MICROWAVE ELECTRONICS

Questions and short problems

G. Ghione - M. Pirola - V. Camarchia
Dipartimento di Elettronica, Politecnico di Torino
V2.3 - March 2011
Contents
1 Introduction to RF and microwave integrated circuits 2
2 Passive components for RF and microwave circuits: Distributed elements, Lumped
elements 3
3 Scattering parameters, gains, stability 4
4 Active RF and microwave components 5
5 Small- and large-signal RF FET circuit models 6
6 Linear ampliers, couplers 7
7 Noise modeling and low-noise amplier design 8
1
1 Introduction to RF and microwave integrated circuits
1. Q Dene RF, microwaves and millimeter waves from the standpoint of frequency allocation.
2. Q Suppose a radar has to be designed to detect objects of the average size of 1 cm: is an
RF operating frequency adequate to this? Explain why/why not. Suggest if the case a more
suitable frequency range.
3. 1 A dielectric medium has c
r
= 9. Evaluate the free-space wavelength at 10 GHz and the
wavelength in the dielectric medium.
4. Q Identify the L and the K bands (frequency limits). In what frequency band are GSM
cellphones operating?
5. Q Explain why signals cannot conveniently transmitted in baseband through a Hertzian chan-
nel, but rather they have to be upconverted through analog or digital modulations. Assume
as an example e.g. a hi- signal with frequency between ~DC and ~20 kHz.
6. Q Explain why transmitting the human voice in baseband through a portable phone would be
for many reasons unpractical.
7. Q In a cellular system each cell exploits the same frequency channels (e.g. around 2 GHz),
they are allocated to dierent users. Explain why there is no interference between nearby cells.
8. Q Describe a basic RF RX/TX (receiver/transmitter) scheme.
9. Q List the basic RX section building blocks, starting from the antenna down to the downcon-
version mixer.
10. Q List the basic TX section building blocks, starting from the upconversion mixer up to the
antenna.
11. Q What is the dierence between a homodyne ad a heterodyne receiver?
12. Q What is the dierence between a low noise, high gain and maximum power amplier?
13. Q What are the typical features of planar vs. waveguide microwave circuits?
14. Q Explain the dierences between a hybrid and a monolithic microwave circuit.
15. Q List in order of increasing frequency range the following semiconductors: indium phosphide,
silicon, gallium arsenide.
16. Q Explain the dierence between a lumped and a distributed-parameter circuit. Why distrib-
uted elements cannot be integrated in an RF circuit?
17. Q Quote a few microwave eld-eect or bipolar transistors with the related semiconductor
material.
18. Q Explain the dierence between analog large-signal and small-signal models. Clarify what
model is linear and what model is nonlinear.
19. Q Explain the dierence between a memoriless model and a model with memory.
2
2 Passive components for RF and microwave circuits: Dis-
tributed elements, Lumped elements
1. Q Explain the dierence between a TEM and a quasi-TEM transmission line.
2. Q A lossy transmission line has per-unit-length parameters L, C, R, G. Express the charac-
teristic impedance and complex propagation constant of the line in terms of the parameters
for the general case and in the high-frequency approximation. Identify, in the high-frequency
approximation, the propagation constant and the attenuation.
3. 1 A lossless quasi-TEM line has a 50 impedance and an eective permittivity c
eff
= 2.
Evaluate the per-unit-length parameters L, C. Compute the guided wavelength at 10 GHz.
4. 1 A lossy quasi-TEM line has a 50 impedance.The dielectric attenuation is 0.1 dB/cm while
the conductor attenuation is 1 dB/cm at 1 GHz. Evaluate the per-unit-length parameters R,
G. Estimate their values and the resulting dielectric and conductor attenuation at 10 GHz.
Assuming an eective permittivity c
e
= 7, evaluate the total loss over 1 guided wavelength
at 10 GHz.
5. 1 The conductivity of a 2 jm thick conductor is o = 1 10
5
S/m. Evaluate the frequency at
which the skin-eect penetration depth is equal to the conductor thickness.
6. 1 A lossless transmission line with 50 characteristic impedance and 5 mm guided wavelength
is closed on 7
L
= 50 +,50 . Compute the input impedance for a 2.5 and 1.25 mm long line.
7. Q A lossless line is innitely long. Is the input impedance always equal to the characteristic
impedance? Explain.
8. QA quasi-TEM line has a per-unit-length capacitance of 5 pF/mm and an in-vacuo capacitance
of 2 pF/mm. What is the eective permittivity?
9. Q Sketch the cross section of a microstrip and of a coplanar waveguide.
10. Q A microstrip on 0.5 mm thick allumina substrate has a strip width of 0.5 mm. What is
(approximately) the characteristic impedance?
11. Q Sketch the attenuation of a microstrip and of a coplanar waveguide as a function of the strip
width.
12. Q Sketch the behaviour of the attenuation of a transmission line as a function of frequency.
13. Q Sketch a strip, a loop and a spiral inductor. What usually limits the frequency range on
which integrated RF and microwave inductors can operate?
14. Q List some possible uses of inductors in integrated RF circuits.
15. Q Sketch an interdigitated and a MIM capacitor.
16. 1 In a MIM capacitor the dielectric is 100 nm thick, width permittivity equal to 2. What is
the capacitance per mm
2
area?
17. Q What are chip inductors, capacitors and resistors? are they used in hybrid or integrated
implementations?
3
18. Q What is a coaxial-to-microstrip transition?
19. Q What are the main dierences between a coplanar and a microstrip circuit layout?
3 Scattering parameters, gains, stability
1. 1 The open-circuit voltage of a real generator is \
0
= 10 V and the internal impedance is
7
G
= 50+,50 . What is the generator available power? What is the load impedance yielding
power match to the generator?
2. 1 Suppose the normalization impedance is 50 .Locate on a Smith chart (approximately) the
following impedances: 7
L1
= 50 ; 7
L2
= 50 + ,50 ; 7
L3
= 50 ,50 ; 7
L4
= 100 ;
7
L5
= 25 ; 7
L6
= 0 ; 7
L7
= 1 .
3. 1 A transmission line with length equal to `
g
,4 is loaded with a 100 impedance. The
characteristic impedance is 50 . Locate on the Smith chart the load impedance and input
impedance. What is 7
i
? This structure is called a quarter-wavelength transformer.
4. 1 A resistive two-port has the following impedance matrix:
7 = 1

2 1
1 2

Sketch a possible structure (implementing the above impedance matrix and evaluate the scat-
tering matrix (assume the normalization impedance 1
0
= 1) .
5. 1 A reactive two-port has the following impedance matrix:
7 = ,A

2 1
1 2

Evaluate the scattering matrix assuming 1

0
= A and check that the properties of the S-matrix
of a lossless two-port are veried.
6. 1 A real generator has internal impedance 7
G
= 50 ,50 and open circuit voltage \
0
= 10
V. Assuming 1
0
= 50 derive the power wave equivalent circuit (
G
and /
0
).
7. 1 A load exhibits a reection coecient equal in magnitude to -10 dB. What part (in %) of
the incident power is reected?
8. 1 A real generator with
G
= 0.2 and /
0
= 1 W
1=2
is connected to a load with
L
= 0.5.
Evaluate the power delivered to the load and the maximum available power of the generator.
9. 1 A loaded two-port has the following characteristics: 1
in
= 10 mW; 1
av;in
= 20 mW;
1
L
= 100 mW; 1
av;out
= 300 mW. Evaluate the two-port gains G
op
, G
av
, G
t
.
10. 1 A two-port has the following scattering matrix (1
0
= 50 ):
o =

0 0
10 0

Evaluate the two-port MAG. Is the two-port unilateral?

4
11. 1 A two-port has the following scattering matrix (1
0
= 50 ):
o =

0.1 0.01
10 0.1

Compute the input and output reection coecients when the two-port is loaded on 100 .
12. Q Maximum power transfer between generator and load through a two-port implies simulta-
neous power matching at both ports. Is this condition always possible?
13. 1 A two-port has 1 = 2, o
21
= 15(1 + ,) and o
12
= 0.1. Evaluate the two-port MAG and
MSG. Assume the two-port is unconditionally stable.
14. Q A two-port has 1 = 2.5, j
S
j = 1.5.Is the two-port unconditionally stable?
15. 1 Discuss the stability (according to the one- and two-parameter criteria) of the two-port with
scattering matrix:
o =

,0.1 10
0.1 0.1

.
Suppose now to exchange ports 1 and 2, the new scattering matrix becomes:
o
0
=

0.1 0.1
10 ,0.1

.
Does the 2-port stability change?
16. Q Discuss the stability (according to the one- and two-parameter criteria) of the unilateral
two-port with scattering matrix:
o =

,1.1 0
5 0.1

17. Q Is a unilateral device always unconditionally stable?

18. Q Suppose a device in unconditionally stable above )
0
and potentially unstable below )
0
.
Qualitatively sketch the behaviour of the device MAG and MSG as a function of frequency.
19. Q Consider two passive two-ports, one reactive (lossless), the other resistive (lossy). What
kind of property do we expect from their stability factors?
4 Active RF and microwave components
1. Q Sketch the equilibrium band diagram (1
c
, 1
v
, 1
F
) of an intrinsic semiconductor assuming

c
=
v
. Repeat for an :-doped and j-doped semiconductor. Repeat for a semiconductor
under high injection conditions (sketch the position of the quasi-Fermi levels).
2. Q Quote some compound semiconductors: wide-gap, narrow-gap, general purpose. What are
wide-gap semiconductors for?
3. Q Explain the composition of the AlGaAs and InGaAsP alloys.
4. Q Explain the purpose of compound semiconductor alloys.
5
5. Q Suppose you want to grow a lattice-matched layer of InGaAs on an InP substrate. What is
the In composition? Repeat for InAlAs.
6. Q Explain the meaning of lattice-matched and pseudomorphic heterostructures.
7. Q List the following substrates in order of availability and maturity (one of the materials is
not an available substrate today!): GaAs, GaN, SiC, Si, InP.
8. Q Explain why a GaAs substrate is semi-insulating, while a Si substrate is not.
9. Q Sketch the bandstructure (energy-momentum relation) of a direct-bandgap vs. an indirect-
bandgap semiconductor.
10. Q Qualitatively explain why the velocity-eld characteristic of electrons in a compound semi-
conductor rst increases, then decreases and nally saturates.
11. Q Dene a heterostructure and sketch the related band diagram.
12. Q Explain how a quantum well can be exploited as the conducting channel of a eld-eect
transistor.
13. Q Sketch the structure of a GaAs MESFET and the DC characteristics of the device.
14. Q Sketch the structure of a GaAs-based PHEMT and the DC characteristics of the device.
15. Q Sketch the structure of an InP-based PHEMT and the DC characteristics of the device.
16. Q List in order of performance (cuto frequency) the following devices: InP-based PHEMT,
GaAs-based conventional HEMT, Si-based MOSFET, GaAs-based MESFET, GaAs-based
PHEMT.
17. Q What is the heterostructure bipolar transistor? Why are the frequency performances of this
device better than the ones of a conventional bipolar?
18. Q In a SiGe HBT-based circuit, where do you nd Ge?
19. Q Sketch the cross-section of a GaN-based HEMT. Quote a few advantages of widegap semi-
conductors.
5 Small- and large-signal RF FET circuit models
1. Q Explain what are physics-based models, circuit models, black-box models.
2. Q Sketch a MESFET small-signal equivalent circuit and separate the extrinsic parasitics from
the intrinsic model.
3. Q Sketch the behaviour of the scattering parameters of a microwave FET.
4. Q Dene the cuto frequency of a FET and evaluate it from the intrinsic FET parameters.
5. Q Dene the maximum oscillation frequency of a FET.
6. Q Derive the )
max
of a unilateral FET from the intrinsic parameters.
7. Q What is the typical behaviour of the MAG as a function of frequency?
6
8. Q Explain how the FET equivalent circuit can be extracted from measured S-parameters.
9. Q Sketch the large-signal equivalent circuit of a FET in DC and explain the relationship of
the output generator to the device transconductance and output resistance.
10. Q Explain how a nonlinear capacitor can be derived from small-signal measurements of the
same.
11. Q Sketch a quadratic Curtice model and justify the presence of diodes in this model.
12. 1 A FET has 1
DS
! 1, \
T0
= 2 V, drain current at
GS
= 0 equal to 1
DSS
= 100 mA,
output conductance 01
D
,0\
DS
= 100 mS for
GS
= 0,
DS
! 0. Evaluate the values of the
parameters of the quadratic Curtice model ,, c, \
T0
, `.
13. Q Sketch some DC and DC pulsed VI curves exhibiting low-frequency dispersion eects.
14. Q To what device does the Chalmers model specially apply?
6 Linear ampliers, couplers
1. Q Explain the dierence between a maximum gain, a low-noise and a power amplier.
2. Q Dene a narrowband, a wideband and an ultrawideband amplier.
3. Q Explain the design ow of a narrowband maximum gain RF amplier.
4. Q Sketch the maximum gain, low-noise, maximum power working point of a FET.
5. Q Explain the operation and structure of a bias-T.
6. Q Sketch some possible FET stabilization circuits and explain why those circuits include
reactive elements together with resistive ones.
7. Q Explain why the narrowband design strategy with reactive matching sections cannot be
entirely extended to wideband design.
8. Q Justify why a wideband amplier with input reactive matching cannot have at the same
time at gain and input matching.
9. Q Sketch a balanced amplier and explain why this circuit is able to provide at gain and
good input matching.
10. Q What is a directional coupler? Imagine that an ideal 3dB, 90

coupler is fed with a 100 mW

signal. What is the power on the coupled and the transmission port? What is the power on
the insulated port? What is the phase dierence between the coupled and transmission ports?
11. Q Sketch the layout of a Lange coupler and of a branch-line coupler and indicate the centerband
dimensions.
12. Q Is the hybrid ring a 90

or 180

coupler?
13. 1 A Wilkinson divider on 50 loads operates at 10 GHz. Assuming c
eff
= 4 evaluate the
lengths and characteristic impedance of the divider arms.
7
14. Q Justify the fact that a balanced amplier has the same gain of a single stage but twice as
the maximum power.
15. Q Explain the purpose of an RF parallel / series feedback amplier in terms of gain atness
and input and output matching.
16. 1 We want to design 10 dB amplier with parallel / series feedback. What is the minimum
device jo
21
j?
17. Q Explain the operation of a distributed amplier. What happens if the phase velocities on
the input and output transmission lines are dierent? What limits the amplier bandwidth?
7 Noise modeling and low-noise amplier design
1. Q Explain why noise causes power transfer in a circuit even if it is a zero-average random
signal.
2. 1 A voltage noise source has a power spectrum of 1 (nV)
2
/Hz
1
. Assuming a bandwidth of 500
MHz, evaluate the mean square value of the noise voltage and the noise available power on 50
.Evaluate the noise available power spectral density of the generator.
3. Q Sketch the series and parallel equivalent circuits for a noisy one-port and for a two-port.
4. Q Explain the physical cause of electrical noise from microscopic uctuations.
5. 1 A resistor with 1 = 1 k operates with a bandwidth of 5 GHz. Evaluate the power spectral
density at 300 K. Evaluate the spectral density of the resistor noise voltage and the r.m.s.
noise voltage value over the specied bandwidth.
6. Q Sketch the PRC noise model for a FET.
7. 1 In the circuit in Fig. 1, assume 7
1
= 50 +,50 , 7
L
= 50 ,50 ; the two noise generators
are the thermal noise (Nyquist law) generators of the two impedances, respectively (i.e. i
n1
is associated to 7
1
, c
n2
to 7
L
). Assuming a 1 GHz bandwidth, evaluate at 300 K the total
power on the load.
i
n1
+
e
n2
v
L
Z
1
Z
L
i
n1
+
e
n2
v
L
Z
1
Z
L
Figure 1: Circuit from Es.7.
1
Spectral units like V
2
=Hz, A
2
=Hz etc., when the V or A unit is associated to a multiplier, like in V
2
=Hz, must
be interpreted as (V)
2
=Hz, that is 10
12
V/Hz. This meaning has been explicited in the text whenever possible.
8
8. Q Dene the noise gure of a two-port.
9. 1 In the circuit in Fig. 2 compute the minimum noise gure and optimum generator impedance
assuming 7
1
= 10 , q
m
= 500 mS. The two (uncorrelated) noise generators c
1
and i
1
are
white, with spectral density equal to 100 (pV)
2
,Hz and 100 (pA)
2
,Hz, respectively. The
system bandwidth is 100 MHz.
V*
+
Z
s
e
ns
+
Z
1
e
1
g
m
V*
i
t
i
1
V*
+
Z
s
+
Z
s
e
ns
+
Z
1
e
1
g
m
V*
i
t
i
1
Figure 2: Circuit from Es. 9.
10. Q What is the behaviour of the noise gure with respect to the minimum when the generator
impedance is varied with respect to the optimum value?
11. Q Discuss minimum noise vs. maximum gain amplier design.
12. Q In a minimum noise amplier, what is the associated gain G
ass
? Can the associated gain
be larger than the MAG?
13. 1 Two ampliers are cascaded (50 design) with G
av;1
= 10 dB, G
av;1
= 20 dB, NF
1
= 1
dB, NF
2
= 6 dB. Evaluate the total noise gure according to the Friis formula.
14. 1 A resistive attenuator designed on 50 has 3 dB loss. What is the noise gure?
15. 1 An inductive series feedback amplier must be designed on 50 at 10 GHz. Assuming
C
GS
= 0.2 pF and q
m
= 200 mS, evaluate 1
S
and 1
G
.Explain the purpose of the inductive
series feedback LNA design vs. the conventional LNA approach through input noise matching.
9