Preface

Summary

This book provides a comprehensive treatment of radio-frequency (RF) nonlinear power amplifier behavioural modelling, from the fundamental concepts and principles through to the range of classical and, especially, current modelling techniques.

The continuing rapid growth of wireless communications and radio transmission systems, with their ever increasing sophistication, complexity and range of application, has been paralleled by a similar growth in research into all aspects of electronic components, systems and subsystems. This has given rise to a great variety of new and advanced technologies catering for the breadth of frequencies, bandwidths and powers expected in new and existing air interfaces and in the mobile wireless world, for the ever increasing integration of widely differing interfaces into single devices, with the future likelihood that these devices will be active on two or more interfaces simultaneously. For radio communications, or simply radio transmission systems, from the high-frequency (HF) band to the microwave and millimetrewave bands, the transmitter power amplifier (PA) is a pivotal enabling component. This is especially apparent when setting and satisfying air-interface specifications, the correct transmitted signal power levels and tolerable levels of inband and out-of-band signal impairment. The reason for this high-profile role of the PA is that it is the major source of signal distortion and spurious signal generation, harmonics and intermodulation products. Further, it is by far the greatest energy-consuming component in the radio transmission path. Depending on the class of amplifier and the operating conditions dictated by the complexity of the signals to be amplified, its DC to RF power-conversion efficiency is generally poor, resulting in power wastage.