Abstract
A microwave power module (MPM), which is a hybrid combination of a solid-state power amplifier (SSPA) as a driver and a traveling-wave tube amplifier (TWT) as the final high power stage, is a high-power device largely used for radar applications. A gain equalizer is often required to flatten the TWT output power gain owing to its big gain fluctuations over the operating frequency range. In this paper, the design of an X-band, fully-coaxial, easily-tunable broadband power equalizer for an MPM is presented. The structure is composed of a coaxial waveguide as the main transmission line and a coaxial cavity loaded with absorbing material as a resonant unit. Sensitivity analyses of the attenuation amplitude and resonant frequency of the equalizer in terms of coaxial cavity length, thickness of the absorbing disc, and insertion depth of the probe were carried out. The measured results were in good agreement with the simulated ones, showing that the equalization curve met the requirements well and proved that this optimal structure has the advantages of a large power capacity, a wide operating frequency band, is easily tunable, and good transmission performance.
Highlights
Progress on microwave power module (MPM) developments needs an equalizer combined with a helix traveling-wave tube (TWT) to flatten the TWT output gain [3,4,5]
To obtain the advantages of having a broad band, a low voltage standing wave ratio (VSWR), a small size, lightness, and a low cost, a microstrip circuit is most commonly used for the realization of the equalizer [6,7,8,9]
A microstrip equalizer is not tunable and the limits of the equalization curve represent a drawback in the applications
Summary
A microstrip equalizer is not tunable and the limits of the equalization curve represent a drawback in the applications. A high factor of merit, and low transmission losses, a coaxial equalizer is not largely preferred to a microstrip equalizer due to its large structure, high weight, high cost, narrow band, and high VSWR. A smaller, lighter, lower-cost, wider bandwidth, and lower VSWR coaxial solution, compared to the microstrip one, is required for large use of the -tunable coaxial equalizer
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