The two new LNAs target base station applications in cellular infrastructure, such as radio transceiver cards, tower-mounted amplifiers (TMAs), combiners, repeaters, and remote/digital radio heads. The new devices set new standards for their low noise figures. Receiver sensitivity is one of the most critical requirements in the design of the receive path in a BTS. Selecting the right LNA, especially the first-stage LNA, greatly affects receiver sensitivity performance in the BTS. A low noise figure is a primary design objective. Avago will offer best-in-class noise figures of 0.48 dB at 1900 MHz.

 


Another key design factor is linearity, which affects the receiver's ability to distinguish between desired and spurious signals spaced close together. The third-order intercept point (OIP3) is used to specify linearity. At 1900 MHz and under typical operating conditions of 5 V/51 mA, Avago's GaAs Enhancement mode pHEMT process technology delivers a noise figure of 0.48 dB and an OIP3 of 35 dBm. At 2500 MHz and under typical operating conditions of 5 V/56 mA, the noise figure is 0.59 dB and the OIP3 is 35 dBm. With a low noise figure and high OIP3, Avago's new LNAs, supplied in an 8-pin surface-mount QFN package, offer more design flexibility for the receiver path in the BTS than previous amplifiers.

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