GaN HEMT from Cree enhances TWT based radar systems' performance

Cree says its new GaN HEMT (high-electron-mobility transistor) transistors for TWT -based radar systems increase the life of such systems and also enable near-instant-on capability – with no warm up, longer detection ranges and improved target discrimination.

The first device offering pulsed saturated power performance typically greater than 400 watts, the CGHV59350 is most often used in ground-based defense and Doppler weather radar systems. The 50-ohms, fully matched GaN HEMT operates over a 5.2 to 5.9-GHz bandwidth offering 60 percent typical drain efficiency, and is packaged in an industry-standard 0.7” x 0.9” ceramic/metal flange package. Cree says CGHV59350 GaN HEMT is the highest-power C-Band transistor available on the market.

The 2nd device CGHV31500F can deliver 700 watts of typical saturated RF pulsed power and is offered for air-traffic-control-radar systems. The 50-ohms, fully matched GaN HEMT operates over a 2.7 to 3.1-GHz bandwidth offering 12-dB power gain, and is packaged in an industry-standard 0.7” x 0.9” ceramic/metal flange package. CGHV31500F is the highest power S-band transistor fully matched to 50 ohms in a single-ended package of its size, according to Cree.

“Cree’s new C- and S-band products break power records for GaN power and efficiency performance housed in a small 50-O package. This efficient power enables the economical combination of transistors to achieve multi-kilowatt power amplifiers required for defense, weather and air-traffic-control radar,” said Tom Dekker, director of sales and marketing, Cree RF. “If we consider the figure of merit for RF power output relative to the area of a 50-O package, Cree’s 350-W C-band device beats the closest commercial GaN competitor by an estimated 3.5 times. Using the same figure of merit, Cree’s 500-W S-band device raises the bar by 45 percent over other commercial S-band products.”

More information on Cree’s new GaN HEMTs for C- and S-band radar applications can be found at: www.cree.com/rf/CGHV31500F and www.cree.com/rf/CGHV59350

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