BACKGROUND:  Future digital communication systems require transmitters to operate at various back-off power regimes for boosting communication channel capacity by frequency sharing. Current power amplifier architectures are designed to achieve high efficiency only at the maximum output power.

INNOVATION:  Researchers at UCLA have designed a novel RF amplifier architecture that achieves high efficiency and high linearity over complete input/output signal range with wide frequency tuning capability. The traditional amplifier is replaced with a distributed design consisting of saturated power amplifiers that are connected in parallel with dynamic source and load matching networks. According to the signal envelope, each power amplifier is turned on/off and the matching networks are tuned to the corresponding optimal impedance. Furthermore, the design is reconfigurable to any kind of communication system with different modulation schemes and linearity specification by increasing/decreasing number and gain of the amplifier units.

POTENTIAL APPLICATIONS 

• All types of digital communication systems, including millimeter wave and multiband applications

ADVANTAGES

• Relaxed bandwidth requirement
• High linearity in a wide power range
• Reconfigurable to any kind of communication system
• Simple layout and routing

Reference: UCLA Case No. 2009-665