EAGER: High Performance Silicon based Terahertz Front End Circuits for Chip-to-Chip Interconnect

EAGER：高性能硅基太赫兹前端电路芯片到芯片互连AbstractIntellectual Merit：EAGER的建议的目的是研究硅基太赫兹前端电路设计技术，这将最终导致太赫兹互连和解决长期存在的互连问题。芯片与芯片之间的互连间隙（Chip-to-chip interconnect gap）是指不断增长的带宽需求和有限数量的I/O引脚之间的间隙，几十年来一直是计算机和嵌入式系统的瓶颈，并且随着先进技术中处理速度的提高而变得越来越具有挑战性。THz频谱在芯片到芯片互连领域具有很大的前景，因为其超宽带宽支持比现有互连能力高几个数量级的聚合数据速率。作为计算机和嵌入式系统的主流技术，硅工艺是正确的技术。 然而，硅工艺的缺点，如电源电压低，损耗大，截止频率低，需要新的设计思路来克服这些不足。因此，本项目将研究两种使能技术：（1）基于LO注入肖特基势垒二极管（SBD）的混频与高效再生放大接收前端设计，成功演示了再生接收结构;以及（2）高功率THz发射机前端电路，基于经验证的基于最佳信号条件的高功率产生方案和基于低损耗变容二极管的调制方法。更广泛的影响：硅基THz前端电路的成功将最终导致THz互连，提供数量级更好的互连带宽密度，以解决互连的瓶颈问题。因此，它将支持新的计算机体系结构，以满足大数据时代快速增长的数据速率要求。此外，成功的技术开发还将通过推进具有高功率、低噪声和小形状因子的THz技术，为各种重要的其他THz应用开辟巨大的机会。例如，它可以使便携式THz设备用于THz医疗诊断，用于早期疾病检测;它可以通过THz监测设备推进制药和药物开发。这些应用不仅将推动科学研究，而且将极大地造福于我们的日常生活和社会。研究成果将通过国际会议和高影响力期刊广泛传播。两个PI都致力于吸引和留住来自代表性不足群体的学生进入工程领域，并将进一步扩大与当地K-12学校学生的联系。

EAGER: High Performance Silicon based Terahertz Front End Circuits for Chip-to-Chip Interconnect AbstractIntellectual Merit: The objective of this EAGER proposal is to investigate silicon based terahertz front end circuit design techniques, which will eventually lead to THz interconnects and solve the long-standing interconnect issue. The Chip-to-chip interconnect gap, which is between the ever-increasing bandwidth requirement and the limited number of I/O pins, has been a bottleneck for computer and embedded systems over decades and is getting more and more challenging with the increase of processing speed in advanced technologies. The THz spectrum holds great promise in the chip-to-chip interconnect area due to its ultra-wide bandwidth to support aggregate data rates orders of magnitude higher than existing interconnect capabilities. As the mainstream technologies for computer and embedded systems, silicon processes are the right technologies. However, the disadvantages of silicon processes, such as low supply voltages, large losses, and low cut-off frequencies, demand new design ideas to overcome these shortages. Therefore, this project will investigate two enabling techniques: (1) LO injected Schottky barrier diode (SBD) based mixing with high efficiency regenerative amplification receiving front end design, successfully demonstrated regenerative receiving structure; and (2) high power THz transmitter front end circuits, based on the proven high power generation scheme based on optimum signal conditions and low loss varactor-based modulation method. The circuit design techniques and methodologies are transformative, which can also apply to other high frequency circuits and systems in different processes.Broader Impacts: The success of silicon based THz front end circuits will eventually lead to THz interconnects, providing orders-of-magnitude better interconnect bandwidth density to address the bottleneck problem from interconnects. Therefore, it will support new computer architecture to meet the fast increasing data rate requirement in BIG DATA era. Furthermore, the successful technology developments will also open tremendous opportunities for a wide variety of important other THz applications by advancing THz technologies with high power, low noise and small form factors. For instance, it can enable portable THz devices for THz medical diagnosis for early disease detection; it can advance pharmaceutical and drug development through THz monitoring devices. These applications will not only advance scientific research, but also greatly benefit our daily lives and societies. The research results will be widely disseminated through international conferences and high impact journals. Both PIs are committed to engaging and retaining students from under-represented groups into engineering areas and will further extend outreach to local K-12 school students.