Wideband direct modulator

4 August 2010 Telecoms, Datacoms, Wireless, IoT

Hittite has introduced a new wideband direct I/Q modulator with VGA which is designed for automotive, broadband, cellular/3G, WiMAX/4G, military and test and measurement equipment applications between 20 and 2800 MHz.

The HMC795LP5E is a low-noise, high-linearity RFIC which is rated from 20 MHz to 2800 MHz with integrated digitally controlled analog variable gain amplifier (AVGA) with digital control features that provide up to 32 dB of linear gain control in 0,5 dB steps. The devce exhibits an output noise floor of -156 dBm/Hz, output P1dB of +11 dBm, output IP3 of +22 dBm and sideband suppression of -53 dBc. The RF output port is differential while the LO input operates from drive levels between -9 and +3 dBm, and can be driven in either differential or single-ended mode.

The high level of integration is achieved with LO feed-through and single sideband rejection, typically better than -50 dBc uncalibrated over the full 31,5 dB dynamic range at the output while operating at a low 120 mA power consumption. The HMC795LP5E integrates a differential I and Q interface for direct up-conversion from baseband digital-to-analog converters operating at up to 400 MHz, plus a wide range of RF amplitude control to allow optimisation of the drive level to follow-on driver stages.

The AVGA offers flexible control options including serial port or parallel port interfaces featuring a built-in 11-bit DAC with linearisation to allow 31,5 dB output power control with 0,5 dB steps from either control port. More demanding applications can access the 11-bit DAC directly via the serial port and achieve 0,1 dB steps over a 20 dB dynamic range.

The HMC795LP5E is housed in a 5 x 5 mm SMT QFN package. The modulator can be used to create virtually any analog or digital modulation format including BPSK, QPSK, 8PSK, OFDM and QAM for base station, access point and customer premise equipment. It is well suited to software defined radio and multiband transmitters, where the up-converter must dynamically alter its modulation format and/or output frequency, depending on local operating conditions.

For more information contact Andrew Hutton, RF Design, +27 (0)21 555 8400, [email protected], www.rfdesign.co.za

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