Millimeter-wave transmitter on a chip, method of calibration thereof and millimeter-wave power sensor on a chip

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9667357-B2
Application number	US-201414262727-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 26, 2014
Priority date	Apr 26, 2014
Publication date	May 30, 2017
Grant date	May 30, 2017

Abstract

The present invention relates to a millimeter-wave transmitter on a chip comprising at least one transmit path coupleable to an oscillator, and an on-chip power sensor to measure at least a portion of a transmit power transmitted over the at least one transmit path. The present invention further relates to a method of calibrating a millimeter-wave transmitter on a chip and an on-chip power sensor coupleable to at least one transmit path of a millimeter-wave transmitter. The embodiments of the present invention provide a direct measure of transmit power provided within an individual one of the transmit paths of the millimeter-wave transmitter.

First claim

We claim:

1. A millimeter-wave transmitter on a chip comprising:
at least one transmit path of the millimeter-wave transmitter coupleable to an oscillator, the at least one transmit path including an on-chip power estimator to measure at least a portion of a transmit power transmitted over the at least one transmit path; and
a calibration path of the millimeter-wave transmitter coupleable to the oscillator and including an on-chip power sensor configured to measure at least a portion of the transmit power transmitted over the at least one transmit path.

2. The millimeter-wave transmitter on a chip according to claim 1 , wherein the on-chip power sensor is coupled to the calibration path via a directional coupler or a power splitter.

3. The millimeter-wave transmitter according to claim 2 , wherein the calibration path is terminated by an antenna element or an on-chip termination.

4. The millimeter-wave transmitter according to claim 1 , wherein the individual one of the at least one transmit path and/or the calibration path comprises an amplifier.

5. The millimeter-wave transmitter according to claim 1 , wherein the oscillator is a voltage controlled oscillator.

6. The millimeter-wave transmitter according to claim 1 , wherein a selected one of the at least one transmit path comprises a switch for selectively coupling the selected one of the at least one transmit path to the on-chip power sensor.

7. The millimeter-wave transmitter according to claim 1 , wherein the on-chip power sensor is implemented as a layer.

8. The millimeter-wave transmitter according to claim 7 , wherein the on-chip power sensor is implemented as a resistor formed on a layer within the chip.

9. The millimeter-wave transmitter according to claim 8 , wherein the layer is a layer used to implement at least one base contact layer of a plurality of transistors within the chip.

10. The millimeter-wave transmitter according to claim 8 , wherein the layer is a silicide polysilicon layer used to connect the base region of transistors within the chip.

11. The millimeter-wave transmitter according to claim 8 , wherein the resistor is a temperature dependent resistor.

12. The millimeter-wave transmitter according to claim 1 , wherein the oscillator is arranged on the chip.

13. A method of calibrating a millimeter-wave transmitter on a chip, the method comprising:
providing transmit power within at least one transmit path of the millimeter-wave transmitter, the at least one transmit path including a power estimator;
directing at least a portion of the provided transmit power along a calibration path to a power sensor within the calibration path on the chip; and
measuring the portion of the provided transmit power at the power sensor on the chip.

14. The method according to claim 13 , further comprising:
calibrating the power estimator within the at least one transmit path and/or a second power estimator within the calibration path in response to the measured portion.

15. The method according to claim 13 , wherein the directing is such that at times the portion of the provided transmit power directed to the power sensor vanishes.

16. An on-chip power sensor coupleable to at least one transmit path of a millimeter-wave transmitter, the on-chip power sensor comprising:
a resistor formed in a layer of the chip, wherein a resistance of the resistor is temperature dependent;
a quarter wavelength element coupled to the resistor; and
a capacitor coupled to the resistor via the quarter wavelength element and in parallel to the resistor,
wherein the on-chip power sensor is configured to measure at least a portion of a transmit power transmitted over the at least one transmit path of the millimeter-wave transmitter.

17. The on-chip power sensor according to claim 16 , wherein the resistor is formed by a material deposited within a layer of the chip.

18. The on-chip power sensor according to claim 17 , wherein the layer comprises at least one base contact of a plurality of transistors within the chip.

19. The millimeter-wave transmitter according to claim 1 , wherein the on-chip power sensor is configured to measure the transmit power at a higher accuracy than the measurement of the transmit power by the on-chip power estimator.

20. The millimeter-wave transmitter according to claim 1 , wherein the on-chip power sensor is a temperature dependent resistor and the on-chip power estimator includes a diode.

21. The millimeter-wave transmitter according to claim 1 , wherein the calibration path further comprises a second on-chip power estimator configured to measure at least a portion of the transmit power transmitted over the at least one transmit path.

22. The millimeter-wave transmitter according to claim 21 , wherein the second on-chip power estimator and the on-chip power estimator within the at least one transmit path are identical.

23. The millimeter-wave transmitter according to claim 21 , wherein the second on-chip power estimator and the on-chip power sensor are coupled to the calibration path via a power splitter.

24. The millimeter-wave transmitter according to claim 23 , wherein the on-chip power sensor is configured to measure the transmit power transmitted over the at least one transmit path based on a ratio in which the power splitter divides a transmit power on the calibration path between the on-chip power sensor and the second on-chip power estimator.

25. The millimeter-wave transmitter according to claim 1 , wherein the least one transmit path and the calibration path are coupleable to the oscillator via a power divider.

Assignees

• Infineon Technologies Ag

Inventors

• Knapp Herbert
• Wursthorn Jonas

Classifications

• G01R19/0084

  Measuring voltage only · CPC title

• G01R21/00

  Arrangements for measuring electric power or power factor (G01R7/12 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G01R21/12

  in circuits having distributed constants · CPC title

• H04B17/102 Primary

  Power radiated at antenna · CPC title

• G01R19/0092

  Measuring current only · CPC title