Design and fabrication of a wideband MMIC low-noise amplifier using Q-matching

In this research, a wideband monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) low-noise amplifier (LNA) was designed using the ETRI (Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute) library. An impedance-matching network was designed using a low Q-matching method for obtaining wideband characteristics for the MMIC LNA. Simulation results showed that the S₂₁ gains were 14.8∼15.4 dB and the noise figures were 1.92∼2.95 dB in the frequency range of 1.5∼2.5 GHz. The designed MMIC LNA was fabricated and then bonded to a test PCB (Print Circuit Board) for RF measurements. The measured results showed S₂₁ gains of 10.1∼12.2 dB and noise figures of 1.7∼2.1 dB for the fabricated wideband MMIC LNA in the frequency range of 1.5∼2.5 GHz. Also, a maximum output power of 10.83 dBm, IMD₃ of 37.17 dBc, and IP₃ of 12.59 dBm were obtained at the center frequency of 2 GHz. The chip size of the fabricated wideband MMIC LNA was 1.4×1.4 mm².