Ultra-Broadband versus Multiple Narrowband Amplifiers

The Spanawave/Giga-tronics microwave power amplifiers cover ultra-wide frequency range with relatively flat frequency response and wide linear range. They are ideal for testing in EMC labs, Radar and Defense EW systems, allowing broad band testing without band switching or swapping narrow band amplifiers, resulting in faster and more accurate testing.

Because the Spanawave/Giga-tronics microwave power amplifiers are designed using parallel broadband Gallium Arsenide MMIC amplifiers, they exhibit very sharp knees between the linear region of operation and the saturation region.

P1dB, the 1 dB gain compression power level is typically within 2 dB of Psat, the saturated power level.

In this example, measuring a typical GT-1000B 20 GHz amplifier, Psat is 42 dBm or 12 Watts, while the P1dB is 40 dBm, or 2 dB lower than Psat, with a large linear region with about 40 dB of gain.

Because these are very broadband amplifiers, they do not exhibit the pulse performance limitations common to narrowband amplifiers.

The ultra-broad frequency range of the Spanawave/Giga-tronics microwave power amplifiers can save time, weight and cost over multiple narrow-band amplifiers, as well as increasing reliability due to the elimination of redundant power supplies, cables, and cross-over networks.