X-band CMOS power amplifier using mode-locking method for sensor applications

摘要

An X-band CMOS power amplifier using a mode-locking method for sensor applications is designed with a TSMC 0.13-μm RF CMOS process. The cascode structure is adapted to remove the reliability problems between the drain and gate voltages of the NMOS. Additionally, the mode-locking method is used to improve the efficiency and gain of the amplifier. We proposed the method to adapt the mode-locking topology to the cascode structure. The measured power added efficiency is 27%, while the saturated output power is 14 dBm at an operation frequency of 8.9 GHz. The designed chip size is 700 by 550 μm ~2.