A 10Gbps 3.2pJ/b 60GHz spectral shaping QPSK Transmitter in 28nm FD-SOI CMOS Technology

A direct digital-to-RF transmitter delivering 10 Gbps around its 60.48 GHz carrier is presented. It features a programmable up-mixing FIRDAC and a flexible PA. The spectral shaping FIRDAC enables the transmitter to meet stringent V-band regulations, such as confining $\mathbf{9 9 \%}$ of its QPSK modulated output power to the $57-64 \mathrm{GHz}$ band, and to provide for limited antenna bandwidth with band-edge equalisation. The PA covers an output power range of 14 dB with scalable power consumption to maintain energy efficiency and includes a programmable impedance matching load to minimise wideband return loss to the antenna, both crucial functions for short-range mmWave link optimisation. This versatile transmitter, integrated with STMicroelectronics’ 28nm FD-SOI CMOS technology into a mere $0.2 \mathrm{~mm}^{2}$, boasts an energy efficiency of $3.2 \mathrm{pJ} / \mathrm{bit}$ at 0 dBm output power, with -20 dB EVM at 3.2 dBm output power.