Description
The objective of this activity is to design, manufacture and test a breadboard of a high-power amplifier in Ku-band or above with 10 W/mm class of power density in continuous wave operation. The selected manufacturing process will allow a smaller chip size with reduced junction temperature, reduced thermal memory effects and improved efficiency.Targeted Improvements:- 3-5 times improvementin power density.- Junction temperature reduction of ten degrees or more at the same power level.- Reduced chip size by half, allowing reduced parasitics, feed and combining losses.- Reduced dispersion and thermal memory effects for improved linearity.Description:There is a trend to use active antenna systems for High Throughput Satellite (HTS) systems employing solid state semiconductorhigh power amplifiers (HPA). Heat removal and thermal management is a significant challenge and driven by the power efficiency andmaximum allowable junction temperature of the HPA. Wide band gap semiconductors such as gallium nitride (GaN) are recognised as essential technology. Different substrate technologies are possible and, for example, today's GaN HEMT are fabricated using SiC substrates due to its higher thermal conductivity compared to Silicon. However, even when using SiC substrates, efficient heat removal is still driving the mass and size of the thermal management hardware required for an active antenna. Other semiconductor processes suchasGaN-on-Diamond technology are maturing and could enable a reduction of the device junction temperature by ten degreesor more dueto lower thermal resistance of the substrate material, whilst achieving the needed device power density. Additionally, thermal memory effects could be significantly reduced, helping to improve the linearity.This activity will design, manufacture and test a breadboard of a continuous wave 10 W/mm class high power amplifier in Ku-band or above based on a thermally enhanced substrate. Processing trials will be carried out to achieve state of the art RF performance with acceptable manufacturability and reliability.Procurement Policy: C(1) = Activity restricted to non-prime contractors (incl. SMEs). For additional information please go to:http://www.esa.int/About_Us/Business_with_ESA/Small_and_Medium_Sized_En…