Microchip expands RF power amplifier portfolio

Microchip announced the expansion of its RF power amplifier portfolio, with the addition of the new SST12LP17E and SST12LP18E power amplifiers. The SST12LP17E is the smallest fully matched power amp in its class, requiring only one DC bypass capacitor to achieve optimum performance. The SST12LP18E is a lower-cost, lower-voltage alternative to Microchip’s popular SST12LP14E power amp and offers the lowest operating voltage of any Microchip RF power amp, over an operating temperature range of -20 to +850C. The devices feature operating voltages as low as 2.7V with linear output power as high as 18.5 dBm at 2.5% EVM using IEEE 802.11g OFDM 54 Mbps. For IEEE 802.11b they offer 23.5 dBm and a high power-added efficiency of up to 38%. The amps are offered in an 8-pin 2mm x 2mm x .45mm QFN package making them ideal for embedded WLAN applications where small size, high efficiency and low-battery voltage operation are required. These applications include consumer electronics such as in cell phones, game consoles, printers and tablets.