With the growth in wireless communications, the mobile infrastructure is handling higher data rates and tasked to have lower noise and greater power efficiency. Many of these systems combine power amplifiers with high power density over wide bandwidths, and the power combining must be packaged to withstand rugged environments. Similarly, many defense systems – from radar to electronic warfare – are combining power amplifiers to meet higher power mission requirements. The power combining requirements are similar, with stringent demands for ruggedness and reliability.
Figure 1 The part number denotes the frequency range, maximum input power and whether the product is 2- or 4-way.
Designed to address these needs, Fairview Microwave’s family of high power RF combiners offers power handling up to 800 W, covering various frequency bands to 6 GHz with low insertion loss, low VSWR and high isolation. The combiners are excellent for amplifier power combining, as their low insertion loss minimizes power loss to deliver a higher power combined signal at the output. The combiners have high reliability to meet the requirements for defense and infrastructure applications.
In addition to high power handling, Fairview Microwave’s power combiners are designed to maintain very low insertion loss and high isolation over a wide bandwidth, up to 5 GHz. Competitive power combiners typically have a maximum input power handling of 100 W and cover less bandwidth. All the power combiners in the Fairview Microwave family use a reactive design, which yields low insertion loss, excellent amplitude and phase balance, high port-to-port isolation, high power handling and compact size. Package sizes range from 1.4" × 2" × 0.73" to 5.1" × 4.72" × 1.54". The combiners have a standard impedance of 50 Ω and operate from -55º to +85ºC. The family includes both Type N and SMA connector options, with the Type N combiners able to handle higher input power.
ARRAY OF OPTIONS
With 17 high power combiners to choose from, the product family offers an array of options: 2- and 4-way, input power handling and frequency. The part numbering system denotes the frequency range, maximum input power and whether 2- or 4-way (see Figure 1). All combiners are in stock and ready for immediate shipment.
Figure 2 Isolation vs. frequency of the 2-way, 100 W, 20 MHz to 1 GHz combiner (MPP0201K0100-2).
20 MHz to 1 GHz Combiners
The MPP0201K0100-2, MPP0201K0500-2,MPP0201K0200-4 and MPP0201K0300-4 all operate from 20 MHz to 1 GHz. The 2-way combiners, MPP0201K0100-2 and MPP0201K0500-2, handle a maximum input power of 100 and 500 W, respectively. The MPP0201K0200-4 and MPP0201K0300-4 are 4-way combiners with maximum input power handling of 200 and 300 W, respectively. The 4-way combiners have a maximum insertion loss of 0.75 dB and a minimum isolation of 12 dB. The 2-way, 100 W combiner has an insertion loss of 0.6 dB with an isolation of 15 dB (see Figure 2), and the 500 W combiner insertion loss is a maximum of 0.8 dB, with an isolation of 10 dB.
500 MHz to 2.5 GHz and 800 MHz to 2.5 GHz Combiners
The MPP8002K5600-2, MPP8002K5800-2, MPP8002K5200-4 and MPP8002K5600-4 all cover 800 MHz to 2.5 GHz, and the MPP5002K5200-2 spans 500 MHz to 2.5 GHz. The three 2-way combiners have maximum input power of 200, 600 and 800 W — 800 W being the highest power offered in the family. The maximum insertion loss for all of these combiners ranges from 0.4 to 0.8 dB, with isolation as high as 13 dB.
Figure 3 Insertion loss vs. frequency of the 2-way, 100 W, 2 to 6 GHz combiner (MPP2K06K0100-2).
800 MHz to 4.2 GHz Combiners
The MPP8004K2200-2 and
MPP8004K2200-4 cover the 800 MHz to 4.2 GHz frequency range. Both have a maximum input power of 200 W.
2 to 6 GHz Combiners
The MPP2K06K0100-2, MPP2K06K0100-4 and MPP2K06K0400-4 cover 2 to 6 GHz. The2-way MPP2K06K0100-2 and 4-way MPP2K06K0100-4 handle a maximum input power of 100 W, while the 4-way combiner MPP2K06K0400-4 handles 400 W. The maximum insertion loss of the 4-way power combiners is 0.8 dB, and the 2-way combiner’s insertion loss is only 0.35 dB (see Figure 3).
1 to 6 GHz Combiners
The MPP1K06K0100-4 is the broadest bandwidth combiner offered in the series, with an input power of 100 W, an insertion loss of 0.85 dB and a minimum isolation of 6 dB.
Combiner pricing ranges from $727 to $2,166, depending on the input power handling and whether 2- or 4-way.
Fairview Microwave
Allen, Texas
www.fairviewmicrowave.com