MMIC LNAs for Radioastronomy Applications Using Advanced Industrial 70 nm Metamorphic Technology

Radioastronomy applications, as well as others, require ultra-low-noise front ends for high-sensitivity receivers. In this way, the image produced from a radio-telescope using such advanced components has a higher resolution and therefore allows scientists to obtain a clearer representation of the environment. The low-noise amplifier is the key component of a high sensitivity receiver (demonstrating a very low noise figure, even in the millimeter-wave frequency region). Such electrical performance is obtained from the combined use of an advanced technology (fT and fmax > 250 GHz, LG <; 0, 1 μm) and appropriate design methodologies that take into account electrical specifications and system constraints in the context of the targeted application. In this contribution, we will present both the performance of the employed technology (OMMIC 70 nm GaAs mHEMT) and the related low-noise design methodologies that have led to the realization of four different LNAs operating from 5 GHz up to 100 GHz and beyond.

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