RF long term aging behavior and reliability in 22FDX WiFi Power Amplifier designs for 5G applications

RF long term aging and large signal reliability in 22FDX Wi-Fi Power Amplifier (P A) designs is investigated. Packaged PA operating at 5.4GHz., 3.3V V DD with LDMOS as Common Gate and SLVT as Common Source is stressed under accelerated DC and RF power conditions for +1.5kPOH at TA=25 C. A custom built Power Amplifier Test System (PATS) tool capable of large signal on packaged samples is used for long term stress. Initial RF performance of ~26 dBm., with gain 14~15 is seen before stress. Power sweeps at regular stress intervals were performed to validate PA degradation. Self-heating effect is studied by correlating T A to junction temp T J using thermal models. Thermal images confirm that higher P diss leads to higher T J . Output power degradation of < 0.5dB is seen at accelerated voltage of 4.2V after + 1.5kPOH which is correlated to voltage swings. Key limiting mechanism for common gate and source devices are identified, demonstrating the viability of CMOS FDSOI technology for 5G applications.