Lockheed Martin Selects Qorvo's GaN-on-SiC Technology for Q-53 Radar

Qorvo recently announced that Lockheed Martin has selected its gallium nitride (GaN) technology power amplifier as the GaN module for the U.S. Army's Q-53 radar system. Introducing GaN technology into multi-mission mobile radar applications will achieve higher efficiency, power density, reliability and life cycle total cost than the gallium arsenide (GaAs) amplifiers widely used in current systems.

Qorvo has developed an S-band MMIC high-power amplifier (HPA) using silicon carbide (SiC)-based GaN. Compared with the previous generation of GaAs materials, the saturated output power of the GaN HPA has been more than doubled, and the power added efficiency (PAE) has been improved by 15 percentage points.

These features can better support the functions required by the Q-53 phased array radar, such as long-range counterattacks. The compact size and excellent performance of the amplifier support a variety of challenging operating conditions. In addition, GaN-on-SiC technology also has additional benefits such as improving system reliability and reducing the total cost of ownership throughout the life cycle.

"GaN-based amplifiers offer RF system engineers higher power and efficiency than GaAs while also saving additional components in the system," said James Klein, president of Qorvo Infrastructure and Defense Products. "The Q-53 radar system exemplifies Qorvo's close ties with its defense customers, applying commercial technology to military applications that operate across the spectrum with the highest reliability and functionality. We are proud to have been selected by Lockheed Martin to help upgrade the U.S. Army's most modern radar system."

Qorvo offers the industry's largest and most innovative GaN-on-SiC product portfolio, helping customers achieve significant improvements in efficiency and operating bandwidth. The company's products feature high power density, reduced size, excellent gain, high reliability and process maturity, with GaN-on-SiC being mass-produced as early as 2000.