Amplifier with termination circuit and resonant circuit

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10135408-B2
Application number	US-201615295347-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 17, 2016
Priority date	Jul 11, 2014
Publication date	Nov 20, 2018
Grant date	Nov 20, 2018

Abstract

Aspects of this disclosure relate to efficient power amplifiers, such as class-F power amplifiers. A power amplifier transistor can provide an amplified RF signal. A termination can be coupled to an output of the power amplifier transistor and configured to provide a short circuit at a second harmonic. In some instances, the termination circuit can provide an open circuit at a third harmonic. A resonant circuit can be coupled to the output terminal of the power amplifier transistor and configured to provide an open circuit at the third harmonic. In certain embodiments, an input termination circuit coupled to an input terminal of the power amplifier transistor can provide a short circuit at the second harmonic. The power amplifiers of this disclosure can be implemented, for example, in envelope tracking applications.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A power amplifier module comprising:
a power amplifier transistor configured to receive a radio frequency input signal and provide an amplified radio frequency signal, the power amplifier transistor being included on a power amplifier die;
a termination circuit coupled to an output terminal of the power amplifier transistor, the termination circuit including a series LC circuit in parallel with a second capacitor, the series LC circuit configured to provide a short circuit at a second harmonic of the amplified radio frequency signal, the series LC circuit including an inductive element external to the power amplifier die and a first capacitor included on the power amplifier die, and the termination circuit configured to provide an open circuit at a third harmonic of the amplified radio frequency signal; and
a resonant circuit coupled in series between the output terminal of the power amplifier transistor and a load, the resonant circuit configured to provide an open circuit at the third harmonic of the amplified radio frequency signal.

2. The power amplifier module of claim 1 wherein the power amplifier transistor includes a heterojunction bipolar transistor and the output terminal is a collector of the heterojunction bipolar transistor.

3. The power amplifier module of claim 1 wherein the resonant circuit is coupled in series between the output terminal of the power amplifier transistor and an output match circuit.

4. The power amplifier module of claim 1 wherein the second capacitor is included in a second series LC circuit that is in parallel with the LC circuit.

5. The power amplifier module of claim 1 further comprising an input termination circuit configured to provide a short circuit at a second harmonic of the radio frequency input signal, the input termination circuit being coupled to an input terminal of the power amplifier transistor.

6. The power amplifier module of claim 1 further comprising an envelope tracking modulator configured to provide a supply voltage to the power amplifier transistor such that the supply voltage tracks an envelope associated with the amplified radio frequency signal.

7. The power amplifier module of claim 1 wherein the inductive element includes a wire bond.

8. A power amplifier module comprising:
a power amplifier transistor configured to receive a radio frequency input signal and provide an amplified radio frequency signal, the power amplifier transistor being included on a power amplifier die;
a termination circuit coupled to an output terminal of the power amplifier transistor, the termination circuit including a series LC circuit in parallel with a second capacitor, the series LC circuit including an inductive element external to the power amplifier die and a first capacitor included on the power amplifier die, the series LC circuit configured to provide a short circuit at a second harmonic of the amplified radio frequency signal, and the termination circuit configured to provide an open circuit at a third harmonic of the amplified radio frequency signal;
a resonant circuit coupled to the output terminal of the power amplifier transistor, the resonant circuit configured to provide an open circuit at the third harmonic of the amplified radio frequency signal;
a duplexer coupled to the output terminal of the power amplifier module; and
a radio frequency switch coupled to the duplexer.

9. The power amplifier module of claim 8 wherein the radio frequency switch is coupled between the output terminal of the power amplifier transistor and the duplexer.

10. The power amplifier module of claim 8 wherein the radio frequency switch is an antenna switch circuit coupled between the duplexer and an antenna port.

11. An amplifier system comprising:
a class-F amplifier including an amplifier transistor configured to receive a radio frequency signal and provide an amplified radio frequency signal, a termination circuit coupled to an output terminal of the amplifier transistor and configured to provide a short circuit at a second harmonic of the amplified radio frequency signal, and a resonant circuit coupled in series between the output terminal of the amplifier transistor and a load, the resonant circuit configured to provide an open circuit at a third harmonic of the amplified radio frequency signal; and
a supply voltage circuit including an envelope tracking modulator and a parallel LC resonant circuit configured to provide a supply voltage from the envelope tracking modulator to the amplifier transistor.

12. The amplifier system of claim 11 wherein the termination circuit is configured to provide an open circuit at the third harmonic of the amplified radio frequency signal.

13. The amplifier system of claim 12 wherein the termination circuit is configured to provide a short circuit at a fourth harmonic of the amplified radio frequency signal.

14. The amplifier system of claim 11 wherein the class-F amplifier includes an input termination circuit coupled to an input of the amplifier transistor and configured to provide a short circuit at a second harmonic of the radio frequency signal.

15. The amplifier system of claim 11 wherein the termination circuit includes an inductive element that is external to a die that includes the amplifier transistor in series with a capacitor that is included on the die.

16. A wireless device comprising:
a power amplifier transistor configured to receive a radio frequency input signal and provide an amplified radio frequency signal;
a termination circuit coupled to an output terminal of the power amplifier transistor, termination circuit configured to provide a short circuit at a second harmonic of the amplified radio frequency signal and an open circuit at a third harmonic of the amplified radio frequency signal;
a resonant circuit coupled to the output terminal of the amplifier transistor and configured to provide an open circuit at the third harmonic of the amplified radio frequency signal;
a supply voltage circuit including an envelope tracking modulator and a parallel LC circuit configured to provide a supply voltage from the envelope tracking modulator to the power amplifier transistor; and
an antenna configured to transmit the amplified radio frequency signal.

17. The wireless device of claim 16 configured as a mobile phone.

18. The wireless device of claim 16 further comprising a switch module coupled between the power amplifier and the antenna.

19. The wireless device of claim 16 further comprising an input termination circuit coupled to an input of the power amplifier transistor.

20. The wireless device of claim 16 wherein the termination circuit includes two series LC circuits.

Assignees

• Skyworks Solutions Inc

Inventors

• Cao Haibo
• Wu Andy Cheng Pang
• Lin Yu-Jui
• King Joel Richard

Classifications

• Y02D70/1262

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic

• H03F3/68

  Combinations of amplifiers, e.g. multi-channel amplifiers for stereophonics {(power amplifiers using a combination of several semiconductor amplifiers H03F3/211; combinations of amplifiers using coupling networks with distributed constants H03F3/602)} · CPC title

• H03F2200/451

  the amplifier being a radio frequency amplifier · CPC title

• H03F1/3241

  using predistortion circuits (H03F1/3211, H03F1/3217 take precedence) · CPC title

• H03F2200/391

  the output circuit of an amplifying stage comprising an LC-network · CPC title