Characterization of Amplifier Nonlinearities and Their Effects in Communications Systems

Many of the requirements of a communications system are determined by the design of the output power amplifier and its interaction with the signal waveform. Although there is a long history of amplifier design and characterization in the field of microwave engineering, recent implementations of more complex digital waveforms for personal communications applications require a new set of tools and parameters to characterize amplifier operation. The goal of this chapter is to describe some of these new system performance requirements within the context of microwave amplifier operation and characterization and to briefly discuss some of the tools being developed to better understand amplifier operation in modern communications systems.