Lossless multi-way power combining and outphasing for radio frequency power amplifiers

For applications requiring the use of power amplifiers (PAs) operating at high frequencies and power levels, it is often preferable to construct multiple low power PAs and combine their output powers to form a highpower PA. Moreover, such PAs must often be able to provide dynamic control of their output power over a wide range, and maintain high efficiency across their operating range. This research work describes a new power combining and outphasing system that provides both high efficiency and dynamic output power control. The introduced system combines power from four or more PAs, and overcomes the loss and reactive loading problems of previous outphasing systems. It provides ideally lossless power combining, along with nearly-resistive loading of the individual power amplifiers over a very wide output power range. The theoretical fundamentals underlying the behavior and operation of this new combining system are thoroughly developed. Additionally, a straight-forward combiner design methodology is provided. The prototype design of a 27.12 MHz, four-way power combining and outphasing system is presented, implemented, and its performance is experimentally validated over a 1OW-1OOW (10:1) output power range. Thesis Supervisor: David J. Perreault Title: Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

[1]  Ali Hajimiri,et al.  The class-E/F family of ZVS switching amplifiers , 2003 .

[2]  David R. Cox,et al.  Linear Amplification with Nonlinear Components , 1974, IEEE Trans. Commun..

[3]  Jingshi Yao,et al.  Power Amplifier Selection for LINC Applications , 2006, IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems II: Express Briefs.

[4]  H. Chireix.  High Power Outphasing Modulation , 1935, Proceedings of the Institute of Radio Engineers.

[5]  N Singhal,et al.  A Zero-Voltage-Switching Contour-Based Power Amplifier With Minimal Efficiency Degradation Under Back-Off , 2011, IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques.

[6]  Feipeng Wang,et al.  A Monolithic High-Efficiency 2.4-GHz 20-dBm SiGe BiCMOS Envelope-Tracking OFDM Power Amplifier , 2007, IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits.

[7]  A. Scuderi,et al.  A 25 dBm Digitally Modulated CMOS Power Amplifier for WCDMA/EDGE/OFDM With Adaptive Digital Predistortion and Efficient Power Control , 2009, IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits.

[8]  Yuanxun Ethan Wang,et al.  Pulsed Load Modulation (PLM) Technique for Efficient Power Amplification , 2008, IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems II: Express Briefs.

[9]  S.-A. El-Hamamsy,et al.  Design of high-efficiency RF Class-D power amplifier , 1994 .

[10]  Paul T. M. van Zeijl,et al.  A Digital Envelope Modulator for a WLAN OFDM Polar Transmitter in 90 nm CMOS , 2007, IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits.

[11]  D.J. Perreault,et al.  Resistance Compression Networks for Radio-Frequency Power Conversion , 2007, IEEE Transactions on Power Electronics.

[12]  Peter M. Asbeck,et al.  RF and Microwave Power Amplifier and Transmitter Technologies — Part 3 , 2003 .

[13]  Kazuhiko Honjo,et al.  A simple circuit synthesis method for microwave class-F ultra-high-efficiency amplifiers with reactance-compensation circuits , 2000 .

[14]  Peter M. Asbeck,et al.  A power re-use technique for improved efficiency of outphasing microwave power amplifiers , 1999 .

[15]  G. Boeck,et al.  Novel Broadband Wilkinson Power Combiner , 2006, 2006 European Microwave Conference.

[16]  D. J. Perreault,et al.  Design of variable-resistance class E inverters for load modulation , 2012, 2012 IEEE Energy Conversion Congress and Exposition (ECCE).

[17]  Bruce A. Wooley,et al.  A Digitally Modulated Polar CMOS PA with 20MHz Signal BW , 2007, 2007 IEEE International Solid-State Circuits Conference. Digest of Technical Papers.

[18]  Ali Hajimiri,et al.  An Octave-Range, Watt-Level, Fully-Integrated CMOS Switching Power Mixer Array for Linearization and Back-Off-Efficiency Improvement , 2009, IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits.

[19]  T. Edwards.  Semiconductor Technology Trends for Phased Array Antenna Power Amplifiers , 2006, 2006 European Radar Conference.

[20]  Peter M. Asbeck,et al.  Analysis of power recycling techniques for RF and microwave outphasing power amplifiers , 2002 .

[21]  F. Raab,et al.  Power amplifiers and transmitters for RF and microwave , 2002 .

[22]  D.J. Perreault,et al.  Outphasing Energy Recovery Amplifier With Resistance Compression for Improved Efficiency , 2009, IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques.

[23]  R. Kaunisto,et al.  A 2.14-GHz Chireix outphasing transmitter , 2005, IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques.

[24]  N. Wongkomet,et al.  A $+$31.5 dBm CMOS RF Doherty Power Amplifier for Wireless Communications , 2006, IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits.

[25]  L.F. Cygan.  A high efficiency linear power amplifier for portable communications applications , 2005, IEEE Compound Semiconductor Integrated Circuit Symposium, 2005. CSIC '05..

[26]  H. Zirath,et al.  L-band LDMOS power amplifiers based on an inverse class-F architecture , 2005, IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques.

[27]  David J. Perreault,et al.  A New Power Combining and Outphasing Modulation System for High-Efficiency Power Amplification , 2010, IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems I: Regular Papers.

[28]  Jeffrey H. Lang,et al.  Radio-Frequency Inverters With Transmission-Line Input Networks , 2007 .

[29]  P. Reynaert,et al.  A 1.75-GHz polar modulated CMOS RF power amplifier for GSM-EDGE , 2005, IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits.

[30]  D. C. Hamill.  Impedance plane analysis of class DE amplifier , 1994 .

[31]  F. Raab.  Class-F power amplifiers with maximally flat waveforms , 1997 .

[32]  Lawrence E. Larson,et al.  Linear high-efficiency microwave power amplifiers using bandpass delta-sigma modulators , 1998 .

[33]  R. Pullela,et al.  Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE polar loop transmitter , 2004, IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits.

[34]  D. C. Hamill.  Time reversal duality between linear networks , 1996 .

[35]  J. Kwan,et al.  Radio frequency power system for inductive heating in ion sources , 1993, 15th IEEE/NPSS Symposium. Fusion Engineering.

[36]  D.J. Perreault,et al.  Analysis and Design of High Efficiency Matching Networks , 2006, IEEE Transactions on Power Electronics.

[37]  Vivek K. Goyal,et al.  Sparsity-Enforced Slice-Selective MRI RF Excitation Pulse Design , 2008, IEEE Transactions on Medical Imaging.

[38]  A. Birafane,et al.  On the linearity and efficiency of outphasing microwave amplifiers , 2004, IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques.

[39]  D. C. Hamill.  Time reversal duality in DC-DC converters , 1997, PESC97. Record 28th Annual IEEE Power Electronics Specialists Conference. Formerly Power Conditioning Specialists Conference 1970-71. Power Processing and Electronic Specialists Conference 1972.

[40]  Yehui Han,et al.  Resistance Compression Networks for Resonant Power Conversion , 2005, 2005 IEEE 36th Power Electronics Specialists Conference.

[41]  P. Asbeck,et al.  Digital generation of RF signals for wireless communications with band-pass delta-sigma modulation , 2001, 2001 IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Sympsoium Digest (Cat. No.01CH37157).

[42]  W.H. Doherty,et al.  A New High Efficiency Power Amplifier for Modulated Waves , 1936, Proceedings of the Institute of Radio Engineers.

[43]  Nathan O. Sokal,et al.  Class of High-Efficiency Tuned Switching Power Amplifiers , 2009 .

[44]  Jr. P. Senak,et al.  Amplitude modulation of the switched-mode tuned power amplifier , 1965 .

[45]  J. Laskar,et al.  Analysis and design of a high-efficiency multistage Doherty power amplifier for wireless communications , 2005, IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques.

[46]  Yehui Han,et al.  A High-Frequency Resonant Inverter Topology with Low Voltage Stress , 2007, PESC 2007.

[47]  E. J. Wilkinson.  An N-Way Hybrid Power Divider , 1960 .

[48]  O. Degani,et al.  A Class-E PA With Pulse-Width and Pulse-Position Modulation in 65 nm CMOS , 2009, IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits.

[49]  Frederick H. Raab,et al.  Efficiency of Outphasing RF Power-Amplifier Systems , 1985, IEEE Trans. Commun..

[50]  F.H. Raab,et al.  High-efficiency linear amplification by dynamic load modulation , 2003, IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium Digest, 2003.

[51]  Michael Murray. Elliott.  Single sideband transmission by envelope elimination and restoration. , 1953 .

[52]  J. Sabate,et al.  High-power high-fidelity switching amplifier driving gradient coils for MRI systems , 2004, 2004 IEEE 35th Annual Power Electronics Specialists Conference (IEEE Cat. No.04CH37551).