A compact high efficiency GaN-Si PA implemented in a low cost DFN package with 71% fractional bandwidth

This work presents a high performance GaN on Silicon (GaN-Si) PA that exploits high efficiency Class-J modes over greater than one octave bandwidth. With appropriate choice of device layout, device size, package and operating drain voltage, a design methodology has been applied to obtain a highly efficient, broadband PA realization. A 2mm GaN-Si die housed in a low cost plastic package was selected for the design of a compact, hybrid Class-J PA from 1-2.1 GHz. The PA delivered 13-18 W of output power with drain efficiencies from 60-69% measured across the band. Modulated signal performance is also demonstrated across the band, where average drain efficiencies of greater than 33% have been found with an ACPR in excess of -33 dBc using a 9.1 dB PAPR W-CDMA excitation signal.