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Details of Grant 

EPSRC Reference: GR/H94191/01
Title: MONOLITHIC MILLIMETRE-WAVE INTEGRATED CIRCUITS AT 94 GHZ AND 140 GHZ
Principal Investigator: Cleaver, Dr J
Other Investigators:
Ahmed, Professor H
Researcher Co-Investigators:
Project Partners:
Department: Physics
Organisation: University of Cambridge
Scheme: Standard Research (Pre-FEC)
Starts: 01 October 1993 Ends: 31 March 1997 Value (£): 337,848
EPSRC Research Topic Classifications:
RF & Microwave Technology
EPSRC Industrial Sector Classifications:
Electronics
Related Grants:
Panel History:  
Summary on Grant Application Form
To investigate the technology, design, modelling and characterisation of multifunction monolithic millimetre-wave integrated circuits at W and T bands (75-110 GHz and 111-170 GHz). To design, manufacture and characterise a block down-converter chip to exemplify the capability of the methods investigated.Progress:In the first fifteen months of this collaborative project, extensive studies have been undertaken to extend processing capability and so to enable the complete fabrication of 94 GHz monolithic millimetre-wave circuits with a high level of integration. These 94 GHz circuits combine coplanar waveguide technology with InGaAs pseudomorphic HEMTs.To implement the circuits, active-device process aspects investigated have included enhanced electron-beam lithography processes for tee and gamma profile gates, associated etching processes for precise gate recessing, contact-formation processes, and special lithography for air-bridge structures.Families of active-device and passive-circuit test structures for on-wafer probe measurements to 110 GHz have been fabricated for evaluation and comparison with the results from modelling. This work has been extended and a preliminary version of a complete 94 GHz low-noise amplifier has been produced. This circuit will be refined and extended to form the basis of the fully-integrated down-converter demonstrator. For process and device diagnostics, focused ion beam processes for local sputtering have been applied to reverse engineering, dissecting critical features for very high resolution scanning electron miscroscopy. This provides the dimensional data for comparison with the results of reverse-modelling from measured electrical characteristics. This work forms part of a four-partner collaborative project in which the other partners are the University of Glasgow (GR/J15728), the University of Kent (GR/J07594) and the University of Leeds (GR/J06924).
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Organisation Website: http://www.cam.ac.uk