Metamorphic low noise amphifiers and optical components

摘要

GaAs based metamorphic HEMT (MHEMT) technology has emerged as an attractive, low cost alternative to InP HEMTs. The strain-induced imperfections caused by high indium content layers on GaAs is eliminated in metamorphic devices by providing a properly grown lattice-matching buffer between the substrate and active device layers. With this limitation overcome, it is now possible to provide the superior performance of InP-based devices with the cost advantages of highly manufacturable 4- and 6-inch GaAs wafers that can easily be integrated on existing GaAs fabrication lines. This paper will review device performance as well as state-of-the-art low noise amplifiers fabricated with this technology operating from 1 to 100 GHz. Fiber optic receiver components such as 40 Gb/s optical-to-electrical photodiodes and traveling wave amplifiers fabricated metamorphically will also be discussed. Finally, device and circuit reliability data will be presented demonstrating median-time-to-failure of more than 30 years at 125 C.