Linear RF power amplifier with optically activated switches
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A transmitter, comprising:
- an amplifier stage that amplifies a baseband signal having linear In-phase (I) and Quadrature-phase (Q) components to produce an amplified baseband signal;
a local oscillator that generates a local oscillator signal corresponding to a specified carrier frequency; and
an up-converting mixer that mixes the amplified baseband signal with the local oscillator signal, wherein the mixer includes a plurality of optically activated switches that are switched according to a switching sequence.
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Abstract
A linear power amplifier amplifies a linear baseband signal having I and Q components. An up-converting mixer uses optically activated switches to mix the amplified baseband signal with a local oscillator signal at specified carrier frequency. The optically activated switches are activated according to a switching sequence that produces a constant impedance over each carrier frequency cycle. In this way, the optically activated switches prevents introduction of non-linearities during the up-conversion process.
182 Citations
37 Claims
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1. A transmitter, comprising:
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an amplifier stage that amplifies a baseband signal having linear In-phase (I) and Quadrature-phase (Q) components to produce an amplified baseband signal;
a local oscillator that generates a local oscillator signal corresponding to a specified carrier frequency; and
an up-converting mixer that mixes the amplified baseband signal with the local oscillator signal, wherein the mixer includes a plurality of optically activated switches that are switched according to a switching sequence. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A method for linearly transmitting an RF signal, comprising:
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amplifying a baseband signal having linear In-phase (I) and Quadrature (Q) components to produce an amplified baseband signal;
generating a local oscillator signal corresponding to a specified carrier frequency; and
mixing the amplified baseband signal with the local oscillator signal with a plurality of optically activated switches that are switched according to a switching sequence. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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24. A transmitter, comprising:
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an antenna for radiating a linear signal that is modulated over a carrier signal;
a radio transmitter coupled to the antenna, including;
an amplifier stage that amplifies a baseband signal having linear In-phase (I) and Quadrature-phase (Q) components to produce an amplified baseband signal;
a local oscillator that generates a local oscillator signal corresponding to a specified carrier frequency; and
an up-converting mixer that mixes the amplified baseband signal with the local oscillator signal, wherein the mixer includes a plurality of optically activated switches that are switched according to a switching sequence. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37)
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Specification