Characterisation of Millimeter-Wave Power Amplifiers and Application of Novel Digital Predistortion Techniques

To pave the road towards the upcoming 5th Generation of telecommunication standards (5G), we aim to develop a fully integrated solution satisfying the increasing requirements in terms of wide bandwidth, small footprint, and high-power efficiency. Initially, we prepare a fully automated setup to characterize the Gallium Nitride (GaN) Power Amplifiers (PA) considered as key components for 5G millimeter-wave frequencies transmitters. However, PAs are prone to saturation at high power which compromises their power efficiency and signal quality also known as linearity. The characterization of the GaN PA will enable us to develop a scalable and efficient linearization techniques applicable to 5G signals. This is achieved through synthesizing suitable Digital Predistortion (DPD) models and the application of signal processing techniques to reduce the DPD complexity and optimize its implementation on hardware. Subsequently, the DPD solution is implemented on the Analog Devices Radio Verse 9009 platform. TO BE CONT’D

Faculty Supervisor:

Fadhel Ghannouchi

Student:

Anis Ben Arfi

Partner:

Analog Devices

Discipline:

Engineering - computer / electrical

Sector:

Information and communications technologies

University:

Program: