time. This performance is comparable to current III-V imaging modules, and demonstrates, to our knowledge, the first implementation of a SiGe or CMOS W-band radiometer on a single chip.