Solutions - 15dB Gain Block Delivers 47dBm OIP3 Linearity with Low Noise from 100kHz to 1.4GHz

MILPITAS, CA – July 21, 2016 – Linear Technology announces the LTC6433-15, a wideband 15dB gain block amplifier offering outstanding linearity of 47dBm OIP3 (output third order intercept) and 3.22dB noise figure at 150MHz. The amplifier has excellent OP1dB (output 1dB compression point) of 19.2dBm. The LTC6433-15 is uniquely different from other gain block amplifiers that are typically built using GaAs or pHEMT processes. These FET technologies have high 1/f noise corners on the order of 20MHz to 30MHz, so are prone to high noise floor rise, which renders them unusable at low frequencies. In contrast, the LTC6433-15 amplifier core is built using high frequency SiGe bipolar technology. As a result, the amplifier exhibits much lower 1/f noise corner, typically below 10kHz, making it usable at low frequencies to 100kHz without significant noise rise. Moreover, the performance of GaAs and pHEMT type devices is highly dependent on their internal FET bias voltage, which can vary widely from part to part. Not so with the LTC6433-15, whose performance is stable over temperature and from device to device, and is insensitive to power supply voltage variations.



Solutions - 15dB Gain Block Delivers 47dBm OIP3 Linearity with Low Noise from 100kHz to 1.4GHz