A CMOS Terahertz Pulse Radiator with Zero DC Power Consumption Based on Nonlinear Transmission Line Sharpening Effect

This article presents a fully integrated terahertz (THz) pulse radiator that is based on the sharpening effect of nonlinear transmission lines (NLTL). As the sinusoidal input travels along the line, its width shrinks, and high frequency harmonics are generated. Implemented in 65-nm CMOS technology and consuming no DC power, this chip generates and radiates a broadband frequency comb through its on-chip antenna that covers 20-700 GHz band with adjustable frequency space between the tones. The EIRP at 400 GHz, 550 GHz, and 700 GHz are -48, -63, and -70 dB, respectively.