On-chip integrated Ka-band diplexer for ground terminals (CHIPKA-Diplex)
CHIPKA - Diplex
AO/1-10689/22/UK/AL ON-CHIP INTEGRATED KA-BAND DIPLEXER FOR GROUND TERMINALS
Activity No. 1000031171 in the esa-star system
CHIP-KA- Diplex aims to develop a compact, high-performance SiGe BiCMOS Ka-band diplexer for ground terminals. The project will be focused at providing extremely low insertion losses and high compactness. The project will be carried out by three Italian partners: ANTECNICA, NOW, and the University of Calabria - MAIC LAB.
Project objectives
The project aims to meet critical technical requirements for the performance of a diplexer, focusing on three main challenges: ensuring the insertion loss is kept below 1 dB, achieving a level of rejection sufficient to prevent blockage from TX leakage, and maintaining the diplexer's size under 1x1 mm². These objectives are somewhat conflicting, necessitating a comprehensive system analysis of the phased array to evaluate and balance these requirements. An initial part of this analysis involves assessing the impact of diplexer loss on the antenna and on the LNA and PA.
The suggested design optimally leverages the capabilities of the technology, particularly in the SiGe BiCMOS integration domain. This approach enables a smooth integration with the Rx and Tx front-ends, resulting in a reduced size for overall integration and enhanced performance. Additionally, the impedances of the Rx and Tx ports can be adjusted to improve performance and more effectively align with the requirements of the LNA and PA.
Funding
CHIPKA-Diplex is funded by the European Space Agency (ESA) under the framework of the ESA Advanced Technology research program (ARTES 5.1).
Multi-port power combiner
Objective
ESA ITT ESA AO/1-9754/19/NL/CLP - Multi-band multiport microwave power combiner for ground terminals.
Role of ANTECNICA
ANTECNICA is contributing to the characterization of the multi-band multiport power combiner and to its possible application to amplifying structures.
FLEXCOM
ObjectiveFLEXCOM aims at building a new class of phased arrays technology for airborne, spaceborne, and Earth segment satellite communications with an unpreceded level of flexibility and reconfigurability. Precisely, FLEXCOM will deliver a highly integrated antenna tile conceived to be the building block through which several SatCom antenna types can be built. The FLEXCOM tiles are designed to be used in different scenarios and for different applications, responding to the needs of a continuously evolving SatCom market and enforcing a significant reduction of life-cycle costs. Role of ANTECNICAIn FLEXCOM, ANTECNICA designs the SatCom user terminal for High Altitude Platforms (HAP). The design is based on a transmitarray solution.
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Project partners:• CNIT-UNIVERSITA’ DELLA CALABRIA, Italy FundingEU-H2020-LEIT-Space
2020-2023 Project website |