A High‐Efficiency GaN Non‐Uniform Distributed Power Amplifier Using an Impedance‐Enhanced Artificial Transmission Line
Xiangdong Wang, Yang Liu, Heng Xie, Jie Gu, Qiyu Wang, Hao Jiang, Fan Yang, Mo Li, Jian ZhangABSTRACT
This letter presents a 0.2–7‐GHz 10‐W three‐stage gallium nitride (GaN) thic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) non‐uniform distributed power amplifier (NDPA) for the next‐generation wireless communications. An impedance‐enhanced artificial transmission line (IE‐ATL) based on the coupling effect is proposed to enhance the equivalent characteristic impedance, thereby improving the efficiency while preserving the high current‐handling capacity required by the large‐periphery transistor. The impedance characteristics of the IE‑ATL are analyzed from both time‑domain and frequency‑domain perspectives. The die area is as small as 7.41 mm 2 . Continuous‐wave (CW) mode performance evaluations in 0.2–7 GHz demonstrate a saturated output power ( P SAT ) of 40.1–41.2 dBm, a power‐added efficiency (PAE) of 34.1%–46.7%, and a power gain ( G P ) of 28.3–31.2 dB. Benefiting from the proposed IE‐ATL, the presented NDPA achieves a superior broadband figure‐of‐merit (FOM) compared with reported counterparts.