Millimeter-Wave Electronics Group
Queen's University at Kingston
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Laboratory

The Millimeter-Wave Electronics Group has measurement capabilities from the device/chip-level to the antenna and system levels. Test infrastructure includes vector network analyzers, spectrum analyzers, digital sampling oscilloscopes and more.  The antenna anechoic chamber is equipped to carry out measurements to 40 GHz. We use state-of-the-art computer-aided design tools for simulation of circuits (ADS, Cadence, Mentor Graphics) and electromagnetic structures (Ansys HFSS).  CMOS, silicon  germanium BiCMOS and gallium nitride HFET integrated circuits are fabricated at various foundries around the world through multi-project wafer (MPW) runs. Planar antennas and passive circuits are fabricated in-house using an LPKF numerically-controlled PCB milling machine and waveguide antennas are fabricated at the McLaughlin machine shop at Queen's. Below are short descriptions of recently acquired or developed test and measurement infrastructure in the laboratory.

W-Band Antenna Measurements - the laboratory is equipped with an automated system to measure radiation patterns from 75 GHz to 110 GHz. The antenna test stand has a rotational accuracy of 0.5° over a range of ±90° from boresight with rotational axis adjustment to rotate the antenna under test about its phase center.

Optimization - Artificial intelligence (AI) software tools are developed and trained in-house to understand, predict, and optimize antenna performance. These tools integrate with our commercial EM simulators (ANSYS HFSS) to assist with the design of complex hardware solutions with many features and design parameters.

Material Measurements - Open-ended coaxial probes are used to measure the complex permittivity of liquids and solids from 10 MHz to 55 GHz. This allows to characterize and model the effective dielectric constant and losses of a medium, which can be used to improve simulation accuracy. Additionally, studying new materials provides insight to their applicability and integration into applied electromagnetic designs.

Fluidics - Four-channel fluidic peristaltic pump from Darwin Microfluidics. The pump can be controlled locally or from a computer via USB. Each pumping channel is independent and can produce flow rates between 43 µl/min and 1900 µl/min.









Research Funding

Major funding support for our Group's research activities and laboratory infrastructure has come from the following organizations:
  • The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)
  • Department of National Defense (DND)
  • Queen's Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science Dean's Research Fund
  • Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI)
  • Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE)
  • CMC Microsystems (IC fabrication grants and related services)
  • Government of Canada (Graduate and Postdoctoral Scholarships)
  • Ontario Ministry of Training (Graduate Scholarships)
  • Industrial collaborators
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