Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
5.2
3.0
Journals
Micromachines
Special Issues
Novel Power Amplifiers and Integrated Circuits: Design and Applications
share announcement

Novel Power Amplifiers and Integrated Circuits: Design and Applications

A special issue of Micromachines (ISSN 2072-666X). This special issue belongs to the section "E：Engineering and Technology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 October 2024) | Viewed by 3127

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Zhiqun Cheng

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Electronics and Information, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou 310018, China
Interests: microwave; integrated circuits design; compound semiconductor devices; broadband; wireless communication systems
Dr. Zhiwei Zhang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Electronics and Information, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou 310018, China
Interests: microwave circuit; power amplifier; rectifier
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

With the rapid development of wireless communication, faster transmission rates have led to increasingly complex signals being transmitted, with ultra-high operating frequencies, ultra-large bandwidths, and high peak-to-average ratios. This poses significant challenges to the design of RF front-end circuits, especially power amplifiers. In order to support advanced modulation signals, RF power amplifiers urgently require characteristics that facilitate excellent performance, such as high frequency, high linearity, large bandwidth, high efficiency, and large power backoff range, which may depend on the exploration of new theories, methods, and architectures of power amplifiers. With the widespread development of wireless communication applications, RF power amplifier chips with high integration and miniaturization levels have become a highly promising direction for industrialization, such as radar, satellite links, smart healthcare, and the Internet of Things. Requirements for power amplifier performance, such as reliability, are also crucial in practical application scenarios. Therefore, this Special Issue welcomes innovative research on advanced power amplifiers and related integrated chips, while also focusing on the application of power amplifiers in practical scenarios.

Prof. Dr. Zhiqun Cheng
Dr. Zhiwei Zhang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Micromachines is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2100 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • wireless communication
  • advanced RF power amplifiers and chips
  • applications of power amplifier chips

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

Jump to: Review

12 pages, 7074 KiB  
Article
An X-Band Class-J GaN MMIC Power Amplifier with Well-Designed In-Band Output Power Flatness
by Bangjie Zheng, Zhiqun Cheng, Zhiwei Zhang, Ruizhe Zhang, Tingwei Gong and Chao Le
Micromachines 2025, 16(1), 87; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi16010087 - 13 Jan 2025
Viewed by 541
Abstract
This paper presents an X-band high-power GaN MMIC power amplifier (PA). To balance efficiency, output power, and saturated power flatness, the load-line theory is employed to analyze and validate the power variation trends within an extended continuous Class B/J (CCBJ) impedance space. Theoretical [...] Read more.
This paper presents an X-band high-power GaN MMIC power amplifier (PA). To balance efficiency, output power, and saturated power flatness, the load-line theory is employed to analyze and validate the power variation trends within an extended continuous Class B/J (CCBJ) impedance space. Theoretical constant power contours are plotted within this space. An L-C impedance matching network is used to match the amplifier’s output impedance to the overlapping region of the 0.5 dB constant power contour and the CCBJ impedance space, significantly improving the in-band power flatness of the PA based on the CCBJ design approach. Additionally, an RC parallel structure is integrated into the interstage matching network to maximize gain while ensuring stability. The proposed PA, implemented using a 0.25 µm commercial GaN process, achieves a saturated output power of 47–47.6 dBm with in-band fluctuations within ± 0.3 dB, a power gain of 27.0–27.8 dB, and an efficiency of 40–45.5% across the X-band. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Novel Power Amplifiers and Integrated Circuits: Design and Applications)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

9 pages, 6003 KiB  
Article
W-Band GaAs pHEMT Power Amplifier MMIC Stabilized Using Network Determinant Function
by Seong-Hee Han and Dong-Wook Kim
Micromachines 2025, 16(1), 81; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi16010081 - 12 Jan 2025
Viewed by 675
Abstract
This paper presents a W-band power amplifier monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) that is designed for high-precision millimeter-wave systems and fabricated using a 0.1 µm GaAs pHEMT process. The amplifier’s stability was evaluated using the network determinant function, ensuring robust performance under both [...] Read more.
This paper presents a W-band power amplifier monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) that is designed for high-precision millimeter-wave systems and fabricated using a 0.1 µm GaAs pHEMT process. The amplifier’s stability was evaluated using the network determinant function, ensuring robust performance under both linear and nonlinear conditions. Simultaneous matching for gain and output power was achieved with minimal passive elements. The developed power amplifier MMIC exhibits a linear gain exceeding 20 dB and an input return loss greater than 6 dB across the 88–98 GHz range. It delivers an output power of 23.8–24.1 dBm with a power gain of 17.3–17.9 dB in the 88–97 GHz range and achieves a maximum power-added efficiency (PAE) of 24% at 94 GHz. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Novel Power Amplifiers and Integrated Circuits: Design and Applications)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Review

Jump to: Research

15 pages, 5787 KiB  
Review
A Review of Ku-Band GaN HEMT Power Amplifiers Development
by Jihoon Kim
Micromachines 2024, 15(11), 1381; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi15111381 - 15 Nov 2024
Viewed by 1454
Abstract
This review article investigates the current status and advances in Ku-band gallium nitride (GaN) high-electron mobility transistor (HEMT) high-power amplifiers (HPAs), which are critical for satellite communications, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) systems, and military radar applications. The demand for high-frequency, high-power amplifiers is [...] Read more.
This review article investigates the current status and advances in Ku-band gallium nitride (GaN) high-electron mobility transistor (HEMT) high-power amplifiers (HPAs), which are critical for satellite communications, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) systems, and military radar applications. The demand for high-frequency, high-power amplifiers is growing, driven by the global expansion of high-speed data communication and enhanced national security requirements. First, we compare the main GaN HEMT process technologies employed in Ku-band HPA development, categorizing the HPAs into monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMICs) and internally matched power amplifier modules (IM-PAMs) and examining their respective characteristics. Then, by reviewing the literature, we explore design topologies, major issues like oscillation prevention and bias circuits, and heat sink technologies for thermal management. Our findings indicate that silicon carbide (SiC) substrates with gate lengths of 0.25 μm and 0.15 μm are predominantly used, with ongoing developments enabling MMICs and IM-PAMs to achieve up to 100 W output power and 30% power-added efficiency. Notably, the performance of MMIC power amplifiers is advancing more rapidly than that of IM-PAMs, highlighting MMICs as a promising direction for achieving higher efficiency and integration in future Ku-band applications. This paper can provide insights into the overall key technologies for Ku-band GaN HPA design and future development directions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Novel Power Amplifiers and Integrated Circuits: Design and Applications)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-3
Back to TopTop