Reconfigurable 2.4-/5-GHz Dual-Band Transmitter Front-End Supporting 1024-QAM for WLAN 802.11ax Application in 40-nm CMOS

Abstract

This article presents a new design methodology of a reconfigurable dual-band output matching network with high efficiency. The implemented output matching network achieves a passive efficiency of 71.6% and 75% at 2.4 and 5.5 GHz, respectively. Based on the proposed output matching network, a transmitter and a standalone power amplifier (PA) supporting 2.4-/5-GHz dual-band operation for the emerging wireless local area network (WLAN) 802.11ax application are designed and fabricated in 40-nm CMOS technology. In 2.4-and 5-GHz WLAN bands, the PA achieves a P sat of 23 and 21.9-22.4 dBm with power-added efficiency (PAE) of 27% and 24.2%-28.2%, respectively. At 2.442 GHz, the transmitter delivers 8.1-dBm average output power for 40-MHz, 1024-quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) 802.11ax signal while meeting the standard specification of error vector magnitude (EVM) below − 35 dB. In 5-GHz operating mode, the transmitter achieves an average output power of 6.72-6.95 dBm with the EVM of − 35 dB for 80-MHz, 1024-QAM 802.11ax signal. The PA and transmitter front end are the first published designs for dual-band WLAN 802.11ax application in the literature.

Dual-Band Reconfigurable Impedance Matching Networks

“…In [6], semiconductor switches are used on Transmission Line Transformers (TLTs) to achieve matching at different frequencies. In [7], a T-network matching network is loaded by two switched capacitors to provide matching at 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz. However, these solutions operate at a single frequency at a time and cannot provide simultaneous matching at different bands.…”

A fully integrated GaAs HBT power amplifier with enhanced efficiency for 5-GHz WLAN applications

“…A higher-order 1024 QAM was adopted by 802.11ax, boosting the data rate up to 10 Gbps [8,9,10]. However, wider bandwidth and more complex modulation schemes lead to a large peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR), which requires a highly linear and efficient PA across the 5-GHz band [11,12,13].…”

C‐band 180‐nm CMOS transmitter front‐end with a three‐stage power amplifier for phased array applications

“…High‐performance microwave transmitter (TX) front‐end is an essential component in phased array systems. Silicon CMOS TX front‐end research has become popular in recent decades, due to its low‐power consumption, high integration, and low cost 1–6 . However, for practical applications, the output power level, the linearity, and the efficiency of a silicon CMOS TX front‐end still need to be improved.…”

“…Silicon CMOS TX front-end research has become popular in recent decades, due to its low-power consumption, high integration, and low cost. [1][2][3][4][5][6] However, for practical applications, the output power level, the linearity, and the efficiency of a silicon CMOS TX front-end still need to be improved. The output power, the power efficiency, and the linearity of a TX front-end are mainly determined by its power amplifiers (PAs).…”