Design of wideband hybrid silicon carbide single-stage power amplifier

RF wideband power amplifiers are desirable as they will reduce equipment, power consumption and operating cost for the RF communication infrastructure. For decades, the realization of single-stage broadband power amplifier has posed a significant challenge due to the electrical and thermal limitations of GaAs transistor technology. Silicon carbide (SiC) MESFET technology is a strong contender for such applications due to its superior properties. In particular, its high impedance reduces mismatch commonly encountered in such power amplifier.In this work, design of wideband hybrid single-stage power amplifier using a commercial 4H–SiC MESFET CRF24010 from Cree Inc is presented. The amplifier has been designed and fabricated for operating frequencies 650–1800 MHz, which is equivalent to more than 90% bandwidth, compared to only 3–4% bandwidth achievable using GaAs technology.