Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Millimetre wave radar'

This thesis describes research performed into the segmentation and classification of features on images of wound terrain generated from an airborne millimetre wave radar. The principles of operation of the radar are established and it is shown how an image is produced from this particular radar. The parameters such as wavelength, antenna size and pulse length are related to the images and a mathematical description of the radar data is given. The effectiveness of established image processing techniques is reviewed when applied to millimetre wave radar images and a statistical classification technique is seen to yield encouraging results. This method of segmentation and classification is then extended to make optimal use of the available information from the radar. An orthogonal expansion of the Poincaré sphere representation of polarised radiation is established and it is shown how different terrain types cluster in the eigenspace of these spherical harmonics. Segmentation then follows from the clustering properties of pixels within this multidimensional eigenspace and classification from the locations of the clusters.

This thesis presents the development of various methods for measuring rainfall rates using horizontally-pointing millimetre-wave radars. This work builds from the combination of a T-matrix scattering model that allows the scattering from almost arbitrarily pro led rotationally symmetric particles to be calculated, and drop shape models that allow the effects of temperature and pressure on the shape to be taken into account. Many hours of rain data have been collected with 38 and 94 GHz FMCW radars, as well as with a disdrometer and weather station. These have been used to develop single- and dual-frequency techniques for measuring rainfall rate. A temperature, polarisation and attenuation corrected application of simple power-law relationships between reflectivity and rainfall rate has been successfully demonstrated at 38 GHz. However, at 94 GHz it has been found that more detailed functions relating reflectivity, attenuation and rainfall rate are beneficial. A reflectivity-based determination of attenuation has been adapted from the literature and successfully applied to the 94 GHz data, improving the estimate of rainfall rate at longer ranges. The same method for estimating attenuation has also been used in a dualfrequency technique based on the ratio of the extinction coefficients at 38 and 94 GHz, but with less success. However, a dual-frequency reflectivity ratio based approach has been successfully developed and applied, producing good estimates of rainfall rate, as well as reasonable estimates of two drop-size distribution parameters. Simulations of radar measurements of airborne volcanic ash have also been carried out, demonstrating that for most reasonable measurement configurations the optimal frequencies would typically be 35 GHz or 94 GHz, not the more commonly used 3-10 GHz. It has also been shown that various existing millimetre-wave radars could be used to detect ash. Finally, there is a discussion of the optimal frequencies for dual-frequency measurement of volcanic ash.

The application of Quasi Optical techniques has been of great benefit to the field of instrumentation for frequencies between 750Hz and several hundred OHz. The application of Quasi Optical techniques to millimetre wave radar, described in this thesis, has produced an FMCW Doppler radar capable of operation at 940Hz and 1400Hz. Total polarization agility and a capability to operate over a very wide bandwidth is demonstrated. Quasi Optical circuits are proposed as solutions for many of the system requirements, and these are fully analyzed. Significant benefits of these techniques are demonstrated, and future improvements are suggested. A new design tool, in the form of a program, for Quasi Optical circuit analysis is presented and is used for the analysis of all the optical circuits in this thesis. The program has speeded up the design process for optical circuits. A new type of feedhorn is described and characterized. Its performance compares well with existing feedhorns, and it provides a low cost alternative to existing antenna requirements.

This thesis describes the theoretical and practical implementation of a long-range high-resolution millimetre wave imaging radar system to aid with the navigation and guidance of both airborne and ground-based autonomous vehicles. To achieve true autonomy, a vehicle must be able to sense its environment, comprehensively, over a broad range of scales. Objects in the immediate vicinity of the vehicle must be classified at high resolution to ensure that the vehicle can traverse the terrain. At slightly longer ranges, individual features such as trees and low branches must be resolved to allow for short-range path planning. At long range, general terrain characteristics must be known so that the vehicle can plan around difficult or impassable obstructions. Finally, at the largest scale, the vehicle must be aware of the direction to its objective. In the past, short-range sensors based on radar and laser technology have been capable of producing high-resolution maps in the immediate vicinity of the vehicle extending out to a few hundred metres at most. For path planning, and navigation applications where a vehicle must traverse many kilometres of unstructured terrain, a sensor capable of imaging out to at least 3km is required to permit mid and long-range motion planning. This thesis addresses this need by describing the development a high-resolution interrupted frequency modulated continuous wave (FMICW) radar operating at 94GHz. The contributions of this thesis include a comprehensive analysis of both FMCW and FMICW processes leading to an effective implementation of a radar prototype which is capable of producing high-resolution reflectivity images of the ground at low grazing angles. A number of techniques are described that use these images and some a priori knowledge of the area, for both feature and image based navigation. It is shown that sub-pixel registration accuracies can be achieved to achieve navigation accuracies from a single image that are superior to those available from GPS. For a ground vehicle to traverse unknown terrain effectively, it must select an appropriate path from as long a range as possible. This thesis describes a technique to use the reflectivity maps generated by the radar to plan a path up to 3km long over rough terrain. It makes the assumption that any change in the reflectivity characteristics of the terrain being traversed should be avoided if possible, and so, uses a modified form of the gradient-descent algorithm to plan a path to achieve this. The millimetre wave radar described here will improve the performance of autonomous vehicles by extending the range of their high-resolution sensing capability by an order of magnitude to 3km. This will in turn enable significantly enhanced capability and wider future application for these systems.

This thesis presents a body of work on the theme of millimetre-wave FMCW radar, for the purposes of security screening and remote sensing. First, the development of an optimised software radar signal processor will be outlined. Through use of threading and GPU acceleration, high data processing rates were achieved using standard PC hardware. The flexibility of this approach, compared to specialised hardware (e.g. DSP, FPGA etc…), allowed the processor to be rapidly adapted and has produced a significant performance increase in a number of advanced real-time radar systems. An efficient tracker was developed and was successfully deployed in live trials for the purpose of real-time wave detection in an autonomous boat control system. Automated radar operation and remote data telemetry functions were implemented in a terrain mapping radar to allow continuous monitoring of the Soufrière Hills volcano on the Caribbean island of Montserrat. This work concluded with the installation of the system 3 km from the volcano. Hardware modifications were made to enable coherent measurement in a number of existing radar systems, allowing phase sensitive measurements, including range-Doppler, to be performed. Sensitivity to displacements of less than 200 nm was demonstrated, which is limited by the phase noise of the system. Efficient compensation techniques are presented which correct for quadrature mixer imbalance, FMCW chirp non-linearity, and scanner drive distortions. In collaboration with the Home Office, two radar systems were evaluated for the stand-off detection of concealed objects. Automatic detection capability, based on polarimetric signatures, was developed using data gathered under controlled conditions. Algorithm performance was assessed through blind testing across a statistically significant number of subjects. A detailed analysis is presented, which evaluates the effect of clothing and object type on detection efficiency.

This PhD thesis focuses on quantifying the impact of oscillator phase noise on the design of MMW CW radar systems with the goal of optimising the system to achieve better target detection and tracking. Phase noise in the transmitters of radar systems is known to distort the target response by broadening the linewidth and raising the noise floor of radar systems when a strong scatterer is present in the scene, hence degrading the detection and tracking performance. The situation is worse when multiple large scatterers are present, as the noise sidebands of all scatterers superimpose causing small targets, like pedestrians, to disappear in the phase noise sidebands. Some of the phase noise is cancelled at short ranges in coherent radars but the cancellation is not effective at long ranges. This research presents the design of phase noise reduction techniques. Phase noise modelling at the system level is presented to elaborate the methods of minimising the impact of phase noise. It will be shown that the frequency synthesiser is the most significant phase noise contributor. The design and implementation of a low phase noise signal source is presented. Both linear and non-linear phase noise models are used and developed further in order to meet the radar optimisation goals. An elaborate relationship of the phase spectrum with the RF spectrum of an oscillator is presented. The idea of coherence time is used as a tool for the selection of radar signal sources, and a novel derivation of the minimum bound on the transmitter phase noise level presented to prevent excessive distortion of target spectra. A new phase noise model is developed for the analog-to-digital conversion process using an independent sampling clock. The case of a sampling clock derived from the transmitter's reference oscillator will also be discussed. The models aid the selection of an appropriate sampling clock for a given radar application. A novel method of characterising the phase noise statistics using the integer and the fractional Brownian motion models will be presented. Models for the lineshape and the linewidth of the RF spectrum are dealt with in detail by reviewing the existing models in the literature. These analyses aid in assessing the fundamental resolution capability of radar systems in terms of the phase noise processes. A novel analysis of the RF spectrum of a signal impaired with random-walk phase noise is detailed, and it is shown that the RF spectrum exhibits time-dispersion and satellite peaks. It is shown that the success of the proposed work depends on techniques for careful measurement, analysis, and mitigation of the various noise processes.

L’objectif de cette thèse est de concevoir un réseau réflecteur à dépointage électronique à 20 GHz pour des applications de communication avec des drones (Unmanned Aerial System). Le principe de fonctionnement des réseaux réflecteurs est similaire à celui d’une antenne parabolique. La principale différence concerne la forme du réflecteur. En effet les panneaux des réseaux réflecteurs sont plans contrairement à la parabole. Le panneau réflecteur se compose de cellules élémentaires qui sont utilisées pour contrôler la phase réfléchie de l’onde d’incidente. Le contrôle de la phase au niveau de la cellule élémentaire nous permet de focaliser le diagramme de rayonnement dans la direction souhaitée. Dans cette thèse, la solution retenue est l’utilisation de diodes PIN. Cette dernière a fait l’objet de nombreuses études que ce soit au niveau laboratoire mais également industriel et possède des atouts intéressant en terme de performance et de coût. L'étude montre que d'avoir un niveau de correction élevée ne garantit pas la meilleure performance parce qu'il faut aussi considérer les pertes dans l'élément actif lui-même (dans notre cas, il s’agit des pertes dans les diodes PIN). Dans l’avenir, il serait nécessaire de modifier la position de la diode afin de rendre la fabrication plus aisée. Dans ce cas il faudra retravailler sur les lignes de polarisation et aussi les géométries du stub et des vias. Il sera peut-être nécessaire de déplacer la diode à l'extérieur du substrat en face l'arrière de la cellule par exemple. Quand les réseaux réflecteurs seront fabriqués, ils pourront être directement testés avec le contrôleur de diode fabriqué
The objective of this project is to design and fabricate a reconfigurable reflectarray with beam scanning capability at 20 GHz for unmanned aerial system (UAS) communication link. Reflectarray is a type of antenna that shares similar functionality to parabolic reflector antenna. The main difference is the physical and geometry appearance of the antenna where reflectarray has flat reflecting panel instead of parabolic reflector. The reflecting panel consists of elementary cell, which is used to control the reflected phase of the incident wave. By controlling the reflected phase on each elementary cell, the radiation pattern of the antenna can be focused to any desired direction. PIN diode technology is chosen as the preferred solution in the context of this project because it is already proven working in the industry and research fields. In house reflectarray simulator has been developed from the simulation, having high correction order will not necessarily improve the performance because the loss inside in active element must also be considered. In the short-term period, the modification on the elementary cell diode polarization line will enable the reflectarray to be fabricated and measured because the current design cannot be fabricated by the manufacturer contrary to their first statement due to position of the diode in the middle of substrates. The modification requires the p-i-n diode to be moved at the backside of the elementary cell and some geometry adjustments are needed for the phase delay line and the via. Once the reflectarray is fabricated, it can be tested directly with the diode controller that is already validated and shown to be working well

Lo scopo di questa tesi è quello di introdurre la tecnologia radar ad onde millimetriche applicata a problemi di mapping e di localizzazione in modo da investigare la fattibilità del recente concetto di "personal radar". Più specificatamente, può essere inteso come una caratteristica futura degli apparecchi mobili per la stima delle mappe degli ambienti interni sfruttando le tecnologie di comunicazione già presenti, avendo così la possibilità di creare applicazioni di localizzazione che non necessitano di infrastrutture ad-hoc. Il personal radar scansiona automaticamente l'ambiente circostante e mediante l'utilizzo di antenne colleziona le risposte provenienti dall'ambiente ad ogni direzione di scansione. Successivamente analizzando i dati collezionati il personal radar è in grado di dedurre la mappa dell'ambiente. Al momento le tecnologie più usate sono quella lidar o quella camera-based ma sono solitamente tecnologie più costose e che richiedono supporti meccanici e perfette condizioni di visibilità dell'ambiente. Per queste ragioni è interessante esplorare la tecnologia radar ad onde millimetriche. Questa teconologia infatti offre la possiilità di impacchettare un numero elevato di antenne in un piccolo spazio e quindi di realizzare diagrammi di radiazione molto stretti alle spese di una degradazione delle perfomance. Per queste ragioni è stato deciso di suddividere la tesi nei seguenti capitoli. Nel primo capitolo viene fornita una breve spiegazione della teoria radar con attenzione particolare alla tecnologia (FMCW) del dispositivo utilizzato. Nel secondo capitolo viene fornita una analisi della teoria dello SLAM con un approfondimento sulla teoria SLAM basata su grafi. Dopodichè è presente una analisi del dispositivo utilizzato. Nel quarto capitolo vengono descritti gli algoritmi sviluppati e i motivi per cui sono stati necessari e infine nel capitolo finale vengono riportati i risultati finali con le relative considerazioni.

Radar system development is generally costly, complicated and time consuming. This has kept its presence mostly inside industries and research centers with the necessary equipment to produce and operate such a system. Until recent years, realization of a fully integrated radar system on a chip was not feasible, however this is no longer the case and there are several types of sensors available from different manufacturers. Radar sensors offer some advantages that are unmatched by other sensing and imaging technologies such as operation in fog, dust and over long distances. This makes them suitable for use in Navigation, Automation, Robotics, and Security systems applications. The purpose of this thesis is to demonstrate the feasibility of a simplified radar system’s user interface via integration with the most common portable computer, a Smartphone, to make it possible for users with minimal knowledge of radar systems design and operation to use it in different applications. Smartphones are very powerful portable computers equipped with a suite of sensors with the potential to be used in a wide variety of applications. It seems logical to take advantage of their computing power and portability. The combination of a radar sensor and a smartphone can act as a demonstrator in an effort to bring radar sensors one step closer to the hands of the developers and consumers. In this study the following areas are explored and proper solutions are implemented; Design of a control board with capability to drive a radar sensor, capture the signal and transfer it to a secondary device (PC or Smartphone) both wired and wirelessly e.g. Bluetooth. A firmware that is capable of driving the control board and can receive, interpret and execute messages from a PC and or a Smartphone A cross compatible master software that can run on Linux, Windows, Mac and Android OSs and is capable of communication with the firmware/control board Proper analysis methods for signal capture and process purposes Automation of some parameter adjustment for different modes of operation of the Radar System in order to make the user interface as simple as possible A user friendly user-interface and API that can run on both PC and Smartphone

In this paper, a new millimeter wave 3D imaging radar is proposed. The user just needs to move the radar along a circular track, and high resolution 3D imaging can be generated. The proposed radar uses the movement of itself to synthesize a large aperture in both the azimuth and elevation directions. It can utilize inverse Radon transform to resolve 3D imaging. To improve the sensing result, the compressed sensing approach is further investigated. The simulation and experimental result further illustrated the design. Because a single transceiver circuit is needed, a light, affordable and high resolution 3D mmWave imaging radar is illustrated in the paper.

Millimeter wave (mmWave) radar systems are a leading technology in autonomous vehicle object sensing. The radar’s ability to detect surrounding objects is critical to its performance. One method of increasing object detection performance is to enhance object visibility. Frequency selective reflectors can increase object visibility. This work examines the performance of a mmWave 77 GHz radar system developed by Texas Instruments in conjunction with frequency selective surfaces. Two bandpass frequency selective surfaces are designed and fabricated using a loaded cross aperture configuration to analyze their application to object detection. The chosen design frequencies are 8 GHz and 79 GHz. The frequency selective surfaces are designed and simulated in 3-D electromagnetic simulation software, High Frequency Structure Simulator (HFSS). The frequency selective surfaces are fabricated on 127μm thick FR4 dielectric. The 8 GHz frequency selective surface demonstrates bandpass center frequency at 8.12 GHz. The 8 GHz and 79 GHz frequency selective surface reflection characteristics are compared to a copper sheets with the same physical cross section as each respective design. Although different testing methodology is used for each design, both frequency selective surfaces demonstrate bandpass characteristics at their respective design frequencies.

Thesis (MScEng (Electrical and Electronic Engineering))--University of Stellenbosch, 2006.
The topic of millimeter wave radar systems is introduced. These radars are used in a wide range of applications in both the aviation and automotive field due to the resolution advantages which MMW systems have above their counterparts. MMW components are studied and characterised to improve on an existing linearisation technique. Different possible linearisation techniques are discussed and compared to choose the best possible technique for this application. This technique was developed and implemented in the existing system.

Does millimeter-wave radar have the potential to be the navigational instrument of a robotic vacuum cleaner in a home? Electrolux robotic vacuum cleaner is currently using a light sensor to navigate through the home while cleaning. Recently Texas Instruments released a new mmWave radar sensor, operating in the frequency range 60-64 GHz. This study aims to answer if the mmWave radar sensor is useful for indoor navigation. The study tests the sensor on accuracy and resolution of angles and distances in ranges relevant to indoor navigation. It tests if various objects made out of plastic, fabric, paper, metal, and wood are detectable by the sensor. At last, it tests what the sensor can see when it is moving while measuring. The radar sensor can localize the robot, but the ability to detect objects around the robot is limited. The sensor’s absolute accuracy is within 3° for the majority of angles and around 1dm for most distances above 0.5 m. The resolution for a displacement of one object is 1°, respectively 5 cm, and two objects must be located at least 14° or 15 cm apart from each other to be recognized. Future tasks include removing noise due to antenna coupling to improve reflections from within 0.5 meter and figure out the best way to move around the sensor to improve the resolution.
Har radar med millimetervågor förutsättningar att vara navigationsutrustning för en robotdammsugare i ett hem? Electrolux robotdammsugare använder för närvarande en ljussensor för att navigera genom hemmet medan den städar. Nyligen släppte Texas Instruments en ny radarsensor med vågor i frekvensområdet 60-64 GHz. Denna studie syftar till att svara om radarsensorn är användbar för inomhusnavigering. Studien testar sensorn med avseende på noggrannhet och upplösning av vinklar och avstånd i områden som är relevanta för inomhusnavigering. Den testar om olika föremål tillverkade av plast, tyg, papper, metall och trä kan detekteras av sensorn. Slutligen testas vad sensorn kan se om den rör sig medan den mäter. Radarsensorn kan positionera roboten, men hinderdetektering omkring roboten är begränsad. För det mesta ligger sensorns absoluta noggrannhet inom 3° för vinklar och omkring 1dm för avstånd över 0,5 m. Upplösningen för en förflyttning av ett objekt är 1° respektive 5 cm, och två objekt måste placeras minst 14° eller 15 cm ifrån varandra för att båda kunna upptäckas. Kommande utmaningar är att ta bort antennstörningar som ger sämre reflektioner inom 0,5 meter och ta reda på det bästa sättet att förflytta sensorn för att förbättra upplösningen.

L’attività di tesi è inquadrata nell’ambito del progetto europeo PRIMELOC (Personal Radars for Radio Imaging and Infrastructure-less Localization) il cui scopo è quello di validare il concetto di radar personale per fornire servizi automatici di localizzazione e di mappatura degli ambienti indoor, evitando l’introduzione di infrastrutture ad hoc. Per far ciò, si vogliono sfruttare i dispositivi di future generazioni wireless che usano onde millimetriche, per costruire mappe di luoghi indoor. Le mappe sono ottenute scannerizzando l’ambiente circostante attraverso l’uso di massive antenna arrays ad onde millimetriche e di particolari algoritmi per la localizzazione e il mapping simultanei (simultaneous localization and mapping - SLAM). Per la validazione sperimentale del concetto di Personal Radar è fondamentale l’esecuzione di diverse campagne di misura in ambienti realistici. I dati raccolti da esse devono essere valutati e processati al fine di renderli adatti come input degli algoritmi di SLAM.

Thesis (M.S. in Electrical Engineering)--Naval Postgraduate School, March 1990.
Thesis Advisor(s): Atwater, H.A. Second Reader: Lee, H. M. "March 1990." Description based on signature page as viewed on August 26, 2009. DTIC Descriptor(s): Strip Transmission Lines, Computer Aided Design, Computerized Simulation, Parameters, Microwave Equipment, Radar, Full Wave Rectifiers, Transmittance, Resonant Frequency, Construction, Wave Propagation, Coefficients, Boundary Value Problems, Resonators, Circuits, Discontinuities, Ka Band, Models, Scattering, Equivalent Circuits, Frequency. Author(s) subject terms: Millimeter wave, suspended substrate, design model. Includes bibliographical references (p. 78-79). Also available online.

Two new stepped-frequency continuous wave (SFCW) radar sensor prototypes, based on a coherent super-heterodyne scheme, have been developed using Microwave Integrated Circuits (MICs) and Monolithic Millimeter-Wave Integrated Circuits (MMICs) for various surface and subsurface applications, such as profiling the surface and subsurface of pavements, detecting and localizing small buried Anti-Personnel (AP) mines and measuring the liquid level in a tank. These sensors meet the critical requirements for subsurface and surface measurements including small size, light weight, good accuracy, fine resolution and deep penetration. In addition, two novel wideband microstrip quasi-TEM horn antennae that are capable of integration with a seamless connection have also been designed. Finally, a simple signal processing algorithm, aimed to acquire the in-phase (I) and quadrature (Q) components and to compensate for the I/Q errors, was developed using LabView. The first of the two prototype sensors, named as the microwave SFCW radar sensor operating from 0.6-5.6-GHz, is primarily utilized for assessing the subsurface of pavements. The measured thicknesses of the asphalt and base layers of a pavement sample were very much in agreement with the actual data with less than 0.1-inch error. The measured results on the actual roads showed that the sensor accurately detects the 5-inch asphalt layer of the pavement with a minimal error of 0.25 inches. This sensor represents the first SFCW radar sensor operating from 0.6-5.6-GHz. The other sensor, named as the millimeter-wave SFCW radar sensor, operates in the 29.72-35.7-GHz range. Measurements were performed to verify its feasibility as a surface and sub-surface sensor. The measurement results showed that the sensor has a lateral resolution of 1 inch and a good accuracy in the vertical direction with less than  0.04-inch error. The sensor successfully detected and located AP mines of small sizes buried under the surface of sand with less than 0.75 and 0.08 inches of error in the lateral and vertical directions, respectively. In addition, it also verified that the vertical resolution is not greater than 0.75 inches. This sensor is claimed as the first Ka-band millimeter-wave SFCW radar sensor ever developed for surface and subsurface sensing applications.

The development of millimeter-wave (30-300 GHz) sensors and communications systems has a long history of interest, spanning back almost six decades. In particular, mm-wave radars have applications as automotive radars, in remote atmospheric sensing applications, as landing radars for air and spacecraft, and for high precision imaging applications. Mm-wave radar systems have high angular accuracy and range resolution, and, while susceptible to atmospheric attenuation, are less susceptible to optically opaque conditions, such as smoke or dust. This dissertation document will present the initial steps towards a new approach to the creation of a mm-wave radar system at 94 GHz. Specifically, this dissertation presents the design, fabrication and testing of various components of a highly integrated mm-wave a 94 Ghz monopulse radar transmitter/receiver. Several architectural approaches are considered, including passive and active implementations of RF monopulse comparator networks. These architectures are enabled by a high-performance three-dimensional rectangular coaxial microwave transmission line technology known as PolyStrataTM as well as silicon-based IC technologies. A number of specific components are examined in detail, including: a 2x2 PolyStrata antenna array, a passive monopulse comparator network, a 94 GHz SiGe two-port active comparator MMIC, a 24 GHz RF-CMOS 4-port active monopulse comparator IC, and a series of V- and W-band corporate combining structures for use in transmitter power combining applications. The 94 GHz cavity-backed antennas based on a rectangular coaxial feeding network have been designed, fabricated, and tested. 13 dB gain for a 2 x 2 array, as well as antenna patterns are reported. In an effort to facilitate high-accuracy measurement of the antenna array, an E-probe transition to waveguide and PolyStrata diode detectors were also designed and fabricated. AW-band rectangular coaxial passive monopulse comparator with integrated antenna array and diode detectors have also been presented. Measured monopulse nulls of 31.4 dB in the ΔAZ plane have been demonstrated. 94-GHz SiGe active monopulse comparator IC and 24 GHz RF-CMOS active monopulse comparator RFIC designs are presented, including detailed simulations of monopulse nulls and performance over frequency. Simulations of the W-band SiGe active monopulse comparator IC indicate potential for wideband operation, with 30 dB monopulse nulls from 75-105 GHz. For the 24-GHz active monopulse comparator IC, simulated monopulse nulls of 71 dB and 68 dB were reported for the azimuthal and elevational sweeps. Measurements of these ICs were unsuccessful due to layout errors and incomplete accounting for parasitics. Simulated results from a series of rectangular coaxial power corporate power combining structures have been presented, and their relative merits discussed. These designs include 2-1 and 4-1 reactive, Wilkinson, and Gysel combiners at V- and W-band. Measured back-to-back results from Gysel combiners at 60 GHz included insertion loss of 0.13 dB per division for a 2-1 combination, and an insertion loss of 0.3 dB and 0.14 dB for "planar" and "direct" 4-1 combinations, respectively. At 94 GHz, a measured insertion loss of 0.1 dB per division has been presented for a 2-1 Gysel combination, using a back-to-back structure. Preliminary designs for a solid-state power amplifier (SSPA) structure have also been presented. Finally, two conceptual monopulse transceivers will be presented, as a vehicle for integrating the various components demonstrated in this dissertation.
Ph. D.

Automotive Radars have introduced various functions on automobiles for driver’s safety and comfort, as part of the Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) including Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), collision warning or avoidance, blind spot surveillance and parking assistance. Although such radar systems with 24 GHz carrier frequency are already in use but due to some regulatory issues, recently a permanent band has been allocated at 77-81 GHz, allowing for long-term development of the radar service. In fact, switchover to the new band is mandatory by 2014.

A frequency multiplier will be one of the key components for such a millimeter wave automotive radar system because there are limitations in direct implementation of low phase noise oscillators at high frequencies. A practical way to build a cost-effective and stable source at higher frequency is to use an active multiplier preceded by a high spectral purity VCO operating at a lower frequency. Recent improvements in the performance of SiGe technology allow the silicon microelectronics to advance into areas previously restricted to compound semiconductor devices and make it a strong competitor for automotive radar applications at 79 GHz.

This thesis presents the design of active frequency doubler circuits at 20 GHz in a commercially available SiGe BiCMOS technology and at 40GHz in SiGe bipolar technology (Infineon-B7h200 design). Buffer/amplifier circuits are included at output stages to drive 50 Ω load. The frequency doubler at 20 GHz is based on an emitter-coupled pair operating in class-B configuration at 1.8 V supply voltage. Pre-layout simulations show its conversion gain of 10 dB at -5 dBm input, fundamental suppression of 25dB and NF of 12dB. Input and output impedance matching networks are designed to match 50 Ω at both sides.

The millimeter wave frequency doubler is designed for 5 V supply voltage and has the Gilbert cell-based differential architecture where both RF and LO ports are tied together to act as a frequency doubler. Both pre-layout and post-layout simulation results are presented and compared together. The extracted circuit has a conversion gain of 8 dB at -8 dB input, fundamental suppression of 20 dB, NF of 12 dB and it consumes 42 mA current from supply. The layout occupies an area of 0.12 mm2 without pads and baluns at both input and output ports. The frequency multiplier circuits have been designed using Cadence Design Tool.

Background: Evaluation of Data Visualization methods is a major challenge within the software and other industries. With complex data and requirements, often organizations require effective visualization methods which impact business decisions and convince stakeholders. This is a similar challenge in the development of a software demonstrator for the innovative safety radar system at ABB Jokab Safety whose aim is to improve the detection reliability using multiple radar sensors and requires an effective visualization method which will satisfy all the requirements. Objectives: The main objective of this study is to explore different data visualization methods involved in illustrating the raw data and with the help of developers, and other team members feedback with reference to existing literature and filter them with respect to the system functionalities. Establish evaluation criteria with relevant metrics to perform analytic evaluations on the visualization methods to determine an effective method. Methods: A Case Study which includes a multivocal literature review, is conducted at ABB Jokab Safety. Initially, to gather information on the subject, both formal and grey literature are explored and documented to filter our appropriate data visualization methods for this system. A task-based evaluation using semi-structured interview is conducted on 14 participants to determine an effective visualization method followed by statistical analysis to derive proper validation of the findings. The Response time, Ease of understanding, Confidence and Accuracy of the visualization methods are evaluated with feedback from the participants. Results: The Multivocal literature review filtered 16 primary articles which encouraged the use of 4 data visualization methods used in the safety radar system with distinct functionalities. A coordinate transformation engine to combine the data sets was also developed for the safety radar system contributing to the overall improvement of detection reliability. The evaluation including both quantitative and qualitative results validate each other’s findings through statistical tests like Kruskal-Wallis and Bonferroni post hoc followed by narrative analysis resulting a heat temperature plot to be more effective in the visualization of the radar data from multiple sensors. Conclusions: The results from this research provide insight into how data visualization evaluation can be implemented for real-time industrial problems and furnish validation process to determine an effective data visualization method. This study helps object detection using similar radar technologies visualize their data in an effective way and provides a scientific approach for evaluating similar data visualization problems.

In the last decade, microwave and millimeter-wave systems have gained importance in civil and security applications. Due to an increasing maturity and availability of circuits and components, these systems are getting more compact while being less expensive. Furthermore, quantitative imaging has been conducted at lower frequencies using computational intensive inverse problem algorithms. Due to the ill-posed character of the inverse problem, these algorithms are, in general, very sensitive to noise: the key to their successful application to experimental data is the precision of the measurement system. Only a few research teams investigate systems for imaging in the W-band. In this manuscript such a system is presented, designed to provide scattered field data to quantitative reconstruction algorithms. This manuscript is divided into six chapters. Chapter 2 describes the theory to compute numerically the scattered fields of known objects. In Chapter 3, the W-band measurement setup in the anechoic chamber is shown. Preliminary measurement results are analyzed. Relying on the measurement results, the error sources are studied and corrected by post-processing. The final results are used for the qualitative reconstruction of all three targets of interest and to image quantitatively the small cylinder. The reconstructed images are compared in detail in Chapter 4. Close range imaging has been investigated using a vector analyzer and a radar system. This is described in Chapter 5, based on a future application, which is the detection of FOD on airport runways. The conclusion is addressed in Chapter 6 and some future investigations are discussed.

Kyoto University (京都大学)
0048
新制・課程博士
博士(情報学)
甲第12464号
情博第218号
新制||情||46(附属図書館)
24300
UT51-2006-J455
京都大学大学院情報学研究科通信情報システム専攻
(主査)教授 深尾 昌一郎, 教授 津田 敏隆, 教授 佐藤 亨
学位規則第4条第1項該当

In this thesis, the circuits which comprise the front-end of a millimeter-wave transmit-receive module are investigated using a state-of-the-art 90 nm SiGe BiCMOS process for use in radar remote sensing applications. In Chapter I, the motivation for a millimeter-wave radar in the context of space-based remote sensing is discussed. In addition, an overview of Silicon-germanium technology is presented, and the chapter concludes with a discussion of design challenges at millimeter-wave frequencies. In Chapter II, a brief history of radar technology is presented - the motivations leading to the development of the transmit-receive module for active electronically scanned arrays are discussed, and the critical components which reside in nearly every high-frequency transmit-receive module are introduced. In Chapter III, the design and results of a W-band single-pole, double-throw switch using SiGe p-i-n diodes are discussed. In particular, the design topology and methods used to achieve low-loss and high power handling over a wide matching bandwidth without sacrificing isolation are described. In Chapter IV, the design and results of a W-band low-noise amplifier using SiGe HBT's are discussed. The design methodologies used to achieve high gain and exceptional noise performance over a wide matching bandwidth are described. Concluding remarks and a discussion of future work are in Chapter V.

Millimeter-wave systems introduce a set of particular severe requirements from the antenna point of view in order to achieve specific performances. In this sense, high directive antennas are required to overcome the huge extra path loss. Moreover, each particular application introduces additional requirements. For example, in very high throughput (VHT) wireless personal area networks (WPANs) communication systems at 60 GHz band beam-steering antennas are needed to deal with high user random mobility and human-body shadowing characteristic of indoor environments. Similarly, beam-steering capabilities are also needed in automotive radar applications at 79 GHz, since the determination of the exact position of an object is essential for most of the functions realized by the radar sensor. In the same way, beam-scanning, which is still commonly mechanically performed nowadays, is also needed in passive imaging systems at 94 GHz. Finally, from the integration perspective, the antennas must be small, low-profile, light weight and low-cost, in order to be successfully integrated in a commercial millimeter-wave wireless system. For these reasons, many types of antenna structures have been considered to achieve high directivity and beam-steering capabilities for the aforementioned millimeter-wave communication, radar and imaging applications at 60, 79 and 94 GHz. The most part of the currently adopted solutions are based on the expensive, complex and bulky phased-array antena concept. Actually, phased-array antenna systems can scan the beam at a fast rate. However, they require a complex integration of many expensive, lossy and bulky circuits, such as solid-state phase shifters and beam-forming networks. This doctoral thesis has contributed to the study, development, and assessment of the performance of innovative antena solutions in order to improve the existing architectures at millimeter-wave frequencies, conveniently solving the problems related specifically to short-range high data rate communication systems at 60 GHz WPAN band (including future 5G millimeter-wave systems), automotive radar sensors at 79 GHz band, and communications, radar, and imaging systems at 94 GHz. The specific goals pursued in this work, focused on defining an alternative antenna architecture able to achieve a full reconfigurable 2-D beam-scanning of high gain radiation beams at millimeter-wave frequencies, has been fulfilled. In this sense, this thesis has been mainly devoted to study in depth and practically develop the fundamental part of an innovative switched-beam antenna array concept: novel inhomogeneous gradient-index dielectric flat lenses, which, despite their planar antenna profile configurations, allow full 2-D beam-scanning of high gain radiation beams. A transversal study, going from theoretical investigations, passing by numerical analysis, new fabrication strategies, performance evaluation, and to full experimental assessment of the new antenna architectures in real application environment has been successfully carried out.
Los sistemas a frecuencias de ondas milimétricas introducen una serie de requisitos muy estrictos desde el punto de vista de la antena con el objetivo de conseguir unos rendimientos específicos. En este sentido, se requieren antenas con una muy alta directividad con tal de conseguir superar las enormes pérdidas adicionales por propagación. Además, cada aplicación en concreto introduce unos requisitos adicionales. Por ejemplo, en redes de área personal de alta velocidad para sistemas de comunicación a la banda de 60 GHz, antenas con la capacidad de reconfiguración del haz de radiación son necesarias para poder tratar la problemática de la alta movilidad de los usuarios en entornos cerrados. De la misma forma, capacidades de reconfiguración de la orientación del haz de radiación son necesarias en aplicaciones relacionadas con radar de automoción a 79 GHz, dado que la determinación de la posición exacta de un objeto es esencial para muchas de las funciones del sensor de radar. De forma muy similar, la capacidad de apuntamiento del haz, que muchas veces todavía se realiza mediante sistemas mecánicos, es también imprescindible en sistemas de escaneo para aplicaciones biomédicas y de seguridad a 94 GHz. Finalmente, desde la perspectiva de la integración, las antenas deben ser eléctricamente pequeñas, ligeras, y económicas para poder ser incorporadas a un sistema inalámbrico comercial a frecuencias de onda milimétricas. Por todos estos motivos, diferentes tipos de estructuras de antenas han sido propuestos para conseguir alta directividad, junto con capacidades de reconfiguración y apuntamiento del haz de radiación para las aplicaciones anteriormente mencionadas y descritas en la banda de 60, 79, y 94 GHz. La solución tradicionalmente adoptada en este tipo de casos està estrictamente basada en el siempre caro, complejo y aparatoso concepto del phased-array. De hecho, los phased-arrays permiten el rápido escaneo de haces de radiación de alta directividad. Sin embargo, el hecho que requieran una compleja integración de muchos y caros componentes a alta frecuencia, tales como desfasadores de estado sólido o redes de conformación, los cuales introducen ciertos niveles de pérdidas, siendo además aparatosos, hacen que esta solución resulte inviable. La presente tesis doctoral contribuye al estudio, desarrollo, y ensayo experimental del rendimiento de soluciones de antenas innovadoras para la mejora de las existentes arquitecturas de antena en la banda frecuencial de las ondas milimétricas, convenientemente solucionando los problemas asociados específicamente a los sistemas de comunicación de corto alcance y alta velocidad a 60 GHz (incluyendo los futuros sistemas 5G a milimétricas), a los sistemas de radar de automoción a 79 GHz, y a los sistemas de comunicación, radar, y escaneo para aplicaciones a 94 GHz. Los objetivos específicos perseguidos en este trabajo académico, focalizados en definir una arquitectura alternativa de antena, capaz de conseguir una completa reconfiguración y escaneo de los haces de radiación en dos dimensiones del espacio a frecuencias de onda milimétricas, se han conseguido plenamente. En este sentido, esta tesis doctoral ha sido dedicada esencialmente al estudio en profundidad y desarrollo práctico de la parte fundamental del innovador concepto del switchedbeam array: nuevas lentes dieléctricas inhomogéneas de gradiente de índice con estructura plana, las cuales, a pesar de su configuración física totalmente llana, permiten una reconfiguración total, en dos dimensiones del espacio, de haces de radiación de alta directividad. Un estudio eminentemente transversal, que abarca desde la investigación teórica, pasando por el análisis numérico, nuevas metodologías y técnicas de fabricación, evaluación de rendimientos, hasta una completa caracterización y ensayo del rendimiento en entornos reales de aplicación de las nuevas arquitecturas de antena, se ha llevado a cabo con total éxito.
Els sistemes a freqüències d'ones mil·limètriques introdueixen una sèrie de requisits molt estrictes des del punt de vista de l'antena per tal d’aconseguir uns rendiments específics. En aquest sentit, es requereixen antenes amb una alta directivitat per aconseguir superar les enormes pèrdues addicionals per propagació. A més a més, cada aplicació en concret introdueix uns requeriments addicionals . Per exemple, en xarxes d'àrea personal d'alta velocitat per a sistemes de comunicació a la banda de 60 GHz, antenes amb la capacitat de reconfiguració del feix de radiació són necessàries per tal de poder tractar la problemàtica de l'alta mobilitat dels usuaris en entorns tancats . De la mateixa manera, capacitats de reconfiguració de l'orientació del feix de radiació són necessàries en aplicacions associades a radar d'automoció a 79 GHz, donat que la determinació de la posició exacta d'un objecte és essencial per moltes de les funcions portades a terme pels ens or del radar. De forma molt similar, la capacitat d'apuntament del feix, que moltes vegades encara es realitza per mitjà de sistemes mecànics, és també imprescindible en sistemes d'escaneig per aplicacions mèdiques i de seguretat a 94 GHz. Finalment, des de la perspectiva de la integració, les antenes han de ser petites en termes elèctrics, lleugeres, i econòmiques per tal de poder ser incorporades en un sistema sense fils comercial a freqüència d'ones mil·limètriques. Per aquestes raons , diversos tipus d'estructures d'antenes han sigut proposats per aconseguir alta directivitat, conjuntament amb la capacitat d'apuntament del feix de radiació per les aplicacions anteriorment descrites a les bandes de 60, 79, i 94 GHz. La solució tradicionalment adoptada en aquests casos és estrictament basada en el sempre car, complexe, i aparatós concepte del phased-array. De fet, els phased-arrays tenen la capacitat de reconfigurar a gran velocitat feixos de radiació d'alta directivitat. Tot i això, el fet que requereixin la complexa integració de molts components cars a alta freqüència, amb certs nivells de pèrdues i aparatosos, com són els desfasadors d'estat sòlid, i les xarxes de conformació, fan d'aquesta solució inviable. La present tesis doctoral contribueix a l'estudi, des envolupament, i assaig experimental del rendiment de solucions d'antenes innovadores per tal de millorar les existents arquitectures d'antena a la banda freqüencial de les ones mil·limètriques, convenientment solucionant els problemes associats específicament als sistemes de comunicació de rang proper d'alta velocitat a 60 GHz (incloent els futurs sistemes 5G a mil·limètriques ), als sistemes de radar d'automoció a la banda dels 79 GHz, i als sistemes de comunicació, radar, i escaneig per aplicacions a 94 GHz. Els objectius específics perseguits en aquest treball acadèmic, focalitzats en definir una arquitectura d'antena alternativa, capaç d'aconseguir una completa reconfiguració i escaneig dels feixos de radiació en dues dimensions de l'espaia freqüències d'ona mil·limètriques , s'han plenament aconseguit. En aquest sentit, aquesta tesis doctoral s'ha dedicat essencialment a l'estudi en profunditat i desenvolupament pràctic de la part fonamental de l'innovador concepte del switched-beam array: noves lents dielèctriques inhomogenees de gradient d'índex amb estructura planar, les quals, tot i preservar una configuració física totalment plana, permeten una reconfiguració total en dues dimensions de l'espai de feixos de radiació d'alta directivitat. Un estudi transversal, que comprèn des de la investigació teòrica, passant per l'anàlisi numèric, noves metodologies i tècniques de fabricació, avaluació de rendiments, fins a una completa caracterització i assaig del rendiment en entorns reals d'aplicació de les noves arquitectures d'antena s'ha dut a terme amb total èxit.

This thesis addresses the design study, implementation and analysis of signal processing algorithms for a 79 GHz millimeter-wave Phase Modulated Continuous Wave (PMCW) Multi Input Multi Output (MIMO) short range radar; performed in IMEC research institute (Leuven, Belgium). The radar system targets high resolution performance with low power consumption in order to integrate a full MIMO radar transceiver with digital processor and antennas in a compact package featuring a size of 1 cm2. Achieving such radar system characteristics requires the exploitation of a highly demanding digital architecture with signal processing gain and high range, speed and angle resolutions. The improved resolution and detection capabilities will be achieved by performing signal processing algorithms on the reflected waveform. The digital front-end implements parallel range gate processing with a bank of correlators that perform: pulse compression, coherent accumulation to further increase Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR) and N-point FFT to extract the Doppler information. The use of MIMO is proposed implementing a code domain technique in the PMCW waveform, the Outer Hadamard Code MIMO. This concept makes use of a unique sequence for all the transmitting antennas that is rendered by an outer sequence to ensure the orthogonality of the transmitted waveforms. The outer code makes use of the good cross-correlation properties of the Hadamard sequences and the waveform uses sequences that exhibit perfect auto-correlation profile, the Almost Perfect Autocorrelation Sequences (APAS). The MIMO implementation results in higher angular resolution and extra processing gain. The use of beamforming techniques in the radar allows the angle estimation of the detected targets; using rough and fine beamforming that provides with coarse and precise Angle of Arrival (AoA) estimation in an early and late stage respectively. A Constant False Alarm Rate (CFAR) processing stage is implemented in the stage of the system where higher signal processing gain is achieved. This algorithm allows the variation of the CFAR parameters and analyzes the detections in order to improve the probability of detection (Pd) while decreasing the probability of false alarm (Pfa). A series of simulations with different scenarios and variable parameters are set in order to analyze the performance of the system. The simulations analyze the gain achieved in each stage and their outcomes show an impressive processing gain that can reach SNR improvements as high as 77 dB for a small virtual array while keeping the Pfa low with the CFAR adjustment. The use of bigger arrays demonstrates the possibility to enable clear detections for low Radar Cross Section (RCS) targets in far distances of the unambiguous range. The use of beamforming shows interference reduction improvement as the beam widths narrow with the increasing number of virtual array antennas. These results have been achieved while keeping the system design parameters to a range resolution of 7.5 cm for a maximum range of 37.5 meters with speed resolution of 0.2 m/s and a maximum detectable speed of 12.66 m/s. The outcomes support the good performance of the signal processing techniques implemented and the benefits in applying them in a SoC mmWave MIMO radar.

Les travaux présentés dans cette thèse sont une contribution à l’étude des systèmes d’imagerie active en bande millimétrique et plus spécifiquement sur les parties antennaires et le traitement de signal. Ces travaux ont été menés dans le cadre d’une collaboration entre Canon Research Center France et l’ETR. Une première étude a porté sur les antennes focalisantes et plus spécifiquement sur la lentille de Fresnel avec un procédé de fabrication de matériau à gradient d’indice qui a permis d’améliorer l’efficacité (59%) et la largeur bande de fréquence (75-110 GHz). Cette antenne a été utilisée sur un système rotatif pour imager une scène réelle extérieure. L’étude s’est ensuite focalisée sur la conception d’une configuration Multiple-Input Multiple-Output ou MIMO (entrées multiples, sorties multiples) grâce notamment à l’utilisation d’un dispositif compressif passif 4×1 permettant de réduire, par compression, le nombre de chaînes RF. Ces chaînes sont décompressées par post-traitement. Le dispositif, placé à l’émission, a été associé avec un scanner qui permet de synthétiser un réseau d’antennes à la réception. Cette configuration a permis de générer virtuellement un réseau de plus grande taille, permettant d’améliorer la résolution azimutale du système tout en limitant le nombre de chaînes RF. Cette configuration est utilisée pour imager une scène en chambre anéchoique afin de valider le concept. Pour améliorer encore plus la résolution du système avec un nombre limité de chaînes RF, l’étude d’algorithmes de haute-résolution, ou méthodes d’estimation spectrales, sont utilisés dans des configurations à large bande de fréquences pour imager des cibles en champs proche. L’association de la configuration MIMO, du dispositif compressif passif et des méthodes d’estimation spectrales permet d’améliorer la résolution du système tout en limitant le nombre de chaînes RF nécessaire
The broad topic of the presented Ph.D. thesis consists in the contribution to the study of Radar imaging systems at millimeter-wave and more specifically to the antennas and signal processing. These works have been carried out during a partnership between Canon Research Center France and IETR. A first study on focusing antennas, particularly on Fresnel lens antennas, thanks to a technological process to manufacture inhomogeneous materials, has allowed to improve the efficiency and the frequency bandwidth. The antenna has been mounted on a rotary system to image a real outdoor scene. Then, the study has been focused on the realization of a Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) configuration notably using a 4 × 1 passive compressive device allowing to reduce, by compression, the number of radiofrequency (RF) chains. The chains are decompressed by post-processing. The device, used at the transmitting part, is associated with a scanner that synthetizes a receiving array of antennas. This configuration allows to generate a large virtual array, to improve the azimutal resolution of the system while maintaining acceptable the number of RF chains. This configuration has been used to image a scene in an anechoid chamber to validate the concept. To further improve the spatial resolution of the system for a given number of RF chains, the study of high resolution algorithms, or spectral estimation methods, are used to image scenes in near field and wide-band configurations. The combination of MIMO configurations, the passive compressive device and the spectral estimation methods have allowed to drastically improve the spatial resolution of the radar imaging system while limiting the number of RF chains

Dans cette thèse, le concept d'identification par radiofréquence sans puce (chipless RFID) est étendu à l'authentification où chaque étiquette doit présenter une signature unique qui ne peut jamais être reproduite même si quelqu'un tente de copier l'étiquette. À cette fin, le caractère aléatoire naturel (c’est-à-dire inhérent au processus de fabrication) ainsi que les paramètres de dimension des résonateurs sont utilisés. Un tel caractère aléatoire naturel peut produire des signatures électromagnétiques (EM) uniques, éventuellement utilisées pour l'authentification. Initialement, nous avons prouvé l’idée proposée en appliquant intentionnellement les variations dimensionnelles le long des résonateurs. Différentes valeurs des variations dimensionnelles appliquées sont utilisées pour trouver la variation minimale détectable par l'approche radar sans puce RFID. De plus, une analyse statistique a été réalisée pour calculer les taux d'erreur. Par la suite, une approche par spectrogramme est proposée pour extraire des paramètres indépendants de l’aspect (c’est-à-dire la fréquence de résonance et le facteur de qualité) des étiquettes RFID sans puce. Enfin, nous avons fabriqué plusieurs résonateurs présentant un caractère aléatoire naturel (sans aucune variation dimensionnelle appliquée) afin de caractériser la performance des étiquettes sans puce pour les applications d'authentification. Des technologies de réalisation à faible coût basées sur des circuits imprimés avec un procédé de gravure chimique et l’impression à jet d’encre par une imprimante de bureau ordinaire sont utilisées. Le caractère aléatoire naturel selon les dimensions des résonateurs est également confirmé par l'analyse microscopique à l'aide d'un microscope numérique
In this thesis, the concept of chipless radio frequency identification (RFID) is extended to the chipless authentication where each tag has to present a unique signature that can never be reproduced even if someone tries to copy the tag. For this purpose, natural randomness (i.e., inherent in the fabrication process) along dimension parameters of resonators is utilized. Such natural randomness can produce unique electromagnetic (EM) signatures that are possibly employed for authentication. Initially, we proved the proposed idea by purposely applying the dimensional variations along the resonators. Different values of the purposely applied dimensional variations are used to find the minimum detectable variation by the chipless RFID radar approach. Additionally, a statistical analysis has been performed to calculate the error rates. Subsequently, a spectrogram approach is proposed to extract aspect-independent parameters (i.e., the frequency of resonance and quality factor) of chipless RFID tags. Finally, we fabricated numerous resonators exhibiting natural randomness (without any purposely applied dimensional variations) to characterize the potential of the chipless tags for authentication applications. Low-cost realization technologies such as printed circuit board (PCB) using chemical etching process and inkjet printing using ordinary office printer are utilized. The natural randomness along the dimensions of resonators is also confirmed by the microscopic analysis using a digital microscope

This thesis presents various integrated antenna solutions for different types of systems and applications, e.g. wireless sensors, broadband handsets, advanced base stations, MEMS-based reconfigurable front-ends, automotive anti-collision radars, and large area electronics. For wireless sensor applications, a T-matched dipole is proposed and integrated in an electrically small body-worn sensor node. Measurement techniques are developed to characterize the port impedance and radiation properties. Possibilities and limitations of the planar inverted cone antenna (PICA) for small handsets are studied experimentally. Printed slot-type and folded PICAs are demonstrated for UWB handheld terminals. Both monolithic and hybrid integration are applied for electrically steerable array antennas. Compact phase shifters within a traveling wave array antenna architecture, on single layer substrate, is investigated for the first time. Radio frequency MEMS switches are utilized to improve the performance of reconfigurable antennas at higher frequencies. Using monolithic integration, a 20 GHz switched beam antenna based on MEMS switches is implemented and evaluated. Compared to similar work published previously, complete experimental results are here for the first time reported. Moreover, a hybrid approach is used for a 24 GHz switched beam traveling wave array antenna. A MEMS router is fabricated on silicon substrate for switching two array antennas on a LTCC chip. A concept of nano-wire based substrate integrated waveguides (SIW) is proposed for millimeter-wave applications. Antenna prototypes based on this concept are successfully demonstrated for automotive radar applications. W-band body-worn nonlinear harmonic radar reflectors are proposed as a means to improve automotive radar functionality. Passive, semi-passive and active nonlinear reflectors consisting of array antennas and nonlinear circuitry on flex foils are investigated. A new stretchable RF electronics concept for large area electronics is demonstrated. It incorporates liquid metal into microstructured elastic channels. The prototypes exhibit high stretchability, foldability, and twistability, with maintained electrical properties.
wisenet

"2009"
Thesis (MSc (Hons))--Macquarie University, Faculty of Science, Dept. of Physics and Engineering, 2010.
Bibliography: p. 163-166.
Introduction -- Design theory and process technology -- 15GHz oscillator implementations -- 24GHz oscillator implementation -- Frequency prescaler implementation -- MMIC fabrication and measurement -- Conclusion.
Advances in Silicon Germanium (SiGe) Bipolar Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (BiCMOS) technology has caused a recent revolution in low-cost Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuit (MMIC) design. -- This thesis presents the design, fabrication and measurement of four MMICs for frequency synthesis, manufactured in a commercially available IBM 0.18μm SiGe BiCMOS technology with ft = 60GHz. The high speed and low-cost features of SiGe Heterojunction Bipolar Transistors (HBTs) were exploited to successfully develop two single-ended injection-lockable 15GHz Voltage Controlled Oscillators (VCOs) for application in an active Ka-Band antenna beam-forming network, and a 24GHz differential cross-coupled VCO and 1/6 synchronous static frequency prescaler for emerging Ultra Wideband (UWB) automotive Short Range Radar (SRR) applications. -- On-wafer measurement techniques were used to precisely characterise the performance of each circuit and compare against expected simulation results and state-of-the-art performance reported in the literature. -- The original contributions of this thesis include the application of negative resistance theory to single-ended and differential SiGe VCO design at 15-24GHz, consideration of manufacturing process variation on 24GHz VCO and prescaler performance, implementation of a fully static multi-stage synchronous divider topology at 24GHz and the use of differential on-wafer measurement techniques. -- Finally, this thesis has llustrated the excellent practicability of SiGe BiCMOS technology in the engineering of high performance, low-cost MMICs for frequency synthesis in millimeterwave (mm-wave) devices.
Mode of access: World Wide Web.
xxii, 166 p. : ill (some col.)

The paper details the usage of mmWave radars to track people and monitor their movement through predefined zones of interest. The theoretical part describes the physical nature of the technology and then describes algorithms which can be used to monitor using it to monitor the movement of people. In the practical part, I have developed a concrete algorithm which can be used to monitor customer queues and cash registers in shops and inform the cashiers when their presence is needed, as well as gather impersonal GDPR-compliant data about the customer's habits. Afterwards, I have developed a visualization for the Windows platform, which can be used to communicate with the radar, manage its configuration, visualize the events in real time and perform further analysis of the measured data.

L'activité de recherche scientifique effectuée dans le cadre de mon doctorat de sciences s'est déroulée dans le secteur de la conception de circuits intégrés radiofréquences pour des systèmes ultra-wideband (UWB) et aux ondes millimétriques, et s'est articulée comme suit: (i) circuits intégrés radiofréquences pour émetteur-récepteurbasse puissance pour réseaux locaux wireless; (ii) radar UWB complètement intégré pour la surveillance cardio-pulmonaire en technologie 90nm CMOS; (iii) amplificateurs faible bruit (LNA) à 60 GHz en technologie standard 65nm CMOS
The research activity carried out during this PhD consists on the design of radio- frequency integrated circuits, for ultra-wideband (UWB) and millimeter-wave sys- tems, and covers the following topics: (i) radio-frequency integrated circuits for low-power transceivers for wireless local networks; (ii) fully integrated UWB radar for cardio-pulmonary monitoring in 90nm CMOS technology; (iii) 60-GHz low noise amplifer (LNA) in 65nm CMOS technology

Avec l’expansion des exploitations agricoles, le principe d’homogénéité du rendement (céréales, fruits…) devient de moins en moins pertinent. Ce phénomène de variabilité spatiale implique des conséquences économiques et environnementales avec le développement de nouveaux concepts agricoles comme les « site-specific management » (gestion spécifique des parcelles). Les traitements tels que les fertilisants, les intrants et autres pesticides doivent être utilisés de manière différente en les appliquant au bon endroit, à la bonne période et au bon taux. Cette nouvelle façon de penser l’agriculture fait partie de l’agriculture de précision (PA) et se concentre en quatre domaines technologiques : (i) la télédétection, (ii) la navigation et guidage, (iii) la gestion des données et (iv) les technologies à taux variable. Initiée à la fin des années 1990, la viticulture de précision (PV) est une branche particulière de la PA, caractérisée par des problématiques spécifiques à la viticulture. Les travaux effectués durant cette thèse entrent dans le cadre de la télédétection (ou détection proche) appliquée à la PV. Ils se focalisent sur une nouvelle méthode d’estimation de la quantité de grappes (masse ou volume) directement sur les plants de vignes. Pouvoir estimer le rendement des vignes plusieurs semaines avant la récolte offre de nombreux avantages avec des impacts économiques et qualitatifs, avec par exemple : (i) l’amélioration du rapport rendement/qualité en supprimant au plut tôt une partie de la récolte, (ii) l’optimisation des ressources humaines et la logistique à la récolte, (iii) un remboursement le plus équitable par les assurances en cas d’intempéries qui endommageraient les pieds de vignes. La méthode proposée ici repose sur l’imagerie microondes (à 24GHz ou des fréquences plus élevées) générée par un radar FM-CW. Elle implique la mise en place d’un système d’interrogation intra-parcellaire « pied par pied » à distance basé au sol, et en particulier : (i) l’évaluation de la précision des mesures et les limites du système, (ii) le développement d’algorithmes spécifiques pour l’analyse de données tridimensionnelles, (iii) la construction d’estimateurs pour retrouver le volume des grappes, et finalement (iv) l’analyse des données recueillies pendant les campagnes de mesures. Dû au caractère saisonnier des récoltes, les mesures sont en premier lieu effectuées sur des cibles canoniques, des charges variables et des capteurs passifs en laboratoire. Pour mettre en avant la flexibilité de cette interrogation radar, le même système est utilisé en parallèlement dans le cadre du projet régional PRESTIGE, pour compter à distance le nombre de pommes présentes sur les pommiers en verger. Ces travaux ont été financés par l’entreprise Ovalie-Innovation et l’ANRT (Agence Nationale de la Recherche Technologique).

Le développement des radars automobiles, à la bande de fréquences 76-77 GHz, a connu une croissance importante au cours de la dernière décennie. Les développements en cours doivent faire face à deux grands défis. Le premier défi est la réduction du coût pour équiper plus de catégories de voitures avec ces radars. Le deuxième défi est l'amélioration des performances du radar afin de satisfaire les demandes croissantes des autorités de sécurité routière et d'équiper la voiture autonome. L'émetteur-récepteur radar automobile constitue le cœur du système. Par conséquent, une pression importante est exercée sur les fournisseurs de semi-conducteurs pour développer des radars de nouvelle génération avec des performances supérieures et à un coût inférieur par rapport aux générations précédentes. Améliorer les performances de l'émetteur-récepteur passe par par l'amélioration de ces quatre paramètres : le facteur de bruit, le niveau de puissance de l'émetteur, le bruit de phase et la dissipation thermique. La réduction de coût peut être obtenue en réduisant le temps de test, les tailles de la puce et du PCB et le coût du boitier. Dans ce travail, nous proposons une réduction du coût du boitier et de la taille du PCB, en plus de l'amélioration de la dissipation thermique grâce à une encapsulation intégré au niveau plaquette (FI-WLP pour Fan-In Wafer Level Package). Le boitier WLCSP (Wafer Level Chip Scale Package), le plus connu FI-WLP, a été choisi pour cette application. C'est la première fois dans l'histoire des semi-conducteurs que le FI-WLP est utilisé pour du Silicium à des fréquences aussi élevées. Le premier chapitre décrit le système radar et ses principaux composants. Il met l'accent sur la contribution de l'émetteur-récepteur, puis le boitier, sur les performances du radar. Le deuxième chapitre fournit une méthodologie pour la modélisation électromagnétiques et la validation expérimentale de ces modèles, appliquée à des structures passives sur puce. Des innovations, améliorant significativement les performances électriques du boitier WLCSP, sont révélées dans le troisième chapitre. La caractérisation du WLCSP est en soi un défi. De nouvelles méthodologies de caractérisation de ce boitier sont alors proposées dans le même chapitre. Par la suite, un nouveau mélangeur encapsulé en WLCSP est conçu et présenté dans le quatrième chapitre. Le facteur de bruit obtenu est à l'état de l'art, malgré l'utilisation du très contraignant boitier FI-WLP. Tous les résultats de simulation de la transition WLCSP et du mélangeur sont validés par des mesures. Cette caractérisation confirme les excellentes performances attendues du boitier et du circuit conçus
The development of automotive radars, at the frequency band 76-77 GHz, has experienced a significant growth over the last decade. Ongoing developments have to cope with two main challenges. The first challenge is reducing the cost to equip more car categories with these radars. The second challenge is to improve radar performance in order to satisfy the increasing demands of the road safety authorities and to equip the autonomous car. The automotive radar transceiver is the masterpiece of the system. Therefore, significant pressure is exerted on the semiconductor suppliers to develop next generation radars with superior performances and at lower cost than previous generations. Improving the radar transceiver performances requires improving these four main parameters: Noise Figure (NF), Power Amplifier (PA) power, Phase Noise (PN) and heat dissipation. Lowering the cost can be achieved by reducing test time, chip and PCB sizes, and wafers and package costs. We propose, in this work, a reduction of package cost and PCB size and improvement of heat dissipation by using a FI-WLP. The Wafer Level Chip Scale Package (WLCSP), the best known FI-WLP, was chosen for this application. It is the first time, in Silicon semiconductors history, that a FI-WLP is used at such high frequencies. The first chapter describes the radar system in general and its main components. It focuses on the contribution of the transceiver then the package to the radar performances. The second chapter provides a methodology for EM models validation based on the modeling and experimental validation of passive structures on-chip. Innovations, significantly improving the WLCSP electrical performances, are revealed in the third chapter. The characterization of WLP is, itself, a challenge and novel methodologies to perform it are proposed in the same chapter. Thereafter, a new WLCSP packaged mixer, where block core and RF input matching are co-optimized, is designed and presented in the fourth chapter. The obtained NF is at the state-of-the-art, whereas the very constraining FI-WLP is used. All WLCSP transition and mixer simulation results are validated through measurement. This characterization confirms the excellent performances expected from this novel package and circuit designs

This paper presents the design and characterization of a 28GHz integrated super-regenerative amplifier (SRA) in a 45 nm silicon on insulator (SOI) technology. The circuit is based on a complementary cross-coupled oscillator topology. The fabricated integrated circuit (IC) occupies an area of 0.67 mm 2 , and operates in a frequency range from 28.07GHz to 29.35 GHz. Characterization results show the minimum input sensitivity of the circuit, as -85 dBm and the input power level corresponding to the linear to logarithmic mode transition as -66.3 dBm. The measured output power delivered into a 100 Ω differential load is 1.1 dBm. The DC power consumption of the circuit is 10.6 mW. To the knowledge of the authors, the circuit has the best reported combined sensitivity and output power for an FMCW radar reflector implementation in CMOS.

Les radars millimétriques en bande W (75-110 GHz) sont en plein essor, grâce notamment aux progrès des circuits intégrés, permettant de réaliser des systèmes compacts à bas coût et haute résolution due à la courte longueur d’onde. Dans un premier temps, ces systèmes ont été utilisés à des fins de détection et de localisation, avec à terme, pour objectif l’identification. Ainsi, des systèmes d’imagerie radar ont été développés, notamment grâce à l’imagerie qualitative, basée par exemple sur l’imagerie radar par synthèse d’ouverture (SAR). Cependant, afin de reconstruire les propriétés électromagnétiques des objets pour une identification complète, il est nécessaire de développer des algorithmes de reconstruction quantitatifs. Le travail présenté dans ce manuscrit est de poser les bases d’un système d’imagerie qualitative et quantitative en gamme millimétrique pour la détection et l’identification des objets sur les pistes d’aéroport par tomographie, tenant compte de la polarisation de l’onde incidente. Au cours de cette thèse, un outil de simulation permettant de la résolution des problèmes direct et inverse, pour les deux types de polarisation à deux dimensions 2D-TE et 2D-TM, basé sur la méthode des moments (MoM) a été développé. La première étape a consisté en la validation du problème direct en effectuant des comparaisons numériques avec des solutions analytiques pour des cibles canoniques. Ensuite, des mesures expérimentales ont été effectuées et comparées aux résultats numériques. Enfin, les résultats des reconstructions obtenus ont permis de valider l’algorithme de reconstruction 2D développé pour l’imagerie quantitative
Millimeter-wave radar systems in W-band (75-110 GHz) are booming, due to advances in integrated circuits, allowing the fabrication of low-cost and high-resolution compact systems, thanks to the short wavelength. First, these systems were used for detecting and localizing purposes, with the aim of identification. Thus, imaging radar systems have been developed, especially using qualitative imaging, based for example, on Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR). Nevertheless, in order to reconstruct the electromagnetic properties of objects, for a complete identification, we must develop quantitative reconstruction algorithms. The work presented in this manuscript is to give the basis of a qualitative and quantitative millimeter wave imaging system for detecting and identifying foreign debris on airport runways using tomography, taking into account the polarization of the incident wave. In this thesis, a simulation tool for solving forward and inverse problems, for the two-dimensional polarization cases 2D-TM and 2D-TE, based on the method of moments (MoM) has been developed. The first step was to study the validation of the direct problem by comparing numerical results with analytical solutions for canonical targets. Then, experimental measurements have ben carried out and compared with numerical results. Finally, reconstruction results obtained have validated the reconstruction algorithm developed for quantitative imaging

L’amélioration de la sécurité routière ainsi que le développement des systèmes de transports intelligents sont des enjeux d’avenir dans le secteur automobile avec un essor considérable du véhicule semi autonome et autonome. Les systèmes de sécurité active qui équipent de plus en plus les véhicules commercialisés utilisent des capteurs radar (longue et courte portée) fonctionnant dans les bandes 24 GHz ou 77 GHz. L’étude et la mise au point de tels capteurs peuvent être facilitées via l’utilisation d’une plate-forme de simulation générique permettant de simuler un système radar couplé à son environnement selon des scénarios types prédéfinis. Il est alors nécessaire de disposer d’une représentation fiable et réaliste de l’environnement et des objets présents.Cette thèse aborde la caractérisation et la modélisation du canal de propagation et plus largement de l’environnement radioélectrique en ondes millimétriques pour des applications radar, en termes de phénomènes de propagation (trajets multiples, réflexion, diffraction …) et de cibles électriquement larges. Une combinaison de méthodes asymptotiques a été mise en œuvre afin de permettre l'analyse de problèmes électriquement larges en bande W, tout en réduisant les exigences en temps de calcul et en capacité de mémoire. La précision du simulateur a été évaluée à l’aide d’une campagne de mesures de SER de cibles canoniques et complexes de petite taille (inférieure 6cm) dans une chambre anéchoïque. Le banc de mesure mis en œuvre a permis également de valider une procédure expérimentale de détermination de la signature radar. En effet, la procédure expérimentale a été généralisée à la mesure de la signature radar d’objets de taille réelle, dans un milieu « indoor ». Les mesures effectuées ont montré une bonne adéquation avec les résultats présentés dans la littérature. En outre, ces données expérimentales permettent d’extraire une description de la cible par des points brillants qui modélisent les phénomènes de diffusion et de réflexion spéculaire. La réponse à haute fréquence d’une cible peut être approchée par la somme de réponses de ses points brillants. On propose ainsi de simplifier les signatures mesurées pour maximiser l'efficacité de calcul. Comparé aux modèles géométriques détaillés d’une cible complexe, le modèle de points brillants conduit à une meilleure efficacité des simulations de propagation basées sur des rayons dans des scénarios routiers. Le modèle tient également compte de l’anisotropie des diffuseurs (dans le plan azimutal) en modélisant leurs amplitudes par des gaussiennes
Improving road safety as well as the development of intelligent transport systems are issues of the future in the automotive sector with a considerable rise of the semi-autonomous and autonomous vehicle. The active safety systems that increasingly equip commercial vehicles use radar sensors (long and short range) operating in the 24 GHz or 77GHz bands. The study and development of such sensors can be facilitated through the use of a generic simulation platform to simulate a radar system coupled to its environment according to predefined standard scenarios. It is then necessary to have a reliable and realistic representation of the environment as well as targets. This thesis deals with the characterization and modelling of the propagation channel for radar applications, in terms of propagation phenomena (multipath, reflection, diffraction …) and electrically large targets. A combination of asymptotic methods was developed for the analysis of electrically large problems in W band, while reducing the requirements in CPU time and memory. The accuracy of the simulator was evaluated with radar cross section measurement of canonical and complex small targets (not exceeding 6 cm) in an anechoic chamber. The developed bench measurement also made it possible to validate an experimental procedure for determining the radar signature. Indeed, the experimental characterization was generalized to characterize various automotive related targets in an “indoor” environment. Measurement results matched well with the results presented in the literature. Moreover, the experimental data allows the extraction of a simple target description in terms of scattering points which model the diffusion and specular reflection phenomena. The high frequency response of a target can be approached by the sum of the responses of its scattering centres. It is thus proposed to simplify the measured signatures in order to increase the computation efficiency. Compared to detailed geometrical representation of a complex target, scattering centre model leads to better efficiency of ray-based propagation simulations of road scenarios. The model also takes into account the scattering centre anisotropy (in the azimuth plan) by modelling their amplitudes by Gaussian ones

The objective of the research in this dissertation is to demonstrate the viability of using silicon-germanium (SiGe) bipolar/complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (BiCMOS) technologies in novel high-speed, high-performance wireless and wireline applications. These applications include self-healing integrated systems, W-Band phased array radar systems, and multi-gigabit wireline transceiver systems. The contributions from this research are summarized below: 1. Design of a wideband 8-18 GHz signal source with the best reported tuning range and die area combination for self-healing applications [95]. 2. Design of a robust, multi-band 8-10/ 16-20 GHz signal source with amplitude-locking for self-healing applications. A figure-of-merit (FoM) is proposed that combines tuning range and die area, and this work achieves the best FoM compared with state-of-the art [51]. 3. First ever reported on-die healing of image-rejection ratio of an 8-18 GHz mixer integrated with the multi-band test signal source [52], [96]. 4. Design of a 94 GHz differential Colpitts oscillator with 14% tuning range that spans 86-99 GHz for phased-array radar systems. 5. Identification of technology platform related bottlenecks in multi-gigabit wireline systems. A novel study of linearity of switching transistors in a current-mode logic (CML) gate. 6. A novel FoM that can be used to predict large-signal CML delay using small-signal Y-parameter techniques [97].

Ce travail de thèse s’inscrit dans le cadre d’un projet Français « VéLo » qui est une collaboration entre l’industriel STMicroelectronics et plusieurs laboratoires dont les laboratoires IMS-bordeaux et LAAS. Le but du projet est de concevoir un prototype de radar anticollision millimétrique. Dans ce travail un synthétiseur de fréquence est implémenté. Ce dernier sera intégré dans la chaine de réception du démonstrateur. Une étude bibliographique des architectures classiques de système de radiocommunication a été réalisée. Des exemples d’architectures rencontrées dans le domaine millimétrique ont été étudiés.L’objet principal de cette thèse est l’étude des oscillateurs synchronisés par injection ILO. L’objectif est de réaliser un oscillateur verrouillé par injection qui sera piloté par un oscillateur de fréquence plus basse possédant des caractéristiques de stabilité et de bruit meilleures.Dans ce travail de thèse, le mécanisme de verrouillage des oscillateurs par injection a été décrit. Un modèle de synchronisation par injection série, basé sur la théorie de Huntoon Weiss et inspiré du travail de Badets réalisé sur les oscillateurs synchrones verrouillés par injection parallèle, est proposé. La théorie établie a permis d’exprimer la plage de synchronisation en fonction de la topologie utilisée et des composants de la structure. La validité de la théorie a été évaluée par la simulation de la structure. Les résultats présentés montrent une bonne concordance entre la simulation et la théorie et permettent de valider le principe de synchronisation par injection. La faisabilité de l’intégration d’un ILO millimétrique synchronisé par l’harmonique d’un signal de référence de fréquence plus basse a été démontrée expérimentalement. Le synthétiseur de fréquence est réalisé en technologie BiCMOS 130nm pour des applications millimétriques de STMicroelectronics. Ce dernier opère dans une plage de 2GHz autour de la fréquence 82,5GHz. Les performances en bruit du synthétiseur sont satisfaisantes. Le bruit de phase de l’ILO recopie celui du signal injecté. Les équipements de mesures utilisés, le bruit de phase de l’oscillateur atteint des valeurs inférieures à -110dBc/Hz à 1MHz de la porteuse
This thesis is a part of a French project "VELO". The project is collaboration between STMicroelectronics and several laboratories including IMS-Bordeaux and LAAS laboratories. The aim of this project is to achieve a prototype of millimeter anti-collision radar. In this work a frequency synthesizer is implemented. This circuit will be incorporated in the reception chain of the demonstrator. A bibliographical study of classical architecture was completed. Examples of architectures encountered in the millimeter frequency range have been studied. The purpose of this thesis is to study the phenomena of synchronization in oscillators. The objective is to design an injection locked oscillator ILO driven by another oscillator, the second oscillator operates at lower frequency and offers better stability and noise characteristics.In this thesis, the injection locking mechanism of the oscillators has been described. A model of synchronization by series injection is proposed. The model is based on the theory of Huntoon and Weiss and inspired by Badets’ work performed on parallel injection. The theory expresses the synchronized frequency range depending on the used topology and the values of the components. The validity of the theory was evaluated by simulation. The results show good agreement between simulation and theory and validate the principle of synchronization by injection.The feasibility of a millimeter ILO synchronized by the harmonic of a reference signal operating at lower frequency has been demonstrated experimentally. The synthesizer was implemented in BiCMOS technology for 130nm applications millimeter of STMicroelectronics. The oscillator operates at 82.5 GHz and performs a frequency range of 2GHz. The noise performance of the synthesizer is satisfactory. The phase noise of the ILO depends on the reference phase noise, and reaches values of -110dBc/Hz at 1MHz from the carrier frequency

Avec l'ouverture de la bande 57-66 GHz en Europe, de nouvelles technologies de communication sans fil à haut débit sont en cours de développement. De nombreux avantages liés à cette bande de fréquence ont notamment conduit à envisager la transposition du principe de l'identification par radiofréquence (RFID) en bande millimétrique : la MMID. Les réglementations internationales font notamment apparaître une bande passante commune de 5 GHz qui permettrait la mise en place de solutions universelles. De plus la sécurisation des communications point-à-point et la directivité des réseaux d'antennes offrent des perspectives intéressantes.Les travaux présentés dans cette thèse visent à contribuer au développement de la MMID. Ils soulignent les principaux verrous de cette technologie et présentent les différentes solutions proposées qui couvrent de multiples aspects : conception d'antennes et de réseaux d'antennes, conception de prototypes de tags MMID passifs, caractérisation et méthodologie de mesure dont la conception intégrale d'un banc de mesure en bande V, amélioration des performances des tags, et étude de fonctionnalités de capteur intégrées aux tags. Les différents prototypes de tags MMID fabriqués ont permis de réaliser des communications passives de type rétro-modulation jusqu'à 20 cm. De plus, des fonctions de capteur d'humidité et capteur de pression intégrées aux tags MMID ont été montrées expérimentalement. L'ensemble de ces résultats ouvre la voie à de nouvelles perspectives pour les domaines des télécommunications et des réseaux de capteurs en bande millimétrique
With the opening of the 57-66 GHz band in Europe, new high data-rate wireless communication technologies are currently under development. Numerous advantages linked to the frequency band conducted to consider the transposition of the radiofrequency identificaion (RFID) principle to the millimeter frequency band: the MMID. The international regulations provide a common bandwidth of 5 GHz allowing universal solutions. Moreover, the communication security of point-to-point networks and the directivities of the antennas present interesting perspectives.The presented work in this thesis looks for contributing to the development of MMID. The work underlines the principal locks of this technology and it presents the different proposed solutions covering multiple aspects: conception of antennas and antennas arrays, conception of MMID tags prototypes, characterization and measurement methodology including the complete conception of a measurement bench in V-band, improvement of the tags performances and study of sensing functionalities integrated in the tags. Different prototypes of MMID tags are fabricated and passive communications based on the backscattering of the tags were demonstrated up to 20 cm. In addition, humidity and pressure sensing functionalities were proved by experimentations. The overall of these results pave the way for new perspectives for the wireless communication domain and sensors networks in the millimeter-wave band

Wireless operation, near-field or far-field, is a core functionality of any mobile or autonomous system. These systems are battery operated or most often utilize energy scavenging as a means of power generation. Limited access to power, expected long and uninterrupted operation, and constrained physical parameters (e.g. weight and size), which limit overall power harvesting capabilities, are factors that outline the importance for innovative low-power approaches and designs in advanced low-power wireless applications. Low-power approaches become especially important for the wireless transceiver, the block in charge of wireless/remote functionality of the system, as this block is usually the most power hungry component in an integrated system-on-chip (SoC). Three such advanced applications with stringent power requirements are examined including space-based exploratory remote sensing probes and their associated radiation effects, millimeter-wave phased-array radar for high-altitude tactical and geological imaging, and implantable biomedical devices (IMDs), leading to the proposal and implementation of low-power wireless solutions for these applications in SiGe BiCMOS and CMOS and platforms.