A monolithic, wide-temperature, charge amplification channel for extreme environments

This paper describes the design, implementation, and characterization of a monolithic charge amplification channel for use as a piezoelectric sensor front-end in extreme environment applications.
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The design leverages a 50 GHz peak-f
_T
SiGe BiCMOS technology platform to achieve functionality across a wide-temperature range from -180°C to 120°C. As part of a much larger remote electronics unit, the channel is specified to amplify piezoelectric transducer signals with frequencies up to 5 kHz and amplitudes as low as 200 pC. Intended for use in lunar surface systems, the application requires the capability to absorb up to 100 krad(SiO
₂
) of total ionizing dose (consistent with a typical lunar mission cycle) and be hardened against latch-up effects that cause system failure in a heavy ion radiation environment. Preliminary characterization of the channel shows the desired integration of an AC current input, programmable gain, and effective filtering at three distinct cutoff frequencies.