Surface Mount, 50 Watt Peak GaN Power Amplifier for Low-Cost S-Band Radar

The pressure for cost reduction on active aperture phased array systems has continued unabated for at least the last several decades. As part of a phased array system, the Transmit/Receive (T/R) Module, or more recently T/R "Slat," is a major element in system cost, and hence a target for cost reduction. Further, for the T/R Slat itself, the final transmit power amplifier has historically been among the most costly elements of the T/R slat, and therefore a leading candidate for cost reduction Fortunately, the mechanisms of advancing maturity and market acceptance are creating many opportunities for insertion of GaN technology. In our application, we have found GaN to be cost-competitive with a GaAs solution, and with other system-level factors considered, actually more cost-effective. This cost advantage comes from both the high device efficiency, which reduces system level operating costs and cooling requirements, as well as the packaging of the device for a fully automated surface mount assembly process.