Inverted-load network for high-power Doherty amplifier

In this article, a high-power, high-efficiency inverted Doherty power amplifier (PA), having a more compact load network than that of the conventional Doherty amplifier, was designed and implemented for wide-band code-division multiple access (WCDMA) base-station applications. Its configuration and working principle are compared with the conventional Doherty amplifier. For experimental verification, we implemented an inverted Doherty amplifier, using a 190 W peak-envelope-power (PEP) laterally diffused metal-oxide-semiconductor (LDMOS) field-effect transistors (FETs). Using a four-carrier down-link WCDMA signal, we achieved a high power-added efficiency (PAE) of 32% and an average output power level as high as 46.3 dBm at a given adjacent channel leakage ratio (ACLR) level of -30 dBc. This is a 9.5% improvement in efficiency and 1 dB improvement in output power under the same ACLR conditions from those of the balanced class-AB operation using the same devices.