Detailed Characterisation of Tetrivis Ku-Band Phased Array Tx and Rx RFICs for Low Earth Orbit Satellite (LEOSAT)

用于低地球轨道卫星 (LEOSAT) 的 Tetrivis Ku 波段相控阵 Tx 和 Rx RFIC 的详细表征

• 批准号: 10074232
• 金额: $ 6.37万
• 依托单位: TETRIVIS LTD
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Grant for R&D
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2023 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=10074232
• 关键词: Detailed; Characterisation; Tetrivis; Ku; Band

Vision:Between 2020 and 2021, Tetrivis self-funded the design, verification and limited silicon prototyping/fabrication of two Radio-Frequency Integrated Circuits (RFIC) - the TRV003, a Ku-Band (10.7GHz to 12.75GHz) Phased-Array Receiver (Rx) RFIC integrating four dual-beam and dual-polarised (X+Y) receiver paths on the same die, and the TRV004, a Ku-Band (14GHz to 14.5GHz) Phased-Array Transmitter (Tx) RFIC also integrating four dual-beam and dual-polarised (X+Y) transmitter paths on the same die.Both chips were Wafer-Scale-Packaged with die ball pitch being 171um, a dimension that was extremely challenging for UK PCB vendors to work at. PCB die-attach issues and funding limitations thus prevented us from achieving the next milestone in the project, which was the detailed laboratory characterisation of the two RFIC chips.This project will enable Tetrivis address the die-attach PCB issues, revise RFIC PCB mounting strategy and carry out detailed RF laboratory characterisation of the two RFICs. The RFICs were designed to meet the emerging and ever increasing demand by UK, EU, Asian and American satellite companies for Tx and Rx RFICs for use in their Low-Earth-Orbit Satellite (LEOSAT) Earth-Station Phased-Array Smart Antennas.Key Objectives:- To work with sub-contractor to address PCB die-attach issues and achieve consistent connectivity between RFIC balls and PCB- To work with sub-contractor to machine Heat-Sink for RFICs- To work with sub-contractor to make custom RFIC sockets for multiple RFIC characterisation using the same PCB- To develop the Graphical User Interface software for programming the RFIC internal registers- To procure second-hand RF Equipment to aid RFIC characterisation process- To develop software to aid Automated characterisation of RFICs- To carry out detailed RF characterisation of RFICsInnovation:The capability to simultaneously support Ku-Band and Ka-Band spectra with an agile, low-power, low-area and low-cost RFIC solution is one of the design innovations. Limited Ka-Band support was implemented due to time constraints and will be tested.In addition, the ability of the Rx path of the RFIC design to tolerate a coupled Tx signal of M orders of magnitude higher than the Rx signal being received whilst still delivering unprecedented Carrier-to-Noise-and-Interference-Ratio (C/N+I) is the significant architectural, systematic and circuital design challenge that the RFIC design addresses.Finally, the TRV003 and TRV004 RFIC silicon were implemented in an optimal process technology node which enables high-yielding silicon devices with moderate cost overhead, thus strategically positioning the RFIC devices for future mass production ramp-up and commercialisation.

愿景：2020年至2021年间，Tetrivis自筹资金设计、验证和有限硅原型/制造两个射频集成电路（RFIC）——TRV003，一个Ku波段（10.7GHz至12.75GHz）相控阵接收器(Rx) RFIC 在同一芯片上集成了四个双光束和双极化 (X+Y) 接收器路径， TRV004 是一款 Ku 波段（14GHz 至 14.5GHz）相控阵发射器 (Tx) RFIC，还在同一芯片上集成了四个双波束和双极化 (X+Y) 发射器路径。这两款芯片均为晶圆级- 封装芯片球距为 171um，这一尺寸对英国 PCB 供应商来说极具挑战性。 PCB 芯片贴装问题和资金限制阻碍了我们实现该项目的下一个里程碑，即两个 RFIC 芯片的详细实验室表征。该项目将使 Tetrivis 能够解决芯片贴装 PCB 问题，修改 RFIC PCB 安装策略并对这两个 RFIC 进行详细的 RF 实验室表征。 RFIC 旨在满足英国、欧盟、亚洲和美国卫星公司对其低地球轨道卫星 (LEOSAT) 地球站相控阵智能天线中使用的 Tx 和 Rx RFIC 不断增长的需求。目标：- 与分包商合作解决 PCB 芯片连接问题，并实现 RFIC 球和 PCB 之间的一致连接- 与分包商合作加工 RFIC 的散热器- 与分包商使用同一 PCB 制作用于多个 RFIC 表征的定制 RFIC 插座 - 开发用于对 RFIC 内部寄存器进行编程的图形用户界面软件 - 采购二手 RF 设备以辅助 RFIC 表征过程 - 开发软件以辅助自动化RFIC 的表征 - 对 RFIC 进行详细的 RF 表征创新：能够以敏捷、低功耗、小面积和低成本同时支持 Ku 波段和 Ka 波段频谱RFIC解决方案是设计创新之一。由于时间限制，实施了有限的 Ka 频段支持，并将对其进行测试。此外，RFIC 设计的 Rx 路径能够承受比接收到的 Rx 信号高出 M 个数量级的耦合 Tx 信号，同时仍可传输信号前所未有的载噪比 (C/N+I) 是 RFIC 设计要解决的重大架构、系统和电路设计挑战。最后，TRV003 和 TRV004 RFIC 芯片在最佳工艺技术节点中实施，能够以适度的成本开销实现高产硅器件，从而战略性地定位 RFIC 器件，以适应未来的大规模生产提升和商业化。