Spectrum Control's line of Gallium Nitride (GaN) Power Amplifiers utilize pulsed, solid state power amplifier technology and include designs that operate with output power levels up to 1,000 watts and frequencies to 18 GHz.
These power amplifiers serve as cost-effective replacements for traveling wave tube (TWT) amplifiers and offer longer life, better efficiencies and reduced size and weight than their TWT counterparts.
Spectrum Control's GaN based pulsed power amplifiers can be used in numerous military and high end commercial applications including radar, communication transmitters and jamming systems.
APITech’s GaN based pulsed power amplifiers can be used in numerous military and high end commercial applications including radar, communication transmitters and jamming systems.
These unique power amplifiers are designed and manufactured in the United States and utilize in-house thin and thick film technologies, as well as Surface Mount Technologies (SMT). The power amplifies are offered in hermetically sealed packages using mixed SMT and chip-and-wire manufacturing processes.
For high frequency applications, waveguide components can be integrated into the floor of the package to reduce combining losses and further increase functionality such as embedded harmonic filtering. Other options of the GaN based power amplifiers include sleep mode, blanking, forward/reverse power detection, discrete power supply designs for wide DC input voltage ranges, as well as microprocessor-based control features for bias optimization, temperature compensation, fault monitoring, and customer interferences.
APITech’s feature-rich architecture combined with complementary design tools provide engineers a suite of customizable solutions to meet challenging requirements in performance, packaging, and lead times. Contact us today to enquire on our diverse power amplifier solutions.
GaN Solid State Pulsed Power Amplifiers overcome the limitations of TWT (Traveling Wave Tube) Amplifiers.
The advantages for using a GaN SSPA to replace a TWT include:
1. Eliminating a system’s finite life due to cathode exhaustion in the TWT.
2. Removing concern about TWT damage at turn-on after extended storage periods.
3. Eliminating multiple single point failure sources in the TWT.
4. Providing distributed final stage health monitoring and early failure warning while maintaining system operational integrity.
5. Offering improved reliability to meet modern EW system requirements.
| Performance Category | Solid State Pulsed Power Amplifier | Traveling Wave Tube (TWT) Amplifier |
|---|---|---|
| Infant Mortality | Eliminates the TWT turn-on risk associated with immediate turn-on after extended storage periods. | To minimize risk of damage after prolonged storage, an 8-24 hour heater burn-in is recommended before cathode voltage is applied. |
| Cathode Exhaustion | Eliminates the cathode exhaustion issue altogether, significantly extending the system’s operating life. | Although there are steps that can be taken to extend cathode life in a TWT, it cannot be eliminated, resulting in the system having a finite operating lifetime. |
| MTBF | SSPA uses parallel combined transistors that provide a soft fail configuration. Parallel power sources in the SSPA provide the opportunity to monitor amplifier health at multiple power stages. | TWT relies on energy transfer from the electron beam into the RF signal traveling along a helix wire. All components in the tube are potential single point hard failure sources. |
Power Amplifiers are offered in hermetically sealed packages using mixed SMT and chip-and-wire manufacturing processes.
Pulsed Power Amplifiers are designed and manufactured in the United States and utilize our in-house thin and thick film technologies and surface mount technologies (SMT).
APITech's' GaN solid state pulsed power amplifiers serve as cost-effective replacement solutions for travelling wave tube (TWT) amplifiers, offering reduced size and weight, better efficiencies and longer life and than their TWT counterparts.