Chips: HP Introduces First Microwave ICs Using GaAs HBT Technology; New MMICs Combine Low Phase Noise, Low Power Consumption, Single-Voltage Operation with High Reliability - Product Announcement

Edge: Work-Group Computing Report, Nov 2, 1998

Hewlett-Packard Company Monday introduced a series of eight microwave integrated circuits featuring indium-gallium-phosphide (InGaP)-emitter, gallium arsenide (GaAs) heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT) technology. The benefits of HBT technology include the potential for high gain per stage, operation from a single-power-supply voltage, low phase noise, high linearity, excellent uniformity and repeatability to ensure high production yields. A large proportion of today's microwave communications systems, electronic defense systems and measurement instruments are built around frequency translation and phase-locked loop technology. Today's complex signals require that the frequency-generation and conversion components have very low phase noise, which avoids destroying information content. HP's new HBT-based microwave monolithic integrated circuits (MMICs) address these applications. The HMMC-3002, -3004 and -3008, 200MHz to 16GHz divide-by-two, divide-by-four and divide-by-eight prescalers feature very low phase noise, -153dBc/Hz at 100kHz offset and operation from a single positive or negative supply of 4.5 to 6.5 volts. They also incorporate on-chip pre- and post-amplifiers for high input power sensitivity (-20dBm to 10dBm from 1GHz to 10GHz) and excellent reverse isolation (that is, divided output frequency appearing at the RF input port: typ. -75dB @ 12GHz input with both RF outputs terminated). The post-amplifiers also allow selection of either high ( 5.5dBm) or low (0dBm) output power modes. The HMMC-3022, -3024, and -3028 are 12GHz high-efficiency divide-by-two, -four and -eight prescalers operating at about half the current as the HMMC-300X series (30mA vs. 60mA in low output power mode). Output power level is selectable at 0dBm or -6.0dBm. The HMMC-5200 (DC-20GHz) and the HMMC-5220 (DC-15GHz) Darlington-feedback HBT amplifier chips provide 50-ohm input and output match and operate from a single positive supply (greater than 4.75V). A typical device draws 44mA and dissipates 190mW, while providing 9.5dB /-1dB gain across the band and 12dBm output power (at 1dB gain compression) at 1GHz. Both amplifiers have a low 1/f noise corner of less than 20kHz. The InGaP-emitter HBT process used in these devices achieves fT (transition frequency) and fMAX (maximum frequency of oscillation) values of 65GHz and 75GHz, respectively. Measurements made by HP, based on more than 15 million circuit-hours of reliability test data, indicate that mean time to failure (MTTF) values appear to be an order of magnitude larger than values measured on both internally produced and commercially available AlGaAs-emitter HBT circuits.

Post-wafer fab processing includes the following:
o   100 percent on-wafer RF testing;
o   SAW separation; and
o   visual inspection.
U.S. Unit Pricing and Availability
Units:  1,000 to 2,499
HMMC-3002            $27.35
HMMC-3004             27.35
HMMC-3008             27.35
HMMC-3022             27.35
HMMC-3024             27.35
HMMC-3028             27.35
HMMC-5200             21.40
HMMC-5220             15.10

The new MMICs are available now. Additional information is available at http://www.hp.com/go/rf. Information about HP and its products can be found on the World Wide Web at http://www.hp.com.