A novel approach to the design of a broadband high efficiency Class-E power amplifier with over 87% bandwidth

A systematic methodology for designing and implementing a broadband high-efficiency Class-E GaN power amplifier (PA) is proposed. The non-linear model of the GaN device is utilized to prescribe the optimal output impedance for broadband Class-E operation. The impedance of the output-matching network at the fundamental and harmonic frequencies is considered and optimized to cover broadband operation, maximum output power, and high efficiency. Simulated and experimental results of the amplifier demonstrate Class-E PA performance that covers a 0.9 GHz to 2.3 GHz band (i.e. 87% bandwidth) with a measured efficiency of 57-88%, and an output power of 12 W-30 W and an average gain of 10.5 dB.