Comparison of a Copper and Aluminium SiGe BEOL option for power amplifiers above 200 GHz

Abstract

This paper investigates the possible benefits of a copper BEOL option for power amplifiers above 200 GHz in a 130nmSiGe process featuring a $f_{t}/f_{\max}$ of 350 GHz/450GHz. The differences in the metallizations are investigated, and the performance benefits and shortcomings are quantified in light of power amplifier design. Two power amplifiers are built using the respective technologies, measured and discussed concerning their differences resulting from the different BEOL options.