Qorvo^® has added three new solid-state power amplifier (SSPA) modules to the company’s Spatium^® amplifier family, modules designed to replace traveling wave tube amplifiers (TWTA) in electronic warfare (EW) applications.

The three modules comprise a 300 W SSPA covering 2 to 6 GHz, a 150 W SSPA covering 2 to 8 GHz and a 60 W unit covering 2 to 18 GHz. Each SSPA is available in two configurations: a solo Spatium amplifier building block or a Spatium-based rack mountable box containing a Spatium SSPA, driver amplifier, internal power supply and fan. The rack mountable version is intended for test equipment applications in a lab. The key performance parameters of each unit are shown in the table below.

A limited number of demonstration units are available for evaluation by qualified defense customers.

To achieve high power, Spatium SSPAs spatially combine the outputs of individual GaN on SiC MMIC power amplifiers. This architecture yields a reliable high power amplifier that can replace TWTAs in demanding defense applications. Using GaN technology results in longer service lifetimes than achieved by comparable TWTAs, with additional advantages in size, weight, power and cost (SWAP-C).

Notes: 1) The efficiency shown for the rack mount demonstrators is only the Spatium SSPA.

Asif Anwar, director of Strategy Analytics’ strategic technologies practice, said, “The need for wider bandwidth, higher frequency and higher performance will drive growth for GaN in defense applications, with the market approaching $342 million by 2020. The Spatium technology with GaN places Qorvo in an ideal position to address defense TWTA replacements without compromising high power and broadband performance.”

Additional information about Qorvo's solutions for mission-critical applications can be found on their website.