Millimeter Wave, Low Noise Amplifier

This Phase II proposal is presented as the follow on to the Phase I SBIR contact number F29601-03-M-0163 entitled "Millimeter Wave, Low Noise Amplifier". These LNAs are intended to meet the growing demands of transfer data for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR). The objective of this SBIR is to minimize the DC power consumption in mmW LNAs through the use of MHEMT device technology and innovative circuit design techniques. In particular, the program focus is on the development of very low DC power consumption MHEMT MMIC low noise amplifiers in the frequency range between 35 and 54 GHz for application in space based receivers operating in the MILSATCOM bands. During Phase I extensive device measurements were carried out on devices from two foundry MHEMT processes. Device models were used to conduct a design trade study to assess the tradeoff between bandwidth and power dissipation for mmW LNAs. A 4% bandwidth amplifier at 50 GHz was designed featuring a DC dissipation of 5 mW, gain of 25 dB and noise figure of 2.1 dB. A similar wideband LNA (35-54 GHz) required a 72% higher power dissipation of 8.6 mW. This demonstrates that substantial power savings can be achieved in narrow band designs.