A 135-190 GHz Broadband Self-Biased Frequency Doubler using Four-Anode Schottky Diodes

This paper describes the design and demonstration of a 135-190 GHz self-biased broadband frequency doubler based on planar Schottky diodes. Unlike traditional bias schemes, the diodes are biased in resistive mode by a self-bias resistor; thus, no additional bias voltage is needed for the doubler. The Schottky diodes in this verification are micron-scaled devices with an anode area of 6.6 μm² and an epitaxial layer thickness of 0.26 μm. For accurate design of the doubler, the 3D-EM model of the Schottky diode is built up to extract the parasitic parameters induced by the diode package when frequency rises up to the terahertz band. In order to implement broadband working, input waveguide steps, output suspended microstrip steps, and output probe with bias filter are all used as matching elements for impedance matching. Measured results show that the doubler exhibits a 3 dB bandwidth of 34% from 135 GHz to 190 GHz, with a conversion efficiency of above 4% when supplied with 100 mW of input power. A 17.8 mW peak output power with a 10.2% efficiency was measured at 166 GHz when the input power was 174 mW. The measured results agree well with the simulated results, which indicates that the self-bias scheme for Schottky diode-based frequency multipliers is feasible and effective.