A fully-integrated 18 GHz class-E power amplifier in a 45 nm CMOS SOI technology

A fully-integrated Class-E power amplifier (PA) operating at 18 GHz is implemented in a standard 45 nm CMOS SOI technology. The PA is designed using differential Cascode topology with cross-coupled capacitors for Gate-Drain capacitance neutralization. The measured single-ended saturated power (P_SAT) under a supply voltage of 2 V is 15.9 dBm (differential P_SAT of 18.9 dB) and the 1-dB single-ended compression power (P_1dB) is 13.3 dBm, with a peak power added efficiency (PAE) of 41.4%. The GateDrain capacitance neutralization technique facilitates the class-E operation and improves the PAE by ~20%.