Architectures and integrated circuits for RF and mm-wave multiple-antenna systems on silicon

Restricted until 4 Nov. 2009. This thesis presents unique architectures for the implementation of multiple-antenna systems at millimeter-wave frequencies on silicon-based processes.; Passive components play a key role in virtually very RF building block of a wireless transceiver. An overview of distributed passive components that are suitable for millimeter-wave operation on silicon-based processes is provided in this thesis. A 0.18um CMOS 26GHz complementary current-sharing oscillator topology is presented that, in conjunction with a high-quality coplanar-stripline-based resonator, achieves state-of-the art phase-noise performance. The use of transformers to build high-quality integrated resonators is investigated. It is found that, contrary to prior claims, integrated transformers achieve no improvement over single spiral inductors in resonator quality factor (Q) when subject to area and effective-inductance constraints. A theoretical formulation for the impact of passive loss on the noise performance of low-noise amplifiers (LNAs) is also developed. A 0.13um SiGe E-band low-noise amplifier is implemented to support the formulation.; A Variable-Phase Ring Oscillator and Phase-Locked Loop (VPRO-PLL) architecture for integrated phased arrays is presented. The nonlinear multi-functional circuit eliminates key phased-array-transceiver building blocks, such as mixers, power splitters/combiners and phase shifters, by harnessing the injection-locking properties of a tuned ring oscillator locked in a PLL. A detailed theoretical analysis of performance metrics, such as sensitivity, linearity and array performance in the presence of process mismatches, is given. Experimental results from two highly-integrated phased-array prototypes, implemented in 0.13um CMOS and operating in the vicinity of 24GHz, are provided. The prototypes achieve similar functionality to prior works at the same frequency, but consume a fraction of the area and power.; An RF-Multibeam Spatio-Temporal RAKE (ST-RAKE) transceiver architecture for radar is proposed. The architecture exploits orthogonal codes in conjunction with an RF multibeam matrix to isolate not only line-of-sight reflections but multipath reflections as well to glean more information about the scene being imaged. A highly-integrated, 4-channel, 90nm CMOS, 24-26GHz prototype that targets vehicular-radar applications is implemented to validate the principle of the architecture. The prototype is expected to serve as a testbed for future studies pertaining to code and waveform design for such MIMO radars.