Measurement Procedure Compares Gilbert Micromixers

Oct. 15, 2008

To determine a Gilbert mixer's frequency response for each local oscillator (LO), RF, and intermediatefrequency (IF) stage, a measurement approach has been proposed by Jin-Siang Syu, Chinchun Meng, and Chih-Kai Wu from Taiwan's National Chiao Tung University. Guo-Wei Huang from National Nano Device Laboratories also took part in this work. The researchers demonstrated wideband downconversion mixers using a 0.35-m silicongermanium (SiGe) heterojunction-bipolar-transistor (HBT) and a 2-m gallium-indium-phosphide (GaInP)/gallium-arsenide (GaAs) HBT.

The SiGe HBT micromixer achieved conversion gain of 6 dB, IP₁ dB of 17.5 dBm, and an input third-order intercept point of 7 dBm with a 3.3-V supply voltage and power consumption of 37.5 mW. In contrast, the GaInP/GaAs micromixer achieved conversion gain of 25 dB, IP₁ dB of 25 dBm, and a third-order intercept point of 15 dBm with the 5-V supply voltage and 50 mW of power consumption. See "Comparison of Wideband Gilbert Micromixers Using SiGe HBT and GaInP/ GaAs HBT Technologies," Microwave And Optical Technology Letters, September 2008, p. 2254.

About the Author

Nancy Friedrich

RF Product Marketing Manager for Aerospace Defense, Keysight Technologies

Nancy Friedrich is RF Product Marketing Manager for Aerospace Defense at Keysight Technologies. Nancy Friedrich started a career in engineering media about two decades ago with a stint editing copy and writing news for Electronic Design. A few years later, she began writing full time as technology editor at Wireless Systems Design. In 2005, Nancy was named editor-in-chief of Microwaves & RF, a position she held (along with other positions as group content head) until 2018. Nancy then moved to a position at UBM, where she was editor-in-chief of Design News and content director for tradeshows including DesignCon, ESC, and the Smart Manufacturing shows.