A 70–80-GHz SiGe Amplifier With Peak Output Power of 27.3 dBm

This paper presents a fully integrated 16-way power-combining amplifier for 67-92-GHz applications in an advanced 90-nm silicon germanium HBT technology. The 16-way amplifier is implemented using three-stage commonemitter single-ended power amplifiers (PAs) as building blocks, and reactive λ/4 impedance transformation networks are used for power combining. The three-stage single PA breakout has a small-signal gain of 22 dB at 74 GHz, and saturation output power (Psat) of 14.3-16.4 dBm at 68-99 GHz. The powercombining PA achieves a small-signal gain of 19.3 dB at 74 GHz, and Psat of 25.3-27.3 dBm at 68-88 GHz with a maximum power added efficiency of 12.4%. The 16-way amplifier occupies 6.48 mm2 (including pads) and consumes a maximum current of 2.1 A from a 1.8 V supply. To the best of our knowledge, this is the highest power silicon-based E-band amplifier to date.