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With all the talk of the 4G Long-Term Evolution (LTE) cellular standard, we tend to forget the other 4G technology—WiMAX—as it more quietly makes its way into a variety of high-speed wireless devices. WiMAX is just getting started in the U.S. thanks to Clearwire’s Clear broadband wireless service in the 2.5-GHz band. But WiMAX is a big hit across the rest of the world because of its low cost and excellent performance in broadband wireless access, backhaul, and other services.

The Anadigics AWM6433 is a 3.4- to 3.6-GHz linear power amplifier for mobile WiMAX applications. Its efficiency exceeds 20% with an output of 24 dBm with a 3.3-V supply. The package measures 4.5 by 4.5 by 1 mm and is pin-compatible with other Anadigics chips.

Recall that the IEEE standards 802.16d-2004 (fixed service) and 802.16e-2005 (mobile service) have made WiMAX an interesting mobile choice in laptops and even cell phones. Mobile services are growing, especially in the 3.4- to 3.6-GHz spectrum adopted by broadband wireless service providers in Europe and South America. To facilitate the design of those mobile products, Anadigics has launched one of the first mobile WiMAX 4G 3.5-GHz power amplifiers (PAs), the AWM6433 (see the figure).

Optimized for mobile WiMAX applications, the AWM6433 delivers exceptional linearity and efficiency across all output power levels. This PA helps ensure outstanding mobile performance in USB dongles, data cards, smart phones, and notebooks that address the growing WiMAX market. According to a recent report from Juniper Research, which analyzed more than 30 countries, the mobile WiMAX 802.16e market will grow to $23 billion by 2013, with subscriber levels predicted to surpass 80 million over the same timeframe.
 
The AWM6433 offers greater than 20% operating efficiency at +24-dBm output power with a 3.3-V supply, while also meeting ETSI-recommended (European Telecommunications Standards Institute) spectrum mask limits. It’s designed to increase the maximum linear output power with an increase in the supply voltage up to 4.2 V, which supports 4G systems that require slightly higher subscriber transmit power levels.
 
The amplifier has the same package footprint and pin out as other products in the company’s WiMAX PA family to ensure simplified designs and ease of manufacturability for OEMs. Anadigics currently offers the 6-V AWM6430 and AWM6432, which operate in the 3.4- to 3.6-GHz frequency band, and the 3.3-V AWM6422 and AWM6423 mobile devices, which operate in the 2.5-GHz band.
 
The AWM6433 includes an integrated 25-dB step attenuator, output power detector, and input and output RF impedance matching circuits. Offered in a 4.5- by 4.5- by 1.0-mm low-profile module, this highly integrated device minimizes board layout space and enables RF front-end solutions for size-constrained applications.
 
Manufactured using Anadigics’ proprietary InGaP-Plus process technology, the AWM6433’s key specifications include a 30-dB overall gain, less than 3% error vector magnitude (EVM) at +22 dBm (+3.3-V supply), 4% EVM at +23 dBm (+3.3-V supply), less than 3% EVM at +23 dBm (+4.2-V supply), and 4% EVM at +24 dBm (+4.2-V supply). The AWM6433 WiMAX PA is available now.