V-Band On-Chip Dipole-Based Antenna

A V-band on-chip dipole-based antenna for 60 GHz wireless personal area network (WPAN) application is implemented using WIN 0.15 mu m pHEMT process. The fabricated antenna has a compact size of 0.9 mm(2), including test pads. The antenna comprises a half-wavelength dipole element and two tilted and slotted dipole elements to realize a wider impedance bandwidth than conventional wire dipole antennas, and provides endfire radiation patterns with high front-to-back ratio. The antenna performance is characterized using S-parameter, two-antenna (identical), three-antenna, and radiation pattern measurement methods for return loss, transmission gain, absolute gain, and radiation patterns. Measurement results shows that the on-chip antenna achieves a VSWR = 2 fractional bandwidth of 24% (55 to 70 GHz), a transmission gain of -32 dB (the separated distance R = 5 cm), an absolute gain of 3.6 dBi, a front-to-back ratio of 12 dB, and an half-power beamwidth of 60 degrees in E-plane and H-plane. The measured and simulated results are shown in good agreements.