A Driver Source Based on 120‐GHz GaN Monolithic Integrated Frequency Multiplier

ABSTRACT This paper focuses on the front‐stage driving source of the solid‐state terahertz local oscillator component, which is one of the core components of the system's radio frequency front‐end. To enhance the output power, power handling, and thermal dissipation of the local oscillator link, GaN material with high thermal conductivity, high withstand voltage characteristics, and high electron saturation rate is independently designed as a GaN Schottky diode. By incorporating the thermal resistance matrix composed of drift‐diffusion equations and heat conduction equations into the diode modeling, the discrepancy between the simulated and measured performance of the driving source is significantly reduced. The measured results show that within the frequency range of 109–129 GHz, the driving source achieves a maximum output power of 35.56 mW, thereby validating the proposed design approach.