RF Reliability of SOI-based Power Amplifier FETs for mmWave 5G Applications

RF reliability at 28GHz in PAFETs under constant and varying output load (Z0) was evaluated. Time domain analyses show that in addition to non-conducting TDDB (ncTDDB), both conducting (cHCI) and non-conducting Hot Carrier Injection (ncHCI) degradation play key roles as primary mechanisms. RF power as stress variable under linear, P1dB and compression shows higher degradation in compression attributed to higher peak voltage swings. Degradation under varying load is correlated to ruggedness power and VSWR ratio. Excellent DC and RF Model-Hardware correlation was achieved. 5G NR simulations show that PAFETs meet circuit PA lifetime targets making it an ideal technology for mmWave 5G applications.

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