C-Band Radar Front Ends Bring BAW-Based Frequency Agility and GaN Power
Historically, gaining frequency agility for C-band radars has required cobbling together discrete filters, switches, and RF routing. Integrated switched-filter banks were simply not available for the 5.2- to 5.9-GHz band. That can translate into a less efficient power amplifier (PA), which increases DC power draw and heat. Compensation comes in the form of an external high-power driver stage.
Qorvo has responded with a C-band radar solution that adds receiver frequency agility and reduces DC power and heat in the transmit chain. Designed for pulsed electronically steered antenna (ESA) systems, the solution combines the industry’s first integrated C-band bulk acoustic wave (BAW)-switched filter bank with high-efficiency 50- and 200-W gallium-nitride (GaN) power amplifiers.
The QPB1055 C-band switched-filter bank module integrates BAW filtering with switching, routing, and control, providing contiguous coverage with a combination of high Q, low insertion loss, and small size heretofore unavailable in a discrete implementation. On transmit, both PAs reduce DC power and heat with high efficiency. The 50-W QPA2311 delivers 55% power-added efficiency (PAE), and the 200-W QPA0018 eliminates the external high-power driver stage.
The QPB1055, QPA2311, and QPA0018 join Qorvo’s C-band limiters, LNAs, switches, and driver amplifiers. The expanded portfolio gives radar customers receive and transmit building blocks backed by Qorvo’s BAW, GaN, and system-level RF expertise. Samples and evaluation kits for all devices are available now.
Learn more about BAW/RF filtering
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About the Author
David MaliniakDavid Maliniak
Executive Editor, Microwaves & RF
I am Executive Editor of Microwaves & RF, an all-digital publication that broadly covers all aspects of wireless communications. More particularly, we're keeping a close eye on technologies in the consumer-oriented 5G, 6G, IoT, M2M, and V2X markets, in which much of the wireless market's growth will occur in this decade and beyond. I work with a great team of editors to provide engineers, developers, and technical managers with interesting and useful articles and videos on a regular basis. Check out our free newsletters to see the latest content.
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About me:
In his long career in the B2B electronics-industry media, David Maliniak has held editorial roles as both generalist and specialist. As Components Editor and, later, as Editor in Chief of EE Product News, David gained breadth of experience in covering the industry at large. In serving as EDA/Test and Measurement Technology Editor at Electronic Design, he developed deep insight into those complex areas of technology. Most recently, David worked in technical marketing communications at Teledyne LeCroy, leaving to rejoin the EOEM B2B publishing world in January 2020. David earned a B.A. in journalism at New York University.