RF Chips Improve Power-Amp Linearity And Efficiency

The MAX2009 and MAX2010 rf predistorter ICs provide AM-AM and AM-PM distortion correction to counteract the gain and phase compression of LDMOS power amplifiers. These chips offer fully independent controls for both gain and phase expansion in a 5- by 5-mm TQFN package. The TQFN provides up to a 55% reduction in part count and a 25-times reduction in footprint over comparable discrete solutions. For an input signal with a 10-dB peak-to-average ratio, the AM-AM correction can be set for 1 to 6 dB of gain expansion. The AM-PM correction can provide 4° to 19° of phase expansion. Unit pricing starts at $9.95 each in lots of 1000.