UHF class E/F2 outphasing transmitter for 12 dB PAPR signals

Abstract

This paper exploits the degree of freedom provided by the continuous class-E modes in order to reduce the impact of a FET on-state resistance when approximating the zero voltage switching (ZVS) operation along a wide range of resistive loads. A UHF class-E/F2 power amplifier (PA), which includes a lumped element drain terminating network to synthesize the optimal load modulation (LM) trajectory, has been designed to maintain an efficiency as high as possible along an output power control range above 10 dB. Based on this PA, an outphasing scheme in the 700 MHz frequency band has been implemented. It is shown to provide an efficiency higher than 60% up to an output power below 5% (-13 dB) of its peak value (47 W). Under mixed-mode operation and applying digital predistorsion (DPD), a 10 MHz LTE signal with a peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) as high as 12.2 dB has been linearly reproduced with average efficiency and PAE values of 46.6% and 42.9%, respectively.