API Technologies Corp., a provider of high performance RF/microwave, power, and security solutions for critical and high-reliability applications, expands its line of Gallium Nitride (GaN) based power amplifiers to include designs that operate with output power levels up to 1,000 watts and frequencies to 18 GHz. These new pulsed, solid state power amplifiers are making their debut at the IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium (IMS 2014) in Tampa, Florida.
These new power amplifiers can serve as a cost-effective replacement for traveling wave tubes (TWT), as the amplifiers’ long life and reduced size and weight offer better efficiencies than their TWT counterparts.
API’s GaN-based pulsed power amplifiers can be used in numerous military and high end commercial applications including radar, communication transmitters, and jamming systems.
These unique power amplifiers are designed and manufactured in the United States and utilize in-house thin and thick film technologies as well as Surface Mount Technology (SMT). The power amplifiers are offered in hermetically sealed packages using mixed SMT and chip-and-wire manufacturing processes.
For high frequency applications, waveguide components can be integrated into the floor of the package to reduce combining losses and further increase functionality such as embedded harmonic filtering. Other options of the GaN-based power amplifiers include sleep mode, blanking, forward/reverse power detection, discrete power supply designs for wide DC input voltage ranges, as well as microprocessor-based control features for bias optimization, temperature compensation, fault monitoring, and customer interferences.
Dennis Barrick, technical marketing manager, RF/Microwave & Microelectronics (RF2M-US), API Technologies, said, “API’s feature-rich architecture combined with complementary design tools provide engineers a suite of customizable solutions to meet challenging requirements in performance, packaging, and lead times.”
Technical Specifications:
- Operating frequencies up to 18 GHz
- Pulsed Power output levels from 500 W to 1 kW
- In-house chip and wire (hybrid) and SMT manufacturing
- Customer defined control features can be added to complement amplifier performance