A 2.4 GHz-Band 100 W GaN-HEMT High-Efficiency Power Amplifier for Microwave Heating

The magnetron, a vacuum tube, is currently the usual high-power microwave power source used for microwave heating. However, the oscillating frequency and output power are unstable and noisy due to the low quality of the high-voltage power supply and low Q of the oscillation circuit. A heating system with enhanced reliability and the capability for control of chemical reactions is desired, because microwave absorption efficiency differs greatly depending on the object being heated. Recent studies on microwave high-efficiency power amplifiers have used harmonic processing techniques, such as class-F and inverse class-F. The present study describes a high-efficiency 100 W GaN-HEMT amplifier that uses a harmonic processing technique that shapes the current and voltage waveforms to improve efficiency. The fabricated GaN power amplifier obtained an output power of 50.4 dBm, a drain efficiency of 72.9%, and a power added efficiency (PAE) of 64.0% at 2.45 GHz for continuous wave operation. A prototype microwave heating system was also developed using this GaN power amplifier. Microwaves totaling 400 W are fed from patch antennas mounted on the top and bottom of the microwave chamber. Preliminary heating experiments with this system have just been initiated.