Power supply controller for a multi-gain step RF power amplifier

Active Publication Date: 2012-09-06
NAT SEMICON CORP
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  • Summary
  • Abstract
  • Description
  • Claims
  • Application Information

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

During normal operation, however, RF power amplifiers typically output the amplified RF signal at less than the maximum specified power for significant periods of time.
When an RF power amplifier outputs the amplified RF signal at less than the maximum specified power, the RF power amplifier typically operates with less efficiency, which wastes power.
In a battery-powered device, wasted power shortens the available operating time before fresh or recharged batteries are required.

Method used

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  • Power supply controller for a multi-gain step RF power amplifier
  • Power supply controller for a multi-gain step RF power amplifier
  • Power supply controller for a multi-gain step RF power amplifier

Examples

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Embodiment Construction

[0028]FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram that illustrates an example of a power circuit 200 in accordance with the present invention. As described in greater detail below, power circuit 200 includes a power supply controller that controls the power supply voltage provided to a multi-gain step RF power amplifier to reduce the power consumed by the multi-gain step RF power amplifier.

[0029]As shown in FIG. 2, power circuit 200 includes a multi-gain step RF power amplifier 210 that receives an RF signal RFI, amplifies the RF signal, and outputs an amplified RF signal RFO. In the present example, RF power amplifier 210 has a pair of gain selection inputs, which receive a pair of gain selection signals GS0 and GS1. Thus, depending upon the logic states of the gain selection signals GS0 and GS1, up to four different gains can be selected. (Different numbers of gain selection signals can alternately be used to obtain a different number of gains.) In addition, RF amplifier 210 has a power supp...

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Abstract

A power supply controller controls the power supply voltage provided to a multi-gain step RF power amplifier to increase the efficiency of the RF power amplifier when the different gains of the RF power amplifier are selected and, thereby, reduce the power consumed by the multi-gain step RF power amplifier.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0001]1. Field of the Invention[0002]The present invention relates to a power supply controller for an RF power amplifier and, more particularly, to a power supply controller for a multi-gain step RF power amplifier.[0003]2. Description of the Related Art[0004]An RF power amplifier is an electronic amplifier that increases the power of an RF signal, commonly before the RF signal is output to an antenna. The increase in power provided by the amplifier is known as the gain of the amplifier, and is defined by the power out PO divided by the power in PI (i.e., PO / PI). Thus, when the output power PO is twice as large as the input power PI, the amplifier has a gain of two.[0005]RF power amplifiers are commonly powered by a single power supply voltage, which has a magnitude defined by the power supply voltage that is required to output an amplified RF signal at the maximum specified power. During normal operation, however, RF power amplifiers typically output the...

Claims

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Application Information

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IPC IPC(8): H03F3/04
CPCH03F1/0238H03F1/0255H03F3/195H03F2200/465H03F2200/207H03F2200/393H03G3/3042
InventorKEESE, WILLIAM OTISRAMACHANDRAN, BHASKARXIN-LEBLANC, JANE
OwnerNAT SEMICON CORP