A Wideband High-Efficiency GaN MMIC Power Amplifier for Sub-6-GHz Applications
The monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) power amplifiers serve an essential and critical role in RF transmit/receive (T/R) modules of phased array radar systems, mobile communication systems and satellite systems. Over recent years, there has been an increasing requirement to develop wide...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-05-01
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| Series: | Micromachines |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-666X/13/5/793 |
| _version_ | 1797497814178070528 |
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| author | Liulin Hu Xuejie Liao Fan Zhang Haifeng Wu Shenglin Ma Qian Lin Xiaohong Tang |
| author_facet | Liulin Hu Xuejie Liao Fan Zhang Haifeng Wu Shenglin Ma Qian Lin Xiaohong Tang |
| author_sort | Liulin Hu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) power amplifiers serve an essential and critical role in RF transmit/receive (T/R) modules of phased array radar systems, mobile communication systems and satellite systems. Over recent years, there has been an increasing requirement to develop wideband high-efficiency MMIC high power amplifiers (HPAs) to accommodate wideband operation and reduce power consumption. This paper presents a wideband high efficiency MMIC HPA for Sub-6-GHz applications using a 0.25-μm gate-length D-mode GaN/SiC high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) process. The amplifier consists of two stages with two HEMT cells for the driver stage and eight HEMT cells for the power stage. To obtain a flat gain while maintaining the wideband characteristic, a gain equalization technique is employed in the inter-stage matching circuit. Meanwhile, a low-loss output matching network is utilized to ensure high efficiency. The fabricated HPA occupies a compact chip area of 14.35 mm<sup>2</sup> including testing pads. Over the frequency range of 2–6 GHz, measured results of this HPA show a saturated continuous wave (CW) output power of 44.4–45.2 dBm, a power added efficiency (PAE) of 35.8–51.3%, a small signal gain of 24–25.5 dB, and maximum input and output return losses of 14.5 and 10 dB, respectively. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T03:24:35Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-f11db20d6ee6424d8ab99b55ce63c2d3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2072-666X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T03:24:35Z |
| publishDate | 2022-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Micromachines |
| spelling | doaj.art-f11db20d6ee6424d8ab99b55ce63c2d32023-11-23T12:13:18ZengMDPI AGMicromachines2072-666X2022-05-0113579310.3390/mi13050793A Wideband High-Efficiency GaN MMIC Power Amplifier for Sub-6-GHz ApplicationsLiulin Hu0Xuejie Liao1Fan Zhang2Haifeng Wu3Shenglin Ma4Qian Lin5Xiaohong Tang6School of Electronic Science and Engineering, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 611731, ChinaChengdu Ganide Technology Company, Ltd., Chengdu 610220, ChinaChengdu Ganide Technology Company, Ltd., Chengdu 610220, ChinaChengdu Ganide Technology Company, Ltd., Chengdu 610220, ChinaDepartment of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Xiamen University, Xiamen 361005, ChinaSchool of Physics and Electronic Information Engineering, Qinghai Minzu University, Xining 810007, ChinaSchool of Electronic Science and Engineering, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 611731, ChinaThe monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) power amplifiers serve an essential and critical role in RF transmit/receive (T/R) modules of phased array radar systems, mobile communication systems and satellite systems. Over recent years, there has been an increasing requirement to develop wideband high-efficiency MMIC high power amplifiers (HPAs) to accommodate wideband operation and reduce power consumption. This paper presents a wideband high efficiency MMIC HPA for Sub-6-GHz applications using a 0.25-μm gate-length D-mode GaN/SiC high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) process. The amplifier consists of two stages with two HEMT cells for the driver stage and eight HEMT cells for the power stage. To obtain a flat gain while maintaining the wideband characteristic, a gain equalization technique is employed in the inter-stage matching circuit. Meanwhile, a low-loss output matching network is utilized to ensure high efficiency. The fabricated HPA occupies a compact chip area of 14.35 mm<sup>2</sup> including testing pads. Over the frequency range of 2–6 GHz, measured results of this HPA show a saturated continuous wave (CW) output power of 44.4–45.2 dBm, a power added efficiency (PAE) of 35.8–51.3%, a small signal gain of 24–25.5 dB, and maximum input and output return losses of 14.5 and 10 dB, respectively.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-666X/13/5/793MMICpower amplifierhigh efficiencySub-6-GHzGaN/SiC HEMT |
| spellingShingle | Liulin Hu Xuejie Liao Fan Zhang Haifeng Wu Shenglin Ma Qian Lin Xiaohong Tang A Wideband High-Efficiency GaN MMIC Power Amplifier for Sub-6-GHz Applications Micromachines MMIC power amplifier high efficiency Sub-6-GHz GaN/SiC HEMT |
| title | A Wideband High-Efficiency GaN MMIC Power Amplifier for Sub-6-GHz Applications |
| title_full | A Wideband High-Efficiency GaN MMIC Power Amplifier for Sub-6-GHz Applications |
| title_fullStr | A Wideband High-Efficiency GaN MMIC Power Amplifier for Sub-6-GHz Applications |
| title_full_unstemmed | A Wideband High-Efficiency GaN MMIC Power Amplifier for Sub-6-GHz Applications |
| title_short | A Wideband High-Efficiency GaN MMIC Power Amplifier for Sub-6-GHz Applications |
| title_sort | wideband high efficiency gan mmic power amplifier for sub 6 ghz applications |
| topic | MMIC power amplifier high efficiency Sub-6-GHz GaN/SiC HEMT |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-666X/13/5/793 |
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