17.7-21.2 GHz High Efficiency 2W Non-Uniform Distributed Amplifier in 0.15μm GaN Technology

Abstract

This paper presents a wideband two stage monolithic Non-Uniform Distributed Power Amplifier (NDPA) design. Compared to a standard DPA, each device can be optimized to allow for optimal tradeoff between output power, energy efficiency and bandwidth. A prototype design is laid out and extracted in a 0.15 μm GaN on SiC process. The prototype achieves > 33 dBm output power across an 18% fractional bandwidth from 17.7-21.2 GHz and is geared for satellite communications applications. The peak output power is 36dBm with >15dB of power gain and a peak efficiency of 42.2% PAE.