Broadband 110 - 170 GHz True Time Delay Circuit in a 130-nm SiGe BiCMOS Technology

This paper presents a fully integrated D-band true time delay (TTD) circuit designed in 0.13µm silicon-germanium (SiGe) BiCMOS technology. It provides a relative time delay of 0.446 ps to 6.64 ps from 110 to 170 GHz with the resolution of 0.446 ps equivalent to the accuracy of a 4-bit phase shifter. The presented true time delay IC occupies 2.2 mm x 0.53 mm and draws a current of 6.92 mA from 3.3 V. To our knowledge, it is the first true time delay circuit above 100 GHz in silicon technology with a record 3-dB bandwidth of 60 GHz.