A Spectrally pure 5.0 W, High PAE, (6-12 GHz) GaN Monolithic Class E Power Amplifier for Advanced T/R Modules

Abstract

This paper introduces a new highly efficient broadband monolithic class-E power amplifier utilizing a single 0.25 um x 800 um AlGaN/GaN field-plated HEMT producing 8 W/mm of power at 10.0 GHz. The HPA utilizes a novel distributed broadband class-E load topology to maintain a simultaneous high PAE and output Power over (6-12 GHz). The HPA's peak PAE and output power performance measured under three pulsed drain voltages at 7.5 GHz are: (67%, 36.8 dBm @ 20 V), (64%, 37.8 dBm @ 25 V) and (58%, 38.3 dBm @ 30 V). The new broadband load also provides a spectrally pure output power response under CW and pulsed modulated RF input conditions. The HPA spurious free performance is evident from its low AM and PM noise figures of <-125 dBc at 10 KHz from carrier and <-130 dBc at 15 KHz from 10 GHz respectively. To the best of our knowledge, this is the highest ever reported performance for a high power, 6-12 GHz GaN class-E power amplifier.

Design of integrated 1.6 GHz, 2 W tuned RF power amplifier

“…The effect of limited conductivity and limited capability to cope with heat can be minimized through careful design of MMIC. Further, emerging transistor technologies seem to withstand larger current densities and peak voltages [5], and therefore, the choice of technology is increasingly important when designing high power devices.…”

Overview of AlGaN/GaN HEMT technology for L- to Ku-band applications

“…Then, the amplifier was measured at a higher drain bias voltage of 32 V. The amplifier delivered a maximum output power of 47.7 dBm (58 W) corresponding to a power density of 6.5 W/mm with 38% of PAE and 14.6 dB of associated gain at 9 GHz. This result represents the state of the art of the output power obtained on MMIC with AlGaN/GaN HEMTs [13–19].…”

Zero voltage switching high efficiency power amplifier with parallel coupled line load

“…Power amplifier designs based on classical high efficiency theories have attained power efficiency as high as 96% for power amplifiers operating in the MHz region with lumped elements most commonly used in the load network. For circuits in the millimeter and microwave frequency range, the use of distributed elements are preferred given the higher Q factor and better performance prediction especially when implementing the circuit using MMIC technologies .…”