Qorvo® is sampling what the company says is the industry’s first GaN on SiC front-end module (FEM) for the 39 GHz 5G band.

The QPF4005 FEM integrates two identical, multi-function GaN MMICs into a footprint optimized for the phased array element spacing at 39 GHz. The FEM, which supports up to 256-QAM OFDM modulation, was designed for 5G base station architectures that use a phased array for beamforming.

Each of the MMICs in the FEM contains a three-stage power amplifier (PA), a three-stage low noise amplifier (LNA) and a SPDT T/R switch, fabricated with Qorvo’s 0.15-µm GaN on SiC process. The PA provides 23 dBm average output power.

The QPF4005 FEM, assembled in a 4.5 mm x 6 mm AC-EHSL package, covers 37 to 40.5 GHz.

James Klein, president of Qorvo’s infrastructure and defense products segment, said, “Qorvo’s announcement of the industry’s first dual-channel GaN front-end module for 39 GHz is a key enabler for 5G fixed wireless networks. The QPF4005 combines our millimeter wave expertise and field-proven GaN on SiC process technology to help telecom providers quickly and cost-effectively deliver more data to homes and mobile hotspots.”

Qorvo’s wireless infrastructure products will be marketed at the 2017 International Microwave Symposium (#IMS2017) in Honolulu, Hawaii, June 4-9, in booth #1510.