Philips has formed an alliance to develop Gallium Nitride (GaN) technology and products for the growing cellular infrastructure market. Philips has joined with United Monolithic Semiconductors and Fraunhofer Institut Angewandte Festkorperphysik (IAF) for collaboration in the research and development of GaN technologies. While Philips stays committed to the evolution of LDMOS, through GaN it is investing in the future of next generation connected consumer products.
Using GaN technology in a transmitter will enable infrastructure equipment manufacturers to provide significant cost reductions in system manufacturing. They will also benefit from major improvements in system performance and flexibility. Currently, basestation power amplifiers are limited to specific applications. With GaN-based technology, operators will be able to use a "universal transmitter" to switch between systems and frequencies to meet instantaneous demands in areas covered by the basestation.
GaN technology enables the following advantages:
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High frequency combined with high power while lowering costs
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Broadband operation allowing a single power amplifier to be operated at multiple frequencies
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Development of future high power switch mode PA architectures
Philips expects to make the first GaN broadband power amplifiers available in 2009 with switched mode power amplifiers (SMPA) offerings to follow.
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