New Outphasing Amplifier Mixed-Mode Modulation Approach for Improving Efficiency and Gain

Abstract

This letter introduces a novel input excitation approach designed to enhance output back-off (OBO) efficiency and gain by incorporating both amplitude and phase modulations for an outphasing power amplifier (OPA). For the first time, a comprehensive mixed-mode modulation approach is presented. To validate the proposed method, a prototype OPA operating at 2.6 GHz is designed as the testing benchmark. Experimental results confirm that the power added efficiency (PAE) at 9 dB OBO point reaches 72.56% under the proposed modulation, achieving an 18.76% improvement over the classic modulation. The gain remains relatively stable, ranging from 10.7 to 12.1 dB across a large OBO range.