Wide-Band Oscillating Limiters at X-Band and L-Band Frequencies

Injection-locked tunnel diode oscillators have been designed and tested as oscillating limiters. Units have been operated and tested at X-band and L-band frequencies. Most of the units tested had output power variations that were less than 0.5 dB for input power variations in excess of 30 dB. Bandwidths of 30 percent with 10 dB of gain are predicted from theory and have been realized in practice. The locked oscillator Iimiters have conventional noise figures on the order of 5 to 7 dB at 11GHz. Measurements on typical units when used in an experimental 160 megabit pulse code modulation system showed good agreement with theoretical predictions.