Towards Wideband Linear RF Transmitters for Millimeter-Wave Arrays

Yikuan Chen

EECS Department
University of California, Berkeley
Technical Report No. UCB/EECS-2025-53
May 14, 2025

http://www2.eecs.berkeley.edu/Pubs/TechRpts/2025/EECS-2025-53.pdf

This report focuses on designing a high-linearity transmitter (TX) for millimeter-wave (mm-Wave) wireless communication. To realize a common module transceiver that interfaces with different front end modules for different functionalities, the TX is required to cover a wide frequency band with high instantaneous radio-frequency (RF) bandwidth, low noise, and high linearity at RF and baseband ports. Different architectures to realize these goals for a mm-Wave TX are investigated and discussed. A high-linearity active mixer is proposed to achieve a flat input impedance curve versus varying baseband input from the digital-to-analog converter (DAC). This design was fabricated in 28nm bulk complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) technology. Next, a complete TX with 10-bit baseband DAC, filter, and distributed active mixer with transmission line (T-Line) power combiner and local oscillator (LO) chain, fabricated in the same process, is discussed. This design operates from 13 GHz to 50 GHz and demonstrates 2.5 dBm compression point and power consumption of 71 mW on a 1.2 V supply in simulations.

Advisor: Ali Niknejad

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BibTeX citation:

@mastersthesis{Chen:EECS-2025-53,
    Author = {Chen, Yikuan},
    Title = {Towards Wideband Linear RF Transmitters for Millimeter-Wave Arrays},
    School = {EECS Department, University of California, Berkeley},
    Year = {2025},
    Month = {May},
    URL = {http://www2.eecs.berkeley.edu/Pubs/TechRpts/2025/EECS-2025-53.html},
    Number = {UCB/EECS-2025-53},
    Abstract = {This report focuses on designing a high-linearity transmitter (TX) for millimeter-wave (mm-Wave) wireless communication. To realize a common module transceiver that interfaces with different front end modules for different functionalities, the TX is required to cover a wide frequency band with high instantaneous radio-frequency (RF) bandwidth, low noise, and high linearity at RF and baseband ports. Different architectures to realize these goals for a mm-Wave TX are investigated and discussed. A high-linearity active mixer is proposed to achieve a flat input impedance curve versus varying baseband input from the digital-to-analog converter (DAC). This design was fabricated in 28nm bulk complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) technology. Next, a complete TX with 10-bit baseband DAC, filter, and distributed active mixer with transmission line (T-Line) power combiner and local oscillator (LO) chain, fabricated in the same process, is discussed. This design operates from 13 GHz to 50 GHz and demonstrates 2.5 dBm compression point and power consumption of 71 mW on a 1.2 V supply in simulations.}
}

EndNote citation:

%0 Thesis
%A Chen, Yikuan
%T Towards Wideband Linear RF Transmitters for Millimeter-Wave Arrays
%I EECS Department, University of California, Berkeley
%D 2025
%8 May 14
%@ UCB/EECS-2025-53
%U http://www2.eecs.berkeley.edu/Pubs/TechRpts/2025/EECS-2025-53.html
%F Chen:EECS-2025-53