Hittite Microwave has announced the release of two SMT packaged GaAs (gallium arsenides) MMIC (monolithic microwave IC) analogue VGAs which are suitable for small aperture terminal, microwave radio, military, and test and measurement equipment applications.
The HMC996LP4E and HMC997LC4 GaA MMIC amplifiers operate from 5 to 12GHz and from 17 to 27GHz, respectively. Across the line, the amplifiers deliver up to 20.5dB of gain, 24dBm, of output P1dB, and 34dBm of output IP3 in their maximum gain state. Each of these amplifiers is controlled by a single analogue control voltage between 0 and -4.5V, and provides up to 22dB of gain control range. According to the company, the high linearity performance of the amplifiers allows them to be used as either buffer amplifiers, or as power amplifier pre-drivers in microwave transmitter applications.
The HMC996LP4E consumes 120mA and HMC997LC4 consumes 170mA from a 5V supply, and are housed in a RoHS-compliant 4x4mm QFN leadless package. The amplifiers are compatible with high volume surface mount manufacturing, and both feature good gain flatness making them suitable for military electronic warfare, electronic countermeasure and radar applications.
