Scaling mm-Wave Phased Arrays: Challenges and Solution Examples at Ka-Band and W-Band

This presentation motivates the need for scaled phased arrays and outlines key challenges for their implementation. Design trade-offs are discussed for important aspects such as beam-forming architecture, module-level realization with RFICs, antennas and packaging, thermal dissipation, and digital control. Two recently introduced scaled 64-element dual polarized phased array designs are reviewed as implementation examples. (1) A phased array transceiver module operating at Ka-band supporting 5G base station applications, and (2) TX and RX phased arrays operating at 94GHz suitable for backhaul and radar applications. An outlook for future opportunities with phased array scaling is provided.