Abstract
This contribution deals with the microwave linear characterization and noise figure measurement of four on-wafer GaAs pseudomorphic high-electron mobility transistors having scaled gate widths. The proposed measurement campaign has been fulfilled in two different laboratories: The University of Messina, Italy and US Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC, USA. Two equivalent approaches have been straightforwardly employed: a standard tuner-based technique and a novel tuner-less technique. The effectiveness of the novel technique has been confirmed as carried out independently by the two laboratories, evidencing the benefits of both techniques. The proposed experimental activity highlights the applicability of the tunerless technique for the noise characterization of advanced on-wafer devices without the constraint imposed by the addition of a source tuner to the standard measurement setup.
Highlights
Gallium arsenide (GaAs) high-electron-mobility transistors (HEMT) are widely adopted in very high frequency applications for their outstanding performance concerning low-noise figure and high gain applications, which are related to their rewarding properties in terms of electron mobility, saturation velocity, and ease of heterojunction formation [1,2]
This paper is aimed at investigating the microwave linear characteristics of on-wafer GaAs pseudomorphic HEMTs having a gate length of 0.15 μm and different gate width: 2 × 50 μm, 4 × 50 μm, 6 × 50 μm, and 10 × 60 μm
The present experimental activity has been performed on four on-wafer GaAs pseudomorphic high electron mobility transistors, pseudomorphic HEMTs (pHEMTs), manufactured by Triquint Semiconductor [16]
Summary
Gallium arsenide (GaAs) high-electron-mobility transistors (HEMT) are widely adopted in very high frequency applications for their outstanding performance concerning low-noise figure and high gain applications, which are related to their rewarding properties in terms of electron mobility, saturation velocity, and ease of heterojunction formation [1,2]. The high-frequency noise characterization has been performed in two different laboratories and with two different approaches, similar results have been reported, confirming the validity of both measurement campaigns. This contribution aims at demonstrating the effectiveness of the tuner-less technique by comparing the results in terms of noise figure with those obtained by using a standard tuner-based technique. The effects of the two different reference planes have been simulated by using two ideal transmission lines at the input and output ports of the devices This solution allows for the adjustment of the measured differences and it has been validated by comparing the scattering parameters of the devices.
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