MONOLITHIC MICROWAVE INTEGRATED CIRCUITS BASED ON GaAs MESFET TECHNOLOGY

1995 ◽  
Vol 06 (01) ◽  
pp. 91-124
Author(s):  
INDER J. BAHL
Keyword(s):  
Integrated Circuits ◽  
Integrated Circuit ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Performance Status ◽  
Microwave Integrated Circuits ◽  
Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuits ◽  
Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuit ◽  
Compact Size ◽  
Commercial Market ◽  
Viable Approach

Advanced military microwave systems are demanding increased integration, reliability, radiation hardness, compact size and lower cost when produced in large volume, whereas the microwave commercial market, including wireless communications, mandates low cost circuits. Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuit (MMIC) technology provides an economically viable approach to meeting these needs. In this paper the design considerations for several types of MMICs and their performance status are presented. Multi-function integrated circuits that advance the MMIC technology are described, including integrated microwave/digital functions and a highly integrated transceiver at C-band.

scholarly journals Backside Etching of GaAs Devices

1997 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 18-19
Author(s):  
Jeffrey A. Mittereder
Keyword(s):  
Integrated Circuits ◽  
Failure Analysis ◽  
Integrated Circuit ◽  
Substrate Thickness ◽  
Microwave Integrated Circuits ◽  
Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuits ◽  
The Past ◽  
Gaas Devices ◽  
Discrete Device

The following is a technique for analyzing the area underneath a GaAs integrated circuit or discrete device which may aid in failure analysis. This procedure has been used in the past by the microelectronics community, and it is reviewed here for GaAs monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMICs) and discrete devices. Because it is a destructive method, we use it in our lab after all other testing is completed. The substrate thickness of the GaAs is ∼4 mils (25 μm).

GaAs Integrated Circuit Manufacturing

MRS Bulletin ◽  
1992 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 42-44
Author(s):  
Jesús A. del Alamo
Keyword(s):  
Integrated Circuits ◽  
Integrated Circuit ◽  
World Wide ◽  
Microwave Integrated Circuits ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Technical Problems ◽  
Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuits ◽  
Integrated Circuit Manufacturing ◽  
Alternative Technologies ◽  
Actual Figure

In the mid 1980s, reports of exciting progress from GaAs integrated circuit (IC) performance from R&D laboratories world-wide portrayed a rosy future for GaAs. Now, in the early 1990s, true to their reputation, GaAs ICs are still largely the stuff of the future. In fact, deployment of GaAs ICs in real systems has been disappointingly slow. In 1985, the commercial GaAs IC market was forecast to reach $800 million by 1990. The actual figure was only $142 million. To put this number in perspective, it represents less than 0.4% of the total Si IC merchant market.In a recent survey of the GaAs industry, Kato explored the causes for GaAs troubles, with startling findings. The issue certainly does not seem to be a performance one because GaAs ICs are sufficiently ahead of alternative technologies. Material quality is not a problem either. Extremely high-quality 3 in. and 4 in. GaAs wafers are now on the market at reasonable prices. On the other hand, several serious deficiencies center around IC manufacturing. The price of the final GaAs ICs is perceived as not competitive with alternative technologies. This is rooted in the low yields and poor repeatability of the manufacturing lines. A great contribution to cost is time-consuming functionality testing, particularly for analog products. For MMICs (monolithic microwave integrated circuits) in particular, final testing can easily become the bottleneck of the entire fabrication process. There is also much uncertainty about reliability. This might explain to a large extent the low customer confidence in the technology. Kato reports that fundamental technical problems in making GaAs ICs are still believed to remain.

Using the secondary electrons (SE) of SEM with NIST‘s MONSEL-II program to obtain improved linewidth measurements and slope angles of line edges on a MMIC GaAs device

1996 ◽  
Vol 54 ◽  
pp. 944-945
Author(s):  
Richard G. Sartore
Keyword(s):  
Integrated Circuits ◽  
Plasma Etching ◽  
Microwave Integrated Circuits ◽  
Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuits ◽  
Thick Gold ◽  
Gaas Devices ◽  
Source Distance ◽  
Margin Of Error ◽  
Dimensional Measurements ◽  
Barrier Metal

In the evaluation of GaAs devices from the MMIC (Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuits) program for Army applications, there was a requirement to obtain accurate linewidth measurements on the nominal 0.5 micrometer gate lengths used to fabricate these devices. Preliminary measurements indicated a significant variation (typically 10 % to 30% but could be more) in the critical dimensional measurements of the gate length, gate to source distance and gate to drain distance. Passivation introduced a margin of error, which was removed by plasma etching. Additionally, the high aspect ratio (4-5) of the thick gold (Au) conductors also introduced measurement difficulties. The final measurements were performed after the thick gold conductor was removed and only the barrier metal remained, which was approximately 250 nanometer thick platinum on GaAs substrate. The thickness was measured using the penetration voltage method. Linescan of the secondary electron signal as it scans across the gate is shown in Figure 1.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document