A ka-band low noise amplifier using forward combining technique

This letter presents a wideband low noise amplifier (LNA) implemented in 0.15 μm InGaAs pHEMT technology. The forward combining technique is proposed to boost the amplifier gain at Ka band. Through gain enhancement, the noise characteristic of the amplifier can also be reduced. The Ka-band LNA exhibits a very wide 3 dB bandwidth from 29 to 44 GHz with the power gain of 14.2 dB. The measured noise figure varies between 2.0 and 3.3 dB from 26.5 to 40 GHz. The supply voltage of the circuit is 1.2 V and the power consumption is 38 mW. The overall chip size is 650μm× 720μm. © 2010 IEEE.