Agilent Intros E-pHEMT Amp

BOEBLINGEN, Germany -- Agilent Technologies today introduced an E-pHEMT (enhancement-mode pseudomorphic high-electron-mobility transistor) MMIC (monolithic microwave integrated circuit) low-noise amplifier for applications in the 0.5 to 6 GHz frequency range, including WLANs, WiMAX point-to-multipoint systems and cordless phones.

The MGA-665P8, from Agilent's Semiconductor Products Group, is optimized for applications operating in the 5 GHz UNII (unlicensed national information infrastructure) band, such as IEEE 802.11a WLANs. It also offers excellent performance for IEEE 802.11b and 802.11g WLANs operating in the 2.4 GHz license-free ISM (industrial, scientific and medical) band and WiMAX in the 3.5 GHz licensed international frequency range.

The MGA-665P8 is supplied with its output matched to 50 ohms and input partially matched, which helps accelerate the designer's time to market. At 5.25 GHz, the amplifier features a 1.45 dB noise figure combined with 16 dB gain and 18.1 dBm OIP3 (output third-order intercept point). At 2.4 GHz, the amplifier features 1.2 dB NF, 18.4 dB gain and 19 dBm OIP3 (all performance typical at 3 V, 20.5 mA bias). The device has an active power-down function: a 0 to 1V logic low turns the device on; a 2 to 3 V logic high turns the device off. When turned off, the typical current consumption is only 180 microamps to minimize power consumption when the WLAN or other system is in a stand-by condition.

The MGA-665P8 is offered in the compact, industry-standard 2.0 mm x 2.0 mm x 0.75 mm, 8-pad JEDEC DRP-N LPCC (JEDEC Solid State Technology Association) leadless plastic chip carrier for reduced board space. The package's lead-free backside metalization provides excellent thermal dissipation as well as visual evidence of solder reflow.

Agilent Technologies Inc.