WIDE dynamic range low noise amplifier module for Ka-band radar applications

Ka‐band low noise amplifier (LNA) module with wide dynamic range is presented using 0.15‐μm pseudo‐morphic high electron mobility transistors for radar applications.Two of attenuator‐combined low‐gain LNA microwave monolithic integrated circuits are cascaded to increase the gain without degrading input power handling capability. There exist two operating modes depending on the level of input power, that is, low power and high power modes. The measurement shows a high gain of 21.9 dB and low noise figure of 2.7 dB at 35 GHz in low power mode at which two attenuators are off. At high input power, the attenuators are turned on to handle high power, and the module presents an attenuation of 6.4 dB with a high input 1‐dB gain compression point (P1dB,in) of 6.5 dBm. The module shows good input and output return losses better than 9.1 dB in both modes. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 54:1031–1035, 2012; View this article online at wileyonlinelibrary.com. DOI 10.1002/mop.26675