100-300 GHz Wireless: Transistors, ICs, Systems

We describe the opportunities, and the research challenges, presented in the development of 100-300GHz wireless communications and imaging systems. In such links, short wavelengths permit massive spatial multiplexing both for network nodes and point-point links, permitting aggregate transmission capacities approaching 1Tb/s. 100-300GHz radar imaging systems can provide thousands of image pixels and sub-degree angular resolution from small apertures, supporting foul-weather driving and aviation. Challenges include the mm-wave IC designs, the physical design of the front-end modules, the complexity of the back-end digital beamformer required for spatial multiplexing, and, for imaging, the development of system architectures requiring far fewer RF channels than the number of image pixels. We will describe transistor development, IC design, and system design, and describe our efforts to develop 140GHz massive MIMO wireless hubs, and 210GHz and 280GHz MIMO backhaul links.