A 76-81 GHz CMOS PA with 16-dBm PSAT and 30-dB Amplitude Control for MIMO Automotive Radars

Abstract

This paper presents a 77 GHz power amplifier (PA) for multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) automotive radar with high output power, reconfigurable gain, and 0/180º phase shifting capability, by using TSMC 65 nm CMOS general purpose (GP) technology. The PA has a variable gain amplifier (VGA) design merged with a phase shifter, a power splitter, two-way double-neutralized PA cell, and a balun-based power combiner. Measurement results show that the saturation output power (PSAT) is 16.1 dBm with maximum PAE of 12.8% at 79 GHz, a peak power gain of -5-25 dB is tunable at 77 GHz, and 0/180º phase shifter is achieved over 76-81 GHz. The power consumption of the PA is 356 mW.