Systems and methods for dynamically adjusting parameters of an active electrical device

[0001] This application claims benefit of priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/184,199, filed May 4, 2021 and of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/184,658, filed May 5, 2021. The contents of each of the above-identified applications are incorporated herein by reference.

[0002] This disclosure relates generally to radio frequency (RF) amplifiers; specifically, using circuits and methods to improve the power efficiency and linearity and power out performance of the amplifier devices. The disclosure relates to the field of commercial technology for using RF for terrestrial and satellite based communications and radar, but also to other fields such as radio astronomy, RF sensing for autonomous vehicles, high-power electromagnetic signal processing as well as electronic counter measures and other areas where RF amplifiers are used. Some implementations of the disclosure are directed toward techniques for synchronizing power circuits with coherent radio frequency (RF) signals to form a steered composite RF signal in a far field.

[0003] Amplifiers to increase the magnitude of voltage/current/power of an input signal are useful in many analog and digital devices including radio frequency (RF) devices, microwave devices, computers/laptops and cell phones. Output power, efficiency and linearity are some of the important figures-of-merit (FoM) for systems employing amplifiers. Existing driving schemes for many amplifiers (e.g., high power amplifiers) are not designed to optimize multiple figures of merit. Accordingly, driving schemes that can improve various figures-of-merit for amplifiers are advantageous.

[0004] Furthermore, the production of high-power RF signals, such as multiple watts for commercial applications and up to Megawatts of radiated power for other applications, typically requires RF amplifiers and other signal processing circuitry that consume large amounts of energy, which may result in large amounts of radiated heat. Consequently, expensively rated circuits and elaborate cooling mechanisms are typically required in such systems. Moreover, the bias voltages/currents required for efficient operation of RF amplifiers in high-power generating RF systems can change with age and/or temperature. Accordingly, there is a need for circuits that can change provide appropriate bias voltages/currents to achieve efficient performance of RF amplifiers in high-power generating RF systems.

[0005] Various implementations described herein are directed towards methods and systems to provide bias current and power that would set or change the operating conditions of a radio frequency amplifier, such as, for example, high power Gallium Nitride (GaN), silicon metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETS), other III-V devices, or other semiconductor-based radio frequency (RF) amplifiers. Various implementations of biasing systems described herein are configured to provide biasing voltages/currents to turn on/off the amplifiers and/or dynamically adjust the biasing voltages/currents to change the operating conditions of the amplifier. For example, the implementations of biasing systems described herein are configured to dynamically change the operating condition of an amplifier from operating in a saturation regime to operating in a linear regime or vice-versa. The biasing system allows to dynamically adjust between any class of amplifier, including but not limited to class A, class AB, class B, class C, class D, class E, class F, class G, class H, Class S and class T. These classes of amplifiers have to do with what cycle of an RF waveform, such as a sinusoid, draw current. In a class A amplifier, the current is drawn throughout the entire waveform cycle, and is the most linear, such that intermodulation distortion products are the lowest and the amplifier has the highest signal dynamic range. Using the dynamic biasing approach, the amplifier can be switched to different classes of linear amplifier and make a tradeoff between power efficiency and linearity, where the larger of the current cycle the system allows the amplifier to draw, the more linear it is but less efficient. The less of the cycle the amplifier is allowed to draw current, the less linear but the more power efficient the amplifier becomes. Most RF amplifiers can transmit more RF power in less linear modes. According, linearity is often traded with output power. The biasing system is also used to completely turn the amplifier off when no RF signals are flowing through the amplifier and being amplified. Turning off the bias completely minimizes leakage and quiescent current. Turning off quiescent current is important for especially high power amplifiers with high drain voltages such as 22 volts or 65 volts, because with large drain voltages, the quiescent current is significant. The amplifiers driven by the biasing systems described herein can be configured to produce high-power RF signals with low average power, such as, for example average power less than or equal to about 5 Kilowatts. The biasing system can be embodied as field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application specific integrated circuit (ASICs), analog circuits, and/or monolithic multiwave integrated circuits (MMICs).

[0006] Implementations of biasing systems and methods described herein are configured to adjust the biasing currents/voltages of the amplifier based on information obtained about the input signal characteristics, output signal characteristics, system operating conditions (e.g., operating temperature, operating currents/voltages at various terminals of the amplifier/system, etc.), an input received from a user or an electronic processing system controlling the biasing systems and/or by information obtained from look-up tables that provide an understanding of the state of the amplifier system. The biasing voltages/currents can be adjusted in real time or substantially in real time (e.g., within about 1 ns and about 50 ns or more) after receiving an input or obtaining information regarding the input signal characteristics, output signal characteristics and/or system operating conditions. For example, various implementations of the biasing systems can be configured to sense/obtain input signal characteristics, output signal characteristics, system operating conditions (e.g., operating temperature, operating currents/voltages at various terminals of the amplifier/system, etc.) and/or information from one or more look-up tables and adjust the biasing currents/voltages provided to the amplifier in real time or substantially in real time to optimize one or more of the following figures of merit: amplifier gain, output power, drain/power efficiency, linearity, and signal-to-noise ratio. For example, various implementations of the biasing systems can be configured to sense/obtain input signal characteristics, output signal characteristics, system operating conditions (e.g., operating temperature, operating currents/voltages at various terminals of the amplifier/system, etc.) and/or information from one or more look-up tables and adjust the biasing current/voltages provided to the amplifier in real time or substantially in real time to increase drain/power efficiency and linearity for a target output power. As another example, various implementations of the biasing systems can be configured to sense/obtain input signal characteristics, output signal characteristics, system operating conditions (e.g., operating temperature, operating currents/voltages at various terminals of the amplifier/system, etc.) and/or information from one or more look-up tables and adjust the biasing current/voltages provided to the amplifier in real time or substantially in real time to increase linearity for a target drain/power efficiency. As yet another example, various implementations of the biasing systems are configured to turn on/turn off the biasing current/voltage provided to the amplifier based on whether or not a signal to be amplified is input to the amplifier. As another example, various implementations of the biasing systems are configured to adjust and/or turn off the biasing current/voltage provided to the amplifier to reduce damaging the amplifier.

[0007] Implementations of the biasing systems described herein are configured to drive amplifiers that are disposed in a phased array system. The phased array system can comprise antennas that receive amplified RF signal output by the amplifiers. The phased array system can employ digital beam-forming capability and controlled by software instructions. The phased array system can be configured as an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) generation system, a radar system, a jamming system, a communications system and/or an electronic counter measures system. For example, the phased array system can be configured to generate EMPs with Megawatts of radiated power. In the phased array implementation, power amplifier of various elements of the phased array may have unique temperature, voltage or process setting. Accordingly, the different power amplifiers in a phased array may need a unique bias set point to optimize power out, optimize the linearity, efficiency of the amplifier or other characteristics. For example, amplifiers in different locations in the phased array may have different temperatures. Thus, the values of bias voltages and currents that optimize various figures of merits may be different for different amplifiers in the phased array. Accordingly, tuning the bias voltages/current for each element in the phased array to its own unique bias setting is important for optimizing one or more figures of merit over the whole array. In implementations of phased arrays comprising high band gap semiconductor devices such as GaAs, InP, SiGe, and GaN amplifiers, the dopants in the material of the semiconductor devices may vary from one device to another during manufacturing process. This is referred to as process variation. The settings of bias currents/voltages for different amplifiers in a phased array may be different as a result of process variation. In different areas of the phased array, the voltage to the devices may vary. Different locations in the array may have differing voltage ripple. Different locations in the phased array may also have different loads and different impedances. For example, if the phased array is built out of columns where each column is sourced with a single power supply, the lowest element in the column may have a different supply voltage than the highest element in the column due to resistance along the column. Voltage variation is another example where dynamically setting the bias voltages/currents on a per element basis may be required to optimize various figures of merit over the whole array. The voltage standing wave ratio (VSWR) at different elements of the phased array may be different in a phased array system. This can be attributed to the variation in the electromagnetic pattern across the phased array. For example, the inner most elements of the phased array may experience a different electromagnetic interference pattern than the outermost elements which can lead to different VSWR. Changing the settings of the bias currents/voltages for different elements of the phased array may reduce the difference in the VSWR across the phased array.

[0008] Various implementations of phased array systems described herein comprising a plurality of phased array elements are configured to be optimized on a per element basis to optimize the overall output of the phased array. Each of the plurality of phased array elements can comprise a plurality of amplifiers connected to an antenna. The plurality of amplifiers are individually characterized to determine the settings of bias voltages and currents that increase, decrease, maximize or minimize one or more figures of merit of the amplifier including but not limited to saturated power of the amplifier, gain of the amplifier and linearity of the amplifier. For example, the plurality of amplifiers are individually characterized to determine the settings of bias voltages and currents that maximizes the power of the signal output from the amplifier. As another example, the plurality of amplifiers are individually characterized to determine the settings of bias voltages and currents that maximizes the gain provided by the amplifier. As another example, the plurality of amplifiers are individually characterized to determine the settings of bias voltages and currents that maximizes linearity of the amplifier. The settings of bias voltages and currents that increase, decrease, maximize or minimize one or more figures of merit of the amplifier are stored in an electronic memory which is in electrical communication with processing electronics.

[0009] Each of the plurality of phased array elements comprises a smart power management system that is configured to turn-on the individual amplifiers in each phased array element and provide the appropriate bias voltages and currents that would generate output signals with desired characteristics. The desired characteristics can include maximum power out, high degree of linearity, or maximum gain. The smart power management system comprises processing electronics in electrical communication with an electronic memory that stores the settings of bias voltages and currents that increase, decrease, maximize or minimize one or more figures of merit of the amplifiers under the control of the smart power management system. In various implementations, the smart power management system is configured to turn-on the individual amplifiers in each phased array element upon receiving indication that a RF signal will be/is being input to the phased array element. The indication can be received from the RF generator generating the input RF signal, a user, or a computing system in communication with the phased array system. While the amplifiers are turned on, the smart power management system is configured to sense voltages and currents at various nodes of the amplifier and adjust the bias voltages and currents based on the sensed voltages and currents to ensure that the desired characteristics of the output signal is maintained. In some implementations, the smart power management system is configured to adjust the bias voltages and currents at time intervals less than 10 microseconds. In some implementations, the smart power management system is configured to adjust the bias voltages and currents continuously. The smart power management system is configured to turn-off the individual amplifiers in each phased array element upon receiving indication that the RF signal will not be/is not being input to the phased array element.

[0010] In various implementations of the phased array system comprising field-effect transistors as amplifiers, the smart power management system is configured to turn-on the amplifiers by setting the drain bias voltage and the gate bias voltage to cause a threshold amount of drain current to flow through the amplifier. The threshold amount of drain current being indicative of the characteristic of the output signal. For example, when the amplifier is operated to output signal with a maximum power, the drain current can have a value equal to a first threshold amount. As another example, when the amplifier is operated to output signal with a maximum gain, the drain current can have a value equal to a second threshold amount. As yet another example, when the amplifier is operated to output signal with high linearity, the drain current can have a value equal to a third threshold amount. The drain current can also be indicative of the temperature of the amplifier.

[0011] During the time that the amplifiers are turned on, the smart power management system is configured sense the drain current and modulate the gate bias voltage and/or the drain bias voltage to maintain the drain current at the threshold level. The smart power management system can sense the drain current and modulate the gate bias voltage and/or the drain bias voltage continuously or at intervals less than 10 microseconds. Maintaining the drain current at the threshold amount while the amplifier is turned on can reduce the rate at which the temperature of the amplifier increases which can keep the amplifier from over heating. Various implementations of phased array systems comprising the smart power management system described above can be configured to output pulsed electromagnetic radiation with pulse duration in a range between 5 ns and 300 μs. To provide the ability to generate and support pulses of longer duration, such as for example, between 10 μs and 300 μs, the amplifiers of individual phased array elements are associated with a multi-level energy storage network comprising large storage capacitors and/or multi-level capacitor network.

[0012] Various implementations of the systems comprise a system that can generate high power electro-magnetic beams. The system can be controlled by software instructions. The high power electro-magnetic beams are capable of charging electro-magnetic devices, resetting electro-magnetic devices, disrupting electronic circuits and components, disabling and/or destroying electronic circuits and components. As described in further detail below, implementations of the systems comprise a computer controlled radio frequency (RF) generator configured to emit a RF signal and solid state microwave amplifiers (e.g., high power GaN amplifiers) that amplify the generated RF signal. The RF signal can be a pulsed waveform comprising RF pulses having a duration between about 10 nanoseconds and about 1 millisecond at repetition rates up to 1 MHz. The solid state amplifiers can amplify the power of the RF signals from a few milliwatts (mW) to a few kilowatts (kW). The frequency and/or power of the RF signal can be changed in real time or substantially in real-time (e.g., in a time interval less than a few seconds) to achieve different effects on the targeted electro-magnetic devices.

[0013] In some implementations, a power management system can be configured to provide a voltage or a current to an amplifier. The power management system can comprise an electronic processing system, a power adapting system configured to convert power received from an external power supply to voltage levels and/or current levels to turn on an amplifier connected to the power management system, a sensing system configured to sense a current from the amplifier, and a memory connected to the electronic processing system.

[0014] In some implementations, the memory can store instructions executed by the electronic processing system to receive an input from a signal generator, the input being indicative of a signal being output from the signal generator. In response to receiving the input from the signal generator, the power adapting system provides a voltage or a current to the amplifier, the provided voltage or current being configured to turn on the amplifier. The sensing system can be configured to receive a current value from the amplifier, the sensed current value being indicative of a state of the amplifier. The power adapting system can be configured to change the provided voltage or current based on the received current value. In various implementations, the signal generator can be a radio frequency (RF) signal generator. The electronic processing system can be configured to cause the power adapting system to turn off the amplifier in response to determining that the signal generator is not outputting a signal. The sensed current value can be indicative of a temperature of the amplifier.

[0015] In some implementations, an apparatus has a processor and a memory connected to the processor. The memory stores instructions executed by the processor to sequentially collect from an array of amplifiers individual amplifier current values. The array of amplifiers is an array of high-power amplifiers configured as a phased array. The individual amplifier current values are compared to target amplifier current values to periodically identify an amplifier state error. Alteration of an amplifier gate bias voltage is initiated in response to the amplifier state error.

[0016] Various implementations can include an apparatus comprising an RF signal generator to produce RF signals phase shifted relative to one another in accordance with RF frequency waveform parameters; and amplifier chains to process the RF signals to produce channels of amplified RF signals, wherein each amplifier chain has amplifiers and wherein at least one amplifier has a tunable gate voltage synchronized with the RF signals.

[0017] In some implementations, the amplifier chains can have a plurality of solid state amplifiers each of which has a tunable gate voltage. The tunable gate voltage can be an amplifier on set point that is derived from an automatic calibration operation. In various implementations, the amplifier can have a capacitance that is tuned to an on set point for the at least one amplifier. In various implementations, the amplifier can have a gate voltage tuned based on sensor feedback from the at least one amplifier. In various implementations, an offset voltage of a plurality of gate voltage slave circuits is tuned and controlled by a central master power gating circuit. Various implementations of the apparatus described herein can further comprise a central computer to produce the Radio Frequency (RF) waveform parameters. Various implementations of the apparatus described herein can further comprise an antenna array to broadcast the channels of amplified RF signals as a steered composite RF signal with Megawatts of radiated power. The steered composite RF signal can be pulsed for less than 1 millisecond. The steered composite RF signal can have a frequency of approximately 1 GHz.

[0018] The central computer can include a processor and a memory storing a target classifier with instructions executed by the processor to classify a target based upon flight attributes of the target. The central computer can include a waveform selector stored in the memory, the waveform selector being configured to select the RF waveform parameters from a waveform look-up table. The RF signal generator can be an RF system on a Chip Field Programmable Gate Array. The RF signal generator can produce digital RF signals that are applied to digital-to-analog converters. Various implementations of the apparatus can further comprise a power sequencer controlled by the RF signal generator. The power sequencer can be configured as a master power sequencing gating unit. Various implementations of the apparatus can further comprise smart slave circuits controlled by the power sequencer, wherein the smart slave circuits coordinate an automatic calibration operation. Various implementations of the apparatus can further comprise a reflector dish to process the channels of amplified RF signals. Various implementations of the apparatus can further comprise a mechanical gimbal to orient the position of the reflector dish. Various implementations of the apparatus can be in combination with a target detector.

[0019] Various aspects of the systems and devices disclosed herein are directed towards controlling a multi-dimensional control set of an active electronic device (e.g., an amplifier or a switch). The multi-dimensional control set includes gate bias voltage; drain voltage; input and/or output matching network; and temperature. Novel aspects disclosed herein are configured to control these parameters across a plurality of active electronic devices. Input and output matching networks can be switched to different configurations using a switched capacitor or switched inductive, resistive, capacitive (LRC) networks. This can advantageously allow the power to match to different parts of an operating band (e.g., L-band or S-band). Updating the matching network can be useful for wideband operation, the matching network dictates at what frequency the active electronic device is most powerful and most efficient, how much gain, the saturated output power (P3dB) and other key characteristics. Accordingly, by tuning the matching network, the frequency of operation of the active electronic device can be tuned.

[0020] There are some cases when it may be useful to create multiple points in a band where matching occurs for wide band signals. In the case of a plurality of power amplifiers, such as a Doherty power amplifier network having a main and an auxiliary network, controlling the relative strengths of these power amplifiers using these input controls can have varying effects on performance. Also there are many dual band applications or multi-band applications including power amplifiers at different frequencies where it may be desirable to turn on one and not the other or turn on multiple active electronic devices simultaneously, or multiple amplifiers at different strengths. Also, it may be desirable to alter the RF Input such as for digital pre distortion (DPD), where the waveform can be pre distorted to create a more linear power output with fewer intermodulation distortion products, such as 3rd order products and harmonics (IMD3). With higher frequencies and higher bandwidths DPD becomes difficult or impractical, so using real time voltage biasing to achieve these same linearity effects may be advantageous. In some cases, it may be useful co optimize the voltage biasing with the RF input, or to co-optimize the RF input waveform with both drain and bias voltage to gain efficiencies.

[0021] Various parameters of the active electronic can be sensed using a sensing system. For example, the following 5 parameters can be sensed to learn from, perform machine learning algorithms, and update the control parameters. The 5 parameters include the (1) RF output (using a coupler for high power applications), the (2) drain voltage and (3) drain current, the (4) gate current, the (5) temperature on the device. In some applications, it may be advantageous to sense and control voltages up to 1,000 Volts for high power applications.

[0022] The systems, methods, modules, and devices of this disclosure each have several innovative aspects, no single one of which is solely responsible for the desirable attributes disclosed herein. A variety of example systems, modules, and methods are provided below.

[0023] Embodiment 1: An electrical system comprising:

• • [0024] an active electrical component, the active electrical component having a variable parameter; and
  • [0025] a power management system configured to provide electrical power to the active electrical component,
  • [0026] wherein the power management system is configured to sense variation of a characteristic of the active electrical component in response to the variation of a parameter of the active electrical component and generate a time constant of the active electrical component to respond to a change in the parameter.

[0027] Embodiment 2: The system of Embodiment 1, wherein the variable parameter comprises an input signal power, an output signal power, a gain, a current, a voltage, a resistance, a capacitance, or an inductance.

[0028] Embodiment 3: The system of any of Embodiments 1-2, wherein the characteristic comprises an input signal power, an output signal power, a gain, a current, a voltage, a temperature, a resistance, a capacitance, or an inductance.

[0029] Embodiment 4: The system of any of Embodiments 1-3, wherein the power management system comprising a processing system that executes a machine learning (ML) algorithm to generate the time constant.

[0030] Embodiment 5: The system of any of Embodiments 1-4, wherein the active electrical component comprises an amplifier or a switch.

[0031] Embodiment 6: An electrical system comprising:

• • [0032] an active electrical component, the active electrical component having a variable parameter; and
  • [0033] a power management system configured to:
    • [0034] sense variation of the parameter; and
    • [0035] adjust an amount of electrical power supplied to the active electrical component in response to the sensed variation of the parameter, wherein the power management system is configured to adjust the amount of electrical power based on a time constant of a characteristic of the active electrical component to respond to variation of the parameter.

[0036] Embodiment 7: The system of Embodiment 6, wherein the parameter comprises an input signal power, an output signal power, a gain, a current, a voltage, a resistance, a capacitance, or an inductance.

[0037] Embodiment 8: The system of any of Embodiments 6-7, wherein the characteristic comprises an input signal power, an output signal power, a gain, a current, a voltage, a temperature, a resistance, a capacitance, or an inductance.

[0038] Embodiment 9: The system of any of Embodiments 6-8, wherein the active electrical component comprises an amplifier or a switch.

[0039] Embodiment 10: An electrical system comprising:

• • [0040] an amplifier having an input side and an output side, the amplifier configured to receive radio frequency (RF) signal through the input side and output an amplified signal through the output side, the amplifier connected to a capacitor network at the output side, the capacitor network comprising a plurality of capacitors having different capacitance values, the capacitor network configured to dynamically supply energy to the amplifier;
  • [0041] a power management system configured to supply electrical power to the amplifier, the power management system configured to:
    • [0042] sense power and waveform characteristics of the received RF signal; and
    • [0043] dynamically switch between the plurality of capacitors based on the sensed power and waveform characteristics of the received RF signal.

[0044] Embodiment 11: An electrical system comprising:

• • [0045] an active electronic device configured to receive an input signal and generate an output signal;
  • [0046] a sensing system configured to sense a parameter of the active electronic device, the parameter comprising at least one of a power of the input signal, a power of the output signal, a current in the active electronic device, a voltage in the active electronic device, or a temperature of the active electronic device; and
  • [0047] a control system configured to control at least one of an input power, a bias voltage, a bias current, a drain current, a drain voltage, an element of an input matching network or an element of an output matching in response to the sensed parameter.

[0048] Embodiment 12: An electrical system comprising:

• • [0049] an active electronic device configured to receive an input signal and generate an output signal;
  • [0050] an envelope tracking system configured to generate an envelope signal of the input signal, the envelope signal tracking a variation in the amplitude of the input signal, the envelope signal having an envelope bandwidth; and
  • [0051] a control system configured to vary a bias power provided to the active electronic device, wherein the control system is further configured to:
    • [0052] vary the bias power between a threshold bias power and a maximum bias power in response to a variation of the envelope signal above a threshold level; and
    • [0053] maintain the bias power at the threshold bias power if the envelope signal is below the threshold level.

[0054] Embodiment 13: The system of Embodiment 12, wherein the active electronic device comprises an amplifier or a switch.

[0055] Embodiment 14: The system of any of Embodiments 12-13, wherein the control system is configured to vary the bias power provided to the active electronic device by varying a voltage level provided to a drain terminal or a gate terminal.

[0056] Embodiment 15: The system of Embodiment 14, wherein the control system is configured to vary the bias power provided to the active electronic device by varying a voltage level provided to the drain terminal.

[0057] Embodiment 16: The system of Embodiment 15, wherein the control system is configured to vary the bias power provided to the active electronic device by varying a voltage level provided to the gate terminal.

[0058] Embodiment 17: The system of any of Embodiments 12-13, wherein the input signal is a pulsed signal and the control system is configured to vary the bias power provided to the active electronic device by providing a voltage level to a drain terminal between a first voltage and a second voltage during a duration of a pulse of the pulsed signal and providing a voltage level to a drain terminal equal to a third voltage in-between pulses.

[0059] Embodiment 18: The system of Embodiment 17, wherein the first voltage and the second voltage can vary from one pulse to another.

[0060] Embodiment 19: The system of Embodiment 17, wherein the third voltage is lower than the first voltage and the second voltage.

[0061] Embodiment 20: The system of Embodiment 17, wherein the control system is configured to vary the bias power provided to the active electronic device by providing a voltage level to a gate terminal between a fourth voltage and a fifth voltage during a duration of the pulse and providing a voltage level to the gate terminal equal to a fifth voltage in-between pulses.

[0062] Embodiment 21: The system of Embodiment 20, wherein the fifth voltage has a value that turns off the active electronic device.

[0091] Like reference numerals refer to corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

[0092] FIG. 1 illustrates an RF signal generating apparatus 100. The RF signal may be generated in response to a user command entered at a keyboard. In one embodiment, the RF signal is generated in response to the identification of a target by a target detector 101, such as a camera utilizing computer vision algorithms. Consider the case of an unmanned aerial vehicle or drone, the target detector 101 collects a signature characterizing the flight attributes of the drone. The target detector 101 also collects free space parameters associated with the drone, such as azimuth angle, elevation and range. Embodiments described collect this information when the target is 500 to 300 meters from the target detector 101. The signature and free space parameters are passed from the target detector to a central computer 102.

[0093] The central computer 102 classifies the target and selects RF waveform parameters, which are passed to an RF signal generator 103. In various implementations, the RF signal generator 103 can be programmable and controlled by the computer 102 to change various parameters of the generated RF signal including but not limited to frequency and power of the RF signal. The RF signal generator 103 creates RF signals in accordance with the RF waveform parameters. Each RF signal has a waveform of the frequency, pulse width, pulse repetition interval and intra-pulse modulation specified by the RF waveform parameters received from the central computer 102. The frequency, pulse width, pulse repetition interval and intra-pulse modulation of the generated RF signal can be changed by the computer 102 in real time or sufficiently real time.

[0094] The RF signal generator 103 produces RF signals for multiple channels that are applied to amplifier chains 104_1 through 104_N. The RF signals for the multiple channels are phase shifted relative to one another in accordance with RF frequency waveform parameters. In one embodiment, the phase shifting is digitally performed within the RF signal generator 103. Alternately, analog phase shifters may shift the RF signals prior to applying them to the amplifier chains 104_1 through 104_N. In some implementations, the amplitude of some of the RF signals for the multiple channels can be attenuated as compared to the amplitude of some other of the RF signals for the multiple channels. Although, in the illustrated implementation, the computer 102 is distinct from the RF signal generator 103, in various other implementations, the computer 102 and the RF signal generator 103 can be integrated together. Each amplifier chain has a plurality of solid-state power amplifiers, each of which has a gate voltage on set point derived from an automatic calibration operation, as detailed below. Some of the plurality of solid-state power amplifiers may be arranged serially/sequentially in some implementations. Some of the plurality of solid-state power amplifiers may be arranged in a power combining configuration. Each amplifier chain produces an amplified RF signal. In one embodiment, a few mW RF signal from the RF signal generator 103 is amplified to a few kWs. The amplifier chain may utilize a combination of solid-state amplifiers, including silicon laterally diffused metal-oxide semiconductors, Gallium Nitride, Scandium Aluminum Nitride, GaAs and InP. The channels of RF signals from the amplifier chains 104_1 through 104_N are applied to an antenna array 106. Each amplifier chain has a corresponding antenna in the antenna array 106. The antenna array 106 broadcasts the channels of RF signals as a steered composite RF signal with Megawatts of radiated power. That is, individual RF signals emitted from different antennae in the antenna array 106 interact in free space to generate a composite RF signal that is directed to a specified location corresponding to the location of the target. The antenna array 106 may include a mechanical gimbal to position individual antennae. In various implementations, the antenna array 106 can further amplify the RF signal by about 10-1000 times.

[0095] The RF signal generator 103 also sends control signals 305 to the power sequencer 105. The control signals gate amplifiers in the amplifier chains 104_1 through 104_N to produce the channels of RF signals. The control signals 305 ensure that little (e.g., micro to nano amps) leakage or quiescent current is drawn when an RF signal is not being generated. The leakage and quiescent current can be quite large in high power amplifiers circuits if not gated. In one embodiment, the RF signals and power gating signals are turned on and off in 10s of nanoseconds.

[0096] The amplified RF signals from the amplifier chains 104_1 through 104_N are applied to an antenna array 106. The phased array RF signals form a steered composite RF signal to disable a target, typically when it is approximately 100 meters from the antenna array 106. The steered composite RF signal has Megawatts of radiated power.

[0097] System 100 also includes an AC power source 107 for the different elements of system 100. The AC power source may operate with a power distributor 108, which applies power to the power sequencer 105. In one embodiment, the power distributor 108 converts from AC to DC power. Generally, the conversion from AC to DC can happen either locally at each amplifier or at the system level.

[0098] FIG. 2 illustrates details of certain components in system 100. Central computer 102 includes a processor or central processing unit 200 connected to a memory 202. The memory 202 stores instructions executed by processor 200. The instructions include a target classifier 204. In one embodiment, the target classifier 204 matches the signature of the attributes of the target to a waveform in a waveform look-up table 206. The waveform selector 208 designates a waveform to disable the target. The designated waveform also includes free space parameters to ensure that the steered composite RF signal intercepts the target. The steered composite RF signal is formed by a collection of phase offset RF signals. The central computer passes RF waveform parameters to the RF signal generator 103. The RF waveform parameters include information about azimuth angle and elevation angle of the target, azimuth and elevation angle of friendly targets that do not need to be disabled, frequency of the RF waveform, pulse width and duty cycle of the RF pulses, position and height/depth of peaks/nulls in the RF beam.

[0099] In one embodiment, the RF signal generator 103 is implemented as an RF system on a Chip Field Programmable Gate array (RFSoC FPGA). The RFSoC FPGA 103 includes a gate array 210 and a direct digital synthesizer 212 that creates waveforms of the frequency, pulse width, pulse repetition interval and intra-pulse modulation specified by the RF frequency waveform parameters generated by the central computer 102. The gate array 210 is configured to perform a variety of functions including but not limited to determining the time intervals at which different components of the amplifier is powered up and powered down. The waveforms are passed to a collection of digital-to-analog (DAC) converters 214_1 through 214_N. Outputs from the DACs 214_1 through 214_N are optionally conditioned by signal conditioning units (SCUs). In various implementations, the SCUs can comprise filters 216_1 through 216_N as depicted in FIG. 2. The filters 216_1 through 216_N may filter the RF signals to a frequency band of interest. In some implementations, the SCUs can comprise one or more phase shifters and/or attenuators that can achieve the desired azimuth and elevation angles for the generated RF beam. The outputs from the RF signal generator 103 are applied to amplifier chains 104_1 through 104_N. Each amplifier chain terminates in an antenna of antenna array 106, such as antennae 220_1 through 220_N. The RFSoC FPGA 103 allows digital formation of signal beams which has several advantages including but not limited to increasing/maximizing signal power in certain regions of space and decreasing/minimizing signal power in certain other regions of space. Accordingly, signal power can be focused on targets in certain regions of space while reducing the signal power on targets in certain other regions of space. Digitally forming signal beams as discussed above also advantageously allow the power, frequency and other parameters of the signal beam to be changed in sufficiently real time (e.g., in less than 1 millisecond).

[0100] FIG. 3 is a block diagram of different components of FIGS. 1 and 2, including the RF signal generator 103, power sequencer 105, and an amplifier chain 104_1. The RF signal generator 103 receives a control signal from central computer 102 on node 301. A synchronizing clock signal is received on node 303.

[0101] A broadcast signal on node 304, an Ethernet signal in one embodiment, is sent to a plurality of power sequencing smart slave units 309. In the one embodiment, the broadcast signal is distributed through a router 307. The broadcast signal initiates a calibration mode in smart slave circuits 309, such that they identify the optimal “on” set point gate voltage for the power amps 311.

[0102] The RF signal generator 103 sends a very fast signal with deterministic delay, such as a Low Voltage Differential Signal (LVDS) to power sequencer 105. The power sequencer 105 operates as a master power sequencing gating unit that simultaneously controls smart slave devices 309. In particular, the power sequencer 105 sends a master voltage to the slave units 309_1 and 309_2. The slave units 309_1 and 309_2 offset this master voltage with their individual voltage offsets that they established in calibration mode, so that each power amplifier has an optimal gate voltage. Many power amplifiers have different optimal set gate voltages for “on” operation; the disclosed circuits can be configured such that each individual power amp 311 has its own set point.

[0103] The RF signal generator 103 synchronizes using “on” signals applied to the power sequencers 105. The RF signal generator 103 also applies an RF signal on node 310, which is propagated through power amps 311. The power amp chain may have one or more filters 312. A portion of the RF signal (1 RX) from the amplifier can be tapped by a coupler 313 and sent back to the RF signal generator 103 or the computer 102 for monitoring purposes. The monitored information can include information regarding the phase, amplitude, power level and timing of the power amplifiers. The monitored information is considered to update timing and control algorithms.

[0104] The RF signal is amplified through the power amplifiers 311 and is sent to an antenna 314 of the antenna array 106. The output from the different antennae of the antenna array 106 form a steered composite RF signal.

[0105] Power efficiency and linearity are important figures of merits (FoMs) for amplifier based systems. Power efficiency in field effect transistor (FET) amplifier (e.g., gallium nitride (GaN) FET amplifier) based systems can be improved by controlling the voltages provided to the gate and the drain terminals of a FET amplifier. Various implementations of a FET or a High Electron Mobility Transistor (HEMT) amplifier that is configured to be operated in saturation can benefit from a bipolar gate supply which can source and sink current. The bipolar gate supply can advantageously maintain the gate voltage at a desired voltage level.

[0106] Various implementations described herein include a bipolar high impedance gate driver that can source or sink current when the amplifier is operated at or near saturation. In addition to maintaining the gate voltage at a desired level, the bipolar high impedance gate driver can draw minimal amount of DC current and dynamically provide current to the gate terminal of the amplifier when the signal to be amplified is input to the amplifier. Various implementations of a bipolar high impedance gate driver described herein comprise an operational amplifier (opamp). The bipolar high impedance gate driver can improve various measures of efficiency for amplifier-based systems including drain efficiency, power-added efficiency, total efficiency, amplifier efficiency and wall-plug efficiency.

[0107] FIG. 4A illustrates an implementation of a system comprising a plurality of high power amplifiers (e.g., amplifier 410) that are driven by corresponding bipolar high impedance gate drivers (e.g., driver 407). The voltage and/or current output from the bipolar high impedance gate drivers is controlled by a power controller (e.g., controller 309). As discussed above, the power controller can comprise a master control unit (e.g., power sequencer 105 discussed above) and a plurality of slave control units (e.g., slave units 309_1 and 309_2 discussed above). In some embodiments, the master control unit and the slave control units can be implemented as separate devices. In some other embodiments, the master control unit and the slave control units can be implemented as a single device.

[0108] Referring to FIG. 4A, the RF signal generator 103 applying an “on” signal from node 408 to the power sequencer 105, operates as a master power gating and sequencing circuit that controls slave power amplifiers 311. In one embodiment, this signal is a Low voltage differential signal (LVDS) that controls a switch 403, which causes current from power supply 404 to flow during an “on” state and stops current flow in “off” state. The power supply voltage 404 can provide an offset voltage, which is added to an off voltage V_OFF 406 when the switch 403 is closed. In some embodiments, the amplifier 410 can be Gallium Nitride devices. In such embodiments, the off voltage V_OFF 406 can be about −5 Volts and the power supply voltage 404 can be about 3 volts. Accordingly, the output voltage at node 409 is about −2 Volts, which is approximately the gate voltage that turns on Gallium Nitride amplifiers 410. When the switch is open, the output voltage on node 409 defaults back to the off voltage V_OFF, which is −5 Volts in one embodiment, which is the gate voltage that turns Gallium Nitride transistors off and reduces leakage current down to about 10 microamps. The value of the off voltage V_OFF and the offset voltage can be different from −5 Volts and 3 Volts respectively depending on the turn-on voltage of the amplifier 410. Node 411 carries a broadcast signal that initiates the auto-calibrate operation of the smart slave circuits 309. In one embodiment, each smart slave circuit 309 is implemented with an FPGA configured to determine the optimal gate voltage set point for turning on a slave amplifier.

[0109] Digital to analog converter (DAC) 413 provides an offset voltage (V_OFFSET1) that gets added to the master voltage on node 409. This offset voltage is tuned to each individual power amplifier 410 to provide optimal set point bias voltage V_G1 on node 414 and maximum power out from the power amp 410. It also enables optimum voltage in the “off” state and minimizes leakage current. The master-slave architecture facilitates fine grained voltage offsets, which is advantageous in efficient operation of many transistors, which may be sensitive to gate voltage offsets at the millivolt level. In some implementations, the disclosed technology maximizes voltage offset resolution. For example, the master-slave architecture can advantageously change the voltage provided to the gate terminal of the amplifier in increments of 1 millivolt or less.

[0110] The smart slave 309 controls a plurality of DACs 413 and stores different optimum set points for both the on and off states for each power amplifier. In the auto-calibration mode, the current sensor 415 is used to feedback a current reading to the smart slave 309. This voltage offset on DACs 413 is tuned very slightly, by the millivolt in one embodiment, until the current sensed from sensor 415 reaches an optimum current value, as per the data sheets for the power amplifiers 410. This voltage offset is stored. This process is repeated to minimize the current in “off” state. The current can also be sensed during active operation to determine the viability of the power amp. If the current starts to degrade or change or significantly decrease, this can indicate that the amplifier is damaged and needs to be replaced or can indicate that the temperature is out of range for optimal operation. This method of adjusting the voltage offset on node 413 based on the current sensed from 415 is explained in further detail below with reference to FIGS. 8-13.

[0111] The capacitor 416 can be tuned (manually or electronically) to change the rise and fall time for the gate bias signal on node 414. For example, in some embodiments, capacitor 416 is real time programmable by the smart control FPGA 309, such as by a series of switches, to include a variable amount of capacitance in the feedback path of the capacitor 416. This is a useful feature because different power amplifiers 410 can each have a different gate capacitance. Capacitor 416 can be tuned based on the gate capacitance for optimal operation. Tuning capacitor 416 affects how fast or slow the rise time is on the gate voltage at node 414, this effects speed and efficiency of the power gating. Changing the charge on capacitor 416 can also change the amount of time the power amplifier rings or oscillates. In other embodiments, capacitor 416 is configured to tune the rise and fall time for very fast operation.

[0112] As discussed above, the computer 102 receives a signal from the target detector 101, such as a sensor/camera in some embodiments or radar in other embodiments, and triggers a target detection algorithm. The computer 102 classifies the target and selects a waveform that can disable the target. Various parameters of the waveform and details about the target are transmitted to the RF generator. The computer 102 also triggers the various amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N with a signal to start the power sequencing for each amplifier in the amplifier chains. The signals are sent to each amplifier in the amplifier chains such that the power sequence is started at the same time, in a coherent, synchronized way. The voltage sequence timing diagram is shown and described below with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6. For example, FIG. 5 illustrates various rise times (T_RISE1, T_RISE2, T_RISE3), fall times (T_FALL1, T_FALL2, T_FALL3), and delay times (T_DELAY1, T_DELAY2, T_DELAY3, T_DELAY4, T_DELAY5, T_DELAY6). As used herein, power sequencing comprises providing appropriate values to the various terminals of an amplifier (e.g., gate (V_G), source (V_S), and drain (V_D) turn on/turn off the amplifiers.

[0113] Power sequencing also turns on the power gating circuitry, which switches on the voltage/current supply to the amplifiers (e.g., the high voltage power amplifiers). The RF waveform digital circuitry is triggered simultaneously to send an array of RF signal inputs to the amplifier chains. As discussed below with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6, the amplifiers are turned on for short period when a target has been acquired which advantageously allows the system to emit RF signals high peak power (e.g., of the order of Megawatts) with low average power (e.g., less than 5 kW).

[0114] FIG. 4B schematically illustrates an implementation of a gate biasing system that is triggered automatically by an incoming RF signal. The gate biasing system comprises a switching element 420 which is triggered by the incoming RF signal. FIG. 4C shows an implementation of the switching element 420. The switching element 420 can comprise a Schottky detector 422 and a comparator/switch 424. When the signal generator 103 outputs a RF signal, the Schottky detector produces a RF detect voltage which is greater than a reference voltage of the comparator/switch 424 thereby causing the comparator/switch 424 to be in the closed state and output a bias voltage V_ON which turns on the amplifier 311. For an implementation of the amplifier 311 comprising a GaN device, the output voltage V_ON can be in a range between −2V and −5V. The slave unit 309 can provide a tunable offset voltage V_OFFSET which can the adjust the bias voltage V_ON to optimize one or more performance metrics of the amplifier 311. In the absence of the RF signal from the signal generator 103, the switch 424 may be considered to be in the open state which causes a voltage V_OFF to be provided to the amplifier 311 which turns the amplifier 311 off. For an implementation of the amplifier 311 comprising a GaN device, the output voltage V_OFF can be less than −5.5V, such as, for example, between about −12V and about −6V. The schematic shown in FIGS. 4B and 4C can be an alternate implementation which is triggered by the RF signal itself instead of a control signal from the RF signal generator 103.

[0115] FIG. 5 illustrates waveforms that may be used in conjunction with the circuitry of FIG. 4A. The supply voltage 501 (V_SUPPLY in FIG. 4A) to the power amp (410 in FIG. 4A) is turned on first. Alternately, it may be left on all the time. The gate voltage waveform 502 is applied to node 414 of FIG. 4A. Then, the RF signal from RF signal generator 103 is applied to node 414. This example is for a 65 Volt Gallium Nitride (GaN) solid state power amplifier, but the principle may generally apply to any solid-state power amplifier. The drain voltage 501 toggles from 0 Volts to 65 Volts. Then, the source voltage is tuned from −5 Volts to −2 Volts, where it is considered “open” and the transistor is “on” so that a quiescent current starts to flow. Finally, the RF input signal 503 is applied and the transistor draws active power once the RF power is on, in some embodiments up to 30 amps of current create 1,500 watts of power out of the transistor 410.

[0116] The RF signal 503 is sent out as a short pulse, for example, as short as 10 ns or as long as milliseconds. The length of the pulse depends on the type of target. After the RF pulse is complete, the source voltage is pinched off back down to −6 Volts, and then shortly after the drain voltage is tuned from 65 Volts down to 0 Volts and the transistor is off and therefore draws minimal current.

[0117] FIG. 6 illustrates a timing diagram showing a non-linear pulse train 601 with uneven pulses. The pulse train 601 is sent through power amp 410, where the RF and voltage bias is turned on and off very quickly (e.g., 10 s of nanoseconds). In one embodiment, the pulses are in an arbitrary pattern at a frequency of 1 GHz.

[0118] FIG. 7 illustrates a system 700 corresponding the system 100 of FIG. 1. However, in this embodiment, the antenna array 106 transmits its RF power signal to a reflector 700. For example, 16 antennae operating at the L-band frequency with half-wavelength spacing may transmit into a 3 meter reflector dish. The reflector dish may have a subreflector. A mechanical gimbal 702 may control the position of the reflector 700 in response to control signals from central computer 102.

[0119] The 3 meter reflector dish provides 28.1 dBi, or 645× linear magnification of the energy. In one embodiment, the reflector dish is fed by a 16 element phased array antenna in a 4×4 array. At a 1% duty cycle and 70% power efficiency, the power system only requires 550 watts of DC power output, enabling a small power supply.

[0120] The implementations of the phased array systems described above are configured to be software defined via element level digital control of each channel of the phased array. The RF signal input to the phased array can be generated digitally without requiring RF or analog components using novel transmitter schemes (e.g., a monobit transmitter).

Power Management System to Adjust Bias Condition of RF Amplifiers

[0121] FIG. 8A illustrates another implementation of the system 100 of FIG. 2. The system 100 is illustrated as being augmented with a plurality of power management systems 809_1 to 809_N configured to provide the required voltages and currents to efficiently operate the amplifiers in the amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N. In various implementations, the power management systems 809_1 to 809_N can comprise or be associated with a power distributing system similar to the power distributor 108 and/or a power sequencing system similar to the power sequencer 105. Individual power management systems 809_1 to 809_N are configured to (i) in response to receiving a signal from the RF generator 103 provide appropriate bias voltages and currents to turn-on the amplifiers in the corresponding amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N prior to/synchronously with the arrival of the RF signal from the RF generator 103; (ii) adjust or change the bias voltages and currents to the amplifiers based on information obtained about the input signal characteristics, output signal characteristics, system operating conditions (e.g., operating temperature, operating currents/voltages at various terminals of the amplifier/system, etc.), an input received from a user or an electronic processing system controlling the biasing systems and/or by information obtained from look-up tables that provide an understanding of the state of the amplifier; and/or (iii) reduce the bias voltages and currents to turn-off the amplifiers in the corresponding amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N in response to absence of signal to be amplified or a sensed characteristic (e.g., input signal power, output signal power, temperature, gate current/voltage or drain current/voltage) being outside a range of values.

[0122] As discussed above, the plurality of power management systems 809_1 to 809_N can comprise sensors (e.g., current sensors) that can sense current values (e.g., drain and/or gate current values) of the individual amplifiers in the amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N. The power management systems 809_1 to 809_N can be configured to sense the current values of the individual amplifiers in the amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N intermittently (e.g., periodically). In some implementations, the power management systems 809_1 to 809_N can be configured to sense the current values of the individual amplifiers in the amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N continuously. In various implementations, the output from the current sensor can be sampled using an analog to digital converter (ADC) and averaged over a number of samples (e.g., 128 samples, 512 samples, etc.) to obtain the sensed current value.

[0123] The sensed current value can be analyzed by the power management systems 809_1 to 809_N to determine an operational or a physical characteristic (e.g., temperature, input/output signal power, voltage/current at various terminals of the amplifier) of the individual amplifier. For example, a sensed current value above a first threshold current value when the amplifier is not turned on can be indicative of a defect in the amplifier or a defect in the circuit board on which the amplifier is mounted. As another example, a sensed current value above a second threshold current value when the amplifier is turned on but no signal to be amplified is provided to the input can be indicative of a defect in the amplifier or a rise in the temperature of the amplifier. As yet another example, a sensed current value above a third threshold current value when the amplifier is turned on and a signal to be amplified is provided to the input can be indicative of a defect in the amplifier or a rise in the temperature of the amplifier. Accordingly, the power management systems 809_1 to 809_N can be configured to compare individual amplifier current values to target amplifier current values to identify an amplifier state error. In response to determining that the amplifier current value of a particular amplifier has deviated from a target amplifier current value (e.g., first, second or third threshold values discussed above), the power management system controlling that particular amplifier is configured to determine the amount by which values of the voltages/current provided to the amplifier should be offset to achieve efficient operation of the amplifier and provide that offset value. In various implementations, one or more of tasks of correlating the sensed current values to a physical characteristic of the amplifier or determining the amount by which values of the voltages/current provided to the amplifier should be offset by to achieve efficient operation of the amplifier can be performed by the computer 102 instead of the power management systems 809_1 to 809_N.

[0124] The target amplifier current values may be based upon several factors for optimal system operation. For example, the target amplifier current values may be calibration amplifier current values for specified temperatures. The target amplifier current values may be calibration amplifier current values to compensate for amplifier manufacturing process variations. The target amplifier current values may be calibration amplifier current values to compensate for voltage variations. The target amplifier current values may be calibration amplifier current values to compensate for radio frequency phase variations. The target amplifier current values may be historical performance amplifier current values. The historical performance amplifier current values may be used to identify amplifier degradation over time.

[0125] Without any loss of generality, the plurality of power management systems 809_1 to 809_N can comprise a variety of sensors. For example, the plurality of power management systems 809_1 to 809_N can comprise voltage sensors configured to measure voltages at the various parts of the amplifiers in the amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N. As another example, the plurality of power management systems 809_1 to 809_N can comprise temperature sensors configured to measure temperature of the amplifiers in the amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N. The temperature sensors can be configured to measure the device temperature of the amplifiers in the amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N or temperature of the housing or the mount on which the amplifiers in the amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N are disposed.

[0126] The system 100 can be configured as a phased array comprising a plurality of phased array elements, each phased array element comprising one of the amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N and the corresponding antenna 220_1 to 220_N of the antenna array 106. Without any loss of generality, the amplifiers in the amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N can comprise three terminal semiconductor devices, such as, for example, a field effect transistor (FET). The power management systems 809_1 to 809_N can advantageously increase or optimize one of more figures of merit (e.g., output power, power efficiency, linearity, etc.) of the amplifiers and accordingly the phased array system is discussed below. As a part of initialization procedure of the phased array system 100, the different amplifiers in the amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N are characterized to correlate the different bias settings (e.g., gate voltage, drain voltage, drain current, gate current) to the gain and/or the power output from the amplifiers at different temperatures. The characterized information is stored in a memory associated with the power management systems 809_1 to 809_N. The characterization of the different amplifiers can be done when the phased array system is built and then subsequently as part of maintenance of the phased array system. For example, after the initial characterization when the phased array system 100 is built, further characterization of the amplifiers can be performed once or twice a year. In some other implementations, the amplifiers can be characterized before a mission. As used herein, a mission refers to the phased array being in a state where it is ready to emit electromagnetic pulsed radiation. The period of a mission can range from a few minutes to a year or a few years. For example, a mission period can be a few minutes, half an hour, an hour, a few hours, a week, a month, a few months, a year, or a few years.

[0127] When the phase array is turned on at the start of the mission, the voltage at the drain terminal of the amplifiers in the amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N is set to a threshold drain bias voltage. In some implementations, the threshold drain bias voltage can correspond to a drain bias voltage that maximizes the power output from the amplifiers. In some implementations, the threshold drain bias voltage can correspond to a drain bias voltage that is required to operate the amplifiers in saturation or close to saturation. In some implementations, the threshold drain bias voltage can correspond to a drain voltage that optimizes the power output from the amplifiers and the drain efficiency. In yet some other implementations, the threshold drain bias voltage can correspond to a drain voltage that is a maximum allowable drain bias voltage that doesn't cause the amplifier to break down. The bias voltage at the gate terminal of the amplifiers in the amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N is set to a voltage that is below the turn-on voltage of the amplifier. Upon receiving indication that electromagnetic radiation will be input to the amplifiers in the amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N. The power management systems 809_1 to 809_N can apply an offset voltage to gate terminals of the amplifiers in the corresponding amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N that would raise the voltage at the gate terminal of individual amplifiers in the amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N to a level that would cause a threshold amount of drain current to flow through the amplifier. The threshold amount of drain current can be a drain current that maximizes the output power from the amplifier. The threshold amount of drain current can be a drain current that optimizes power out from the amplifier as well as the power efficiency. The threshold amount of drain current can correspond to a drain current that optimizes output power, linearity and efficiency. The threshold drain current and the gate bias voltage (or offset voltage) which causes the threshold drain current to flow through the amplifier may be different for different amplifiers in the amplifiers chains 104_1 to 104_N. The difference in the threshold drain current and the gate bias voltage (or offset voltage) can be attributed to variation in temperature across the elements of the phased array, variation in voltage across the elements of the phased array, variation in load and/or impedence across the elements of the phased array, or process variations between the different amplifiers. The energy radiated from the phased array system is optimized by optimizing the power out from individual elements of the phased array system by setting the gate voltage (or the offset voltage) of an individual amplifier of the phased array system to a value that causes a threshold amount of drain to flow through the amplifier.

[0128] During the operation of the phased array system, the drain current can be sensed from time to time and the gate bias voltage (or offset voltage) is adjusted/modulated to maintain the drain current at the threshold current level. The drain current can be sensed periodically or intermittently. In some implementations, the drain current can be sensed at intervals less than 10 microseconds (e.g., less than 1 microsecond, less than 5 microseconds) and the gate bias voltage (or the offset voltage) can be adjusted to maintain the drain current at the threshold amount. In some implementations, the drain current can be continually sensed and the gate bias voltage (or the offset voltage) can be continuously adjusted to maintain the drain current at the threshold level. In some implementations, the gate bias voltage and the drain bias voltage can be modulated together to maintain the drain current at the threshold amount.

[0129] In various implementations, the gate bias voltage and the drain bias voltage can be modulated based on other sensed parameters, such as, for example, temperature, input signal power, output signal power, a measure of linearity of the output signal, or Voltage Standing Wave Ratio (VSWR) characteristics in addition to or instead of the sensed drain current.

[0130] FIG. 8B illustrates an implementation of the power management system 809_1. The power management system 809_1 can include various functional sub-systems, such as an electronic processing system 811, a control system 815, a memory (not shown), a sensing system 821, a power adapting system 823, and an input/output system 819. The various functional sub-systems can be integrated in a single housing or in separate housings. In implementations where the different functional sub-systems are integrated in separate housings, the separate housings can include processing electronics and communication systems to communicate and function properly. For example, in some implementations, the power adapting system 823 and the sensing system 821 can be integrated in a separate housing. In such implementations, the electronic processing system 811 in cooperation with the control system 815 and the memory can provide signals to the power adapting system 823 to turn-on/turn-off the biasing voltages and currents to the amplifiers in response to receiving a signal from the RF generator 103 indicating the start/end of the RF signal and/or receiving information from the sensors that one or more sensed parameters are out of a range of values.

[0131] The power management system 809_1 can be implemented with a form factor of a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC). The ASIC implementation may be advantageous to realize smaller form factors, such as, for example, a chip having a size of a 10 mm×10 mm, 5 mm×5 mm or 3 mm×3 mm. The power management system 809_1 is configured to obtain information about the signals to be amplified and monitor various currents and voltages of the amplifier to optimize and control operating currents and voltages of the amplifier. The power management system 809_1 can obtain the information about the signals to be amplified and the currents/voltages at various terminals of the amplifier in real time or substantially in real time. For example, the power management system 809_1 can obtain the information about the signals to be amplified and the currents/voltages at various terminals of the amplifier in a time interval less than about 1 second, in a time interval greater than or equal to about 1 millisecond and less than about 1 second, in a time interval greater than or equal to about 1 second and less than about 10 seconds, in a time interval greater than or equal to about 10 seconds and less than about 30 seconds, in a time interval greater than or equal to about 30 seconds and less than about 1 minute and/or in a range defined by any of these values.

[0132] The power management system 809_1 can provide several benefits including but not limited to increasing/optimizing power efficiency for a desired performance criterion. For example, consider that an amplifier in the amplifier chain 104_1 being controlled by the power management system 809_1 is operated in a high gain regime to provide a certain amount of RF output power. The power efficiency of that amplifier can be higher than a similar amplifier that is operated in a high gain regime to provide the same amount of RF output power but is not controlled by the power management system 809_1. As another example, consider that an amplifier in the amplifier chain 104_1 controlled by the power management system 809_1 is operated to provide a certain amount of gain and linearity. The power efficiency of that amplifier can be higher than a similar amplifier that is operated to provide the same amount of gain and linearity but is not controlled by the power management system 809_1. The use of the power management system 809_1 can also reduce direct current (DC) power consumption during operation of an amplifier as compared to direct current (DC) power consumption by an amplifier driven without a power management system 809_1. The power management system 809_1 can improve linearity of an amplifier, help in automatic calibration of an amplifier over temperature, voltage and process variations, and/or autocalibration of a phased array system.

[0133] The electronic processing system 811 can comprise a hardware processor that is configured to execute instructions stored in the memory which will cause the power management system 809_1 to perform a variety of functions including, but not limited to, turning on/off or reduce voltages/currents provided to various terminals of an amplifier in response to detecting that the signal to be amplified is turned on/off or sensing individual amplifier current values and change the values of different voltages and currents in response to the deviations of the sensed current values from target values.

[0134] The input/output system 819 can be configured to provide wired/wireless connection with external devices and systems. For example, the input/output system 819 can comprise an Ethernet port (e.g., a Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) connector) that provides connection to the computer 102 and/or a router, one or more connectors that provide connection to the RF signal generator 103, a connector that provides connection with an external power supply, a plurality of connectors that provide voltages/currents to one or more amplifiers, a plurality of connectors that can receive voltage/current information from the one or more amplifiers, and connectors that provide connection with a user interface (e.g., a display device). In various implementations, the input/output system 819 can comprise a command and control link to receive messages from the RF generator 103 and/or computer 102.

[0135] The input/output system 819 can be configured to receive as input, a signal/trigger/information from the RF signal generator 103 and use the information from this input to determine the voltages and current for an amplifier in the amplifier chain 104_1. As discussed above, the input received from the RF signal generator can be a trigger that conveys information that the RF signal will be turning on in a short while and causes the power management system 809_1 to start the power sequencing process and provide appropriate voltages and/or currents to bias the amplifiers in the corresponding amplifier chain 104_1 prior to the arrival of the RF signal. For example, the input from the RF signal generator can be a pulse enable signal which is high when the RF signal is on and low when the RF signal is off. In various implementations, the input from the RF signal generator 103 can be representative of the waveform being output by the DAC 214_1 of the RF generator 103. In some implementations, the input can include instructions and/or settings to power on the power management system 809_1, to power up an amplifier in the amplifier chain 104_1, and other data to operate the power management system 809_1 and an amplifier in the amplifier chain 104_1.

[0136] The input/output system 819 can comprise a communication system configured to communicate with external devices and systems. For example, the input/output system 819 can comprise Ethernet connectivity to send information including but not limited to amplifier health information, and efficiency statistics to the computer 102. Ethernet connectivity can also help in synchronizing an array of many power management systems in phased array applications. The input/output system 819 comprises a plurality of connectors that are configured to provide voltages/currents to at least one terminal of an amplifier in the amplifier chain 104_1. For example, the voltages and currents required to bias at least one of the gate, source and/or drain terminal of an amplifier in the amplifier chain 104_1 can be provided through the output ports of the power management system 809_1. The power management system 809_1 can be configured to provide bias voltage and/or current to a plurality of amplifiers. For example, the power management system 809_1 can be configured to provide bias voltage and/or current to two, four, six or more amplifiers.

[0137] The sensing system 821 can be configured to sense current values at one or more terminals of the amplifier as discussed above. In various implementations, the sensing system 821 comprises at least one current sensor and an analog to digital converter (ADC) configured to sample and average the output of the current sensor (e.g., sensor 415) to obtain a sensed current value. In another implementation of the sensing system 821, the voltage drop across a resistor (e.g., a shunt resistor) connected to the drain terminal is measured. The drain current is obtained from the measured voltage drop and the value of the resistor. In such an implementation, the sensing circuit is designed to have low offset voltage and low noise which allows for greater accuracy in the measurement of the drain current. In various implementations, the current sensor need not be integrated with the other components of the sensing system 821 and/or the other sub-systems of the power management system 809_1. Instead, the current sensor can be integrated with the amplifier. The number of current sensors can vary based on the number of amplifiers being controlled by the power management system 809_1 and the number of currents that are being monitored. For example, if the power management system 809_1 is configured to control four distinct amplifiers and it is desired to monitor the drain current of each of the four separate amplifiers, then the power management system 809_1 comprises four current sensors configured to monitor the drain current of each of the four distinct amplifiers.

[0138] The power adapting system 823 can be configured to convert power from an external power supply 825 (e.g., an AC power line, a battery source, a generator, etc.) to voltage and current waveforms required for operating the amplifiers being controlled by the power management system 809_1. For example, in various implementations, the power adapting system 823 is configured to convert a 60V DC bus and generate appropriate voltage and current inputs for the various terminals of the amplifier. In some implementations, the power adapting system 823 may be configured to convert an incoming AC power line to DC power (e.g., DC voltages between about +20 Volts DC and about +80 Volts DC). The power adapting system 823 is configured to step up/down the converted DC voltage to appropriate voltages for the amplifier (e.g., in a voltage range between about +45 Volts and +70 Volts high voltage Gallium Nitride power amplifiers) through DC/DC converters. The stepped up/down voltages are provided to the various terminals of the amplifier (e.g., gate, drain, and/or source) in a sequence as discussed above in response to receiving a signal from the RF signal generator 103 and/or the computer 102 that the signal to be amplified is turned on/being turned on.

[0139] In various implementations, the power management system 809_1 comprises a “power gating” feature where the bias voltage/current at various terminals (e.g., gate and/or drain) of the amplifier is adjusted in response to a sensed characteristic of the system. The sensed characteristics can comprise one or more of drain current, source current, gate current, gate voltage, drain voltage, voltage at different nodes of the amplifier system, current at different nodes of the amplifier system. In various implementations, in addition to or instead of modulating the gate and/or the drain bias voltage, voltages or currents at other nodes can be modulated to optimize the performance of the amplifier. The other nodes can comprise the source terminal, the back bias, the RF input circuits, RF output circuits, etc. In various implementations, the power management system 809_1 can provide offset voltages that raise and lower the biasing voltage to turn on/turn off the power amplifier in response to the turning on and turning off the RF signal. For example, in an implementation of the amplifier chain 104_1 comprising a GaN power amplifier, the power management system 809_1 can toggle the gate voltage between about −5V (pinch off or turn off) and about −2.5V (saturation or turn on) at a frequency greater than or equal to 1 kHz and less than or equal to about 500 MHz. As another example, the gate voltage can be toggled between pinch off and saturation at a rate greater than or equal to about 10 MHz and less than or equal to about 100 MHz. Without any loss of generality, the power management system 809_1 can be configured to turn-on and turn-off the amplifier in between pulses of a pulsed waveform. This can advantageously allow heat to dissipate from the amplifier in between pulses thereby reducing the rate at which the amplifier heats up and increase lifetime. Turning on and off the amplifier in between pulses of a pulsed waveform can also advantageously increase the power efficiency of the amplifier.

[0140] The control system 815 can be configured to control and/or manage various functions and processes of the power management system 809_1. For example, the control system 815 independently or in co-operation with the computer 102 and/or the RF generator 103 can control the order in which the voltage and current levels at various terminals of the amplifier are changed to power up/down the amplifier. As another example, the control system 815 independently or in co-operation with the computer 102 and/or the RF generator 103 can control the raising and lowering of the voltage/current levels at the gate terminal of the amplifier synchronously with the incoming signal to be amplified. As yet another example, the control system 815 independently or in co-operation with the computer 102 and/or the RF generator 103 can control the timing of turning on the various amplifiers in the amplifier chains 104_1 to 104_N.

[0141] As discussed above, the power management system 809_1 can be configured to use the information about the signal to be amplified to adjust/tune bias voltages and currents that power up/down one or more amplifiers in the amplifier chain 104_1 to improve various figures of merit (e.g., power efficiency, linearity, etc.). FIG. 8C is a schematic illustration of an amplifier 828 in the amplifier chain 104_1 that is being controlled by the power management system 809_1. The amplifier 828 is a FET amplifier having a gate terminal 830 and a drain terminal 832. As discussed above, the power management system 809_1 is configured to provide voltage/current to the gate terminal 830 and the drain terminal 832 of the amplifier as well as adjust the voltage/current levels at the gate terminal 830 and the drain terminal 832 based on information regarding the incoming signal and/or information regarding the temperature and other physical characteristics (RF Data Cmd & Ctrl (c2) Tx Enable) of the amplifier 828.

[0142] The signal to be amplified can be input to the gate terminal 830 via an input matching circuit 834. The amplified signal can be output from the drain terminal 832 via an output matching circuit 836. To ease the burden on the power adapting system 823, one or more storage capacitors 838 are placed near the drain terminal 832 of the amplifier 828. The illustrated implementation comprises a single storage capacitor 838. The storage capacitors can have a capacitance value (C_ENERGY) between about 700 microfarads and 2000 microfarads. The presence of the storage capacitors 838 are advantageous in high power applications and/or applications in which the signal has a high duty cycle. In implementations comprising a plurality of capacitors, the plurality of capacitors can be arranged in parallel. As discussed above, the power management system 809_1 comprises a plurality of current sensors 840 and 842 that are configured to sense/monitor drain and gate current respectively. The current sensor 840 is configured to monitor/sense drain current can be positioned downstream of the storage capacitor 838 as shown in the illustrated embodiment or upstream of the storage capacitor 838 in other embodiments. As discussed above, the power management system 809_1 can also comprise a temperature sensor 844 configured to sense/monitor the ambient temperature in the vicinity of the amplifier 828. For example, the temperature sensor 844 can be configured to measure the temperature of the circuit board on which the amplifier 828 is mounted.

[0143] In various implementations, the power management system 809_1 can be configured to protect the amplifiers from damage. The power management system 809_1 can be configured to monitor voltages and/or currents at various terminals of the amplifier and turn-off the amplifier if the current and/or voltage at one or more terminals of the amplifier exceeds a certain limit. For example, the power management system 809_1 can be configured to turn off an amplifier in the amplifier chain 104_1 if the drain current of that amplifier exceeds a preset threshold. The threshold drain current for the various amplifiers controlled by the power management system 809_1 can be programmed and stored in a memory accessible by the power management system 809_1. The threshold drain current can be different when the RF signal is on and off. As another example, the power management system 809_1 is configured to turn-off the amplifier if the rate of increase of the drain current of an amplifier during power up sequence is below a threshold rate. The threshold rate of increase of the drain current for the various amplifiers controlled by the power management system 809_1 can be programmed and stored in a memory accessible by the power management system 809_1. In various implementations, the power management system 809_1 can be configured to monitor the duration of time an amplifier is on and turn off the amplifier if an amplifier is on for an amount time greater than a preset amount of time even if the RF signal is on. The preset amount of time can be programmed and stored in a memory accessible by the power management system 809_1. In various implementations, an input switch can be provided in the input signal path of the amplifier. In such implementations, the power management system 809_1 can be configured to open the input switch and disconnect the RF signal from the input to the amplifier if the voltage, current and/or duration of time the amplifier is on exceeds a limit. In various implementations, a load switch can be provided in the drain path of the amplifier. In such implementations, the load switch can be opened to disconnect the drain and prevent damage to the amplifier if the drain current exceeds a limit.

[0144] The bias voltage/current of an amplifier (e.g., a GaN power amplifier) that optimizes the power efficiency of amplifier can vary based on the device temperature. Thus, the power efficiency of an amplifier can degrade from an optimum power efficiency as the temperature of the amplifier changes. Without relying on any particular theory, the temperature of the amplifier can increase over the duration of time that the amplifier is in use. Thus, it is advantageous to intermittently obtain a measurement/estimate of the temperature of the amplifier during use and adjust the bias voltage/current to optimize power efficiency and/or other figures of merit of the amplifier. The bias voltage/current that optimizes power efficiency can also be affected due to degradation in the device performance due to defects during manufacturing, aging or a defect in the circuitry surrounding the amplifier.

[0145] While, the temperature sensor 844 in FIG. 8C may provide information regarding the ambient temperature around the amplifier 828. In many implementations, it may not be practical to use a temperature sensor to obtain an estimate of the device temperature of the amplifier 828. However, the drain current can be correlated to the device temperature of the amplifier 828 and can be used to measure the device temperature of the amplifier 828. FIG. 9 illustrates the correlation between the drain current and the device temperature for an implementation of a FET amplifier. In FIG. 9, the embodiment of the FET amplifier is biased at a gate voltage of −2.763 V and the drain current changes from about a few milliamps to about 225 milliamps as the temperature of the embodiment of the FET amplifier rises from about −40 degrees Celsius to about 100 degrees Celsius. The variation of the drain current versus temperature can be different when the biasing gate voltage is changed.

[0146] The drain current can also provide an indication of a degradation in the performance of the amplifier 828 as a result of defects due to manufacturing/aging or a defect in the circuitry surrounding the amplifier. Thus, adjusting the biasing voltages/currents based on measuring the drain current can advantageously aid in optimizing power efficiency and other figures of merit of the amplifier 828. The drain current can be obtained under bias condition when the signal to be amplified is absent, when the signal to be amplified is present and/or in between signal pulses. For example, in some implementations, the sensor 840 can be configured to sense the drain current continuously or almost continuously. As discussed above, analog-to-digital converters in the power management system 809_1 sample the sensed current. A measurement of the drain current is obtained by averaging over a plurality of samples of the sensed current. The electronic processing system 811 can be configured to correlate the measured drain current to the device temperature of the amplifier 828. The electronic processing system 811 can be configured to correlate the measured drain current to the device temperature of the amplifier 828 using algorithms and/or look-up-tables (LUTs).

[0147] As the device temperature of the amplifier 828 changes the drain current also changes as discussed with reference to FIG. 9. To achieve the desired output power level, efficiency and other metrics, the electronic processing system 811 of the power management system 809_1 is configured to adjust the gate bias voltage of the amplifier as the temperature changes to maintain the threshold amount of drain current through the amplifier. The electronic processing system 811 can be configured to obtain the amount by which the gate voltage should be changed (also referred to herein as gate offset voltage) using algorithms and/or look-up-tables (LUTs). The gate offset voltage can be in a range between about 1 mV and about 500 mV. In various implementations, the signal to be amplified is turned off before changing the gate voltage by the offset amount. In some implementations wherein the signal to be amplified comprises pulses, the gate voltage is changed by the offset amount in the time interval between pulses. In some implementations, the gate voltage is changed by the offset amount when the signal to be amplified is on.

[0148] In addition to optimizing power efficiency based on device temperature and/or achieving a desired power efficiency at different temperatures, the power management system 809_1 can also help in preventing a rapid increase in the device temperature by adjusting the gate bias voltage as the drain current changes to maintain an optimal gain and/or power efficiency. This is discussed in further detail with reference to FIG. 10. An implementation of an amplifier controlled by the power management system 809_1 is operated in two modes. In both the operating modes, the bias voltage to the gate terminal of the amplifier is turned on a short time before a RF signal is input to the amplifier and turned off a short time after the RF signal is turned off. For example, the gate bias voltage can be turned on/off at a duty cycle of 1%. However, in the first operating mode the gate bias voltage is maintained at a constant voltage, while in the second operating condition the gate bias voltage is changed to maintain the drain current at the threshold amount. The effect of changing the gate bias voltage to maintain the threshold amount of drain current not only increases/maximizes the gain provided by the amplifier over time but also prevents a rapid increase in the temperature of the amplifier over time. This is illustrated in FIG. 10 which shows a curve 1002 exhibiting a rapid rise in the temperature of an amplifier over time when operated in the first operating mode and a curve 1004 exhibiting a gradual rise in the device temperature of an amplifier over time when operated in the second operating mode. As noted from curve 1002, the temperature of the amplifier can increase from about 22 degrees Celsius to about 48 degrees Celsius in less than 500 seconds when the amplifier is operated in the first operating mode. In contrast, the temperature of the amplifier increases gradually from about 22 degrees Celsius to about 32 degrees Celsius in about 3000 seconds when the amplifier is operated in the second operating mode. Accordingly, systems including amplifiers controlled by a power management system 809_1 that is configured to turn on/off the amplifier based on the presence/absence of the signal to be amplified as well as adjust the gate bias voltage based on the monitored drain current can operate efficiently and/or provide nearly constant gain at a wide range of temperatures (e.g., between about −20 degrees Celsius and about 90 degrees Celsius). In various implementations, by adjusting the gate bias voltage based on monitored drain current can maintain substantially constant power efficiency across a range of temperatures between about −20 degrees Celsius and about 90 degrees Celsius. For example, by adjusting the gate bias voltage based on monitored drain current the power efficiency can be maintained to be within ±10% of a desired value for temperatures between −20 degrees Celsius and about 90 degrees Celsius. The desired power efficiency value can be in a range between 40% and 75%. Such systems can also operate without the need for large and/or expensive cooling systems. In fact, many systems including amplifiers controlled by a power management system 809_1 that is configured to turn on/off the amplifier based on the presence/absence of the signal to be amplified as well as adjust the gate bias voltage based on the monitored drain current can function without any cooling systems, such as for example, electrical or electro-mechanical cooling systems.

[0149] Another advantage of synchronizing the turning on/off the bias voltage to the gate terminal with the turning on/off the input signal is an increase in power efficiency. As discussed above, a storage capacitor 838 may be provided near the drain terminal of the amplifier 828 in various implementations. Depending on the pulse width and duty cycle requirements, the storage capacitor 838 can have a large capacitance value (e.g., between 700 μF and 2000 μF). If the drain current is turned on/off synchronously with the input signal, a large amount of energy is required to charge the storage capacitor 838 as shown in FIG. 11A. In contrast, the capacitors near the gate terminal have lower capacitance values and the energy required to charge those capacitors can be between 10-20 times lower than the energy required to charge the storage capacitor 838 as shown in FIG. 11B. Accordingly turning on/off the gate bias voltage (referred to herein as gate switching) instead of modulating the drain current/voltage (referred to herein as drain switching) can advantageously increase power efficiency of the amplifier.

[0150] FIG. 12 illustrates a flow chart of operations performed by the power management system 809_1. The drain and/or gate current from the amplifier can be monitored as shown in block 1204. As discussed above, the drain and/or gate current can be monitored using the sensing system 821. The drain and/or gate current can be sensed continuously or intermittently (e.g., periodically). As discussed above, the sensed current can be sampled and averaged to obtain a measurement of the current. The obtained current measurement can be correlated to a temperature as discussed above. In various implementations, a range for the drain and/or gate current defined by an upper current threshold value and a lower current threshold value can be provided for various gate bias voltages. For a given gate bias voltage, the power efficiency of the amplifier is optimized if the drain and/or gate current is within the provided current range. Accordingly, if the measured current is different from a threshold value (upper current threshold or lower current threshold) as shown in block 1206, then the gate bias voltage can be changed as shown in block 1208. The power management system 809_1 can change the gate bias voltage when the incoming signal is turned off or in-between pulses of the incoming signal. Otherwise, the operation can continue as shown in block 1210.

[0151] FIG. 13 illustrates a process implemented by the smart slave circuit 309. A reset command is received to commence an initialization operation 1300. The digital-to-analog converter is initialized 1302. That is, the voltage range of DAC 413 is set to appropriate output values for an amplifier being controlled, such as +/−5V.

[0152] Once the DAC voltage is set, an idle state is entered 1304. The idle state is maintained until a tune command is received. A tune command invokes a DAC prepare state 1306, where the voltage is set to a specified level, such as −5V. A sensor calibration state 1308 is then entered. In one embodiment, the sensor is calibrated for a 0 amp voltage offset. The offset is subtracted from all incoming samples at the analog-to-digital converter interface that can receive the current sense signal from current sensor 415. If the offset is less than a threshold, an error state 1312 is entered. Otherwise, a tune state 1310 is entered. In this state, a new bias voltage (Vg) is used to direct the current sense signal to the desired value. If the DAC is maxed out, the error state 1312 is entered. Otherwise, a completion state 1314 is entered to determine whether processing should return to state 1306 to try to obtain an improved current sense signal.

[0153] The operations of FIG. 13 may be substituted with other approaches to establish an optimal current range. For example, the current range can be experimentally tested ahead of time and manually programmed or hard coded into the system. The system can also use machine learning or artificial intelligence techniques to find the optimal current. In other embodiments, other signals are fed back into the tuning algorithm instead of just the current. Other signals include the RF output signal 420. A coupler (e.g., 313 in FIG. 3) can be used to determine the RF output level. For example, a bias voltage may be applied, a test RF signal is sent, which is read through the coupler into the RF signal generator 103. This procedure is repeated until an optimal saturated RF power output value is obtained. Different optimization criteria are available, such as optimize for power out, such as to achieve 3 dB into power amplifier saturation. Another criterion is to optimize for linearity, such that the RF power is in the linear range. In one embodiment, a pre-programmed voltage bias is used and then 10 mV adjustments above and below the pre-programmed voltage are used until the optimal voltage is achieved.

[0154] The RF output power can be tracked by coupler 313. This information is relayed to the power management system 809_1. As the RF power out for a given bias voltage or current for a given bias voltage starts to drop, the power management system 809_1 recognizes that the amplifier is degrading. The amount of degradation is mapped to the lifetime of the amplifier. Reports on amplifier state are periodically issued by the power management system 809_1.

[0155] The power management system 809_1 can include instructions executed by electronic processing system 811 to render to display device the state of the various amplifiers being controlled by the power management system 809_1. FIG. 14 illustrates the display of a display device showing the health of a system comprising, for instance, 144 amplifiers arranged in twelve columns and twelve rows. Each amplifier is represented by a circle 1402. A printed circuit board or power supply board is associated with each column, as represented by a square 1404. Indicia is provided to characterize the operational state of each element. For example, a down arrow or color red may represent a failed state. Side arrows or amber color may represent a state transition. An up arrow or color green may represent a healthy state. Absent indicia may represent an off state.

[0156] Various embodiments described herein maintain amplifier health in a number of ways. For example, as discussed above, the power management system 809_1 may enforce a limit on the bias voltage, drain current, duration of time the amplifier is turned on. Additionally, the measured characteristics (e.g., drain current/voltage, gate current/voltage, etc.) of the amplifier received by the power management system 809_1 can be analyzed to identify changes/degradation in the performance of the amplifier. Pre-emptive maintenance/repairs can be performed on the amplifier and the driving circuitry on the basis of the identified changes/degradation in the performance.

Dynamic Gate Biasing of RF Amplifier

[0157] Various applications comprising RF amplifiers may require optimizing/maximizing multiple figures of merit. The multiple figures of merit can include reliability, power efficiency, output power, linearity, bandwidth, signal-to-noise ratio, and temperature. Depending on the application, one or more of these figures of merit can be maximized or a pareto optimization of these figures of merit can be achieved. Pareto optimization refers to a situation in which no individual figure of merit can be improved without degrading at least one other figure of merit.

[0158] The bias voltage provided to the amplifier can affect linearity, power efficiency and output power of the amplifier. The input signal power can affect the spurious-free dynamic range (SFDR) and linearity of the amplifier. Accordingly, various implementations of the power management system 809_1 described above can be configured to adjust the biasing power of the amplifier to optimize multiple figures of merit based on a user specification or a desired application. In various implementations, the power management system 809_1 can be configured to provide feedback to the RF signal generator 103 and/or the computer 102 that can be used to change/alter the characteristics of the input signal (e.g., input power, carrier frequency, waveform type, modulation, pulse width, duty cycle, etc.) to maximize/pareto optimize one or more figures of merit.

[0159] In various implementations, the power management system 809_1 in cooperation with the computer 102 and/or the RF signal generator 103 can be configured to adjust the bias voltages/currents provided to the amplifiers in the amplifier chain 104_1 and/or the power of the RF signal input to the amplifier to optimize linearity, output power and/or signal-to-noise ration of the RF signal output from the amplifiers in the amplifier chain 104_1. The optimization methods and systems can be implemented for RF signals over a broad range of frequencies and waveform characteristics as well as over a wide range of temperature of the amplifier. Additionally, the power management system 809_1 in cooperation with the computer 102 and/or the RF signal generator 103 can be configured to adjust the bias voltages/currents provided to the amplifiers in the amplifier chain 104_1 and/or the power of the RF signal input to the amplifier to reduce damage and/or to prevent failure of one or more amplifiers in the amplifier chain 104_1. Further, the power management system 809_1 in cooperation with the computer 102 and/or the RF signal generator 103 can be configured to adjust the gain bias voltage provided to the gate terminal of the amplifier in the amplifier chain 104_1 to optimize power efficiency and/or power of the RF signal output from the amplifiers in the amplifier chain 104_1 for different temperatures. Machine learning (ML) techniques/algorithms can be used to determine the bias voltages/currents, and/or the power levels and waveform characteristics of the input signal that would optimize output power and/or power efficiency over a range of frequencies and/or temperatures.

[0160] As discussed in further detail below, the power management system 809_1 in cooperation with the computer 102 and/or the RF signal generator 103 can be configured to dynamically adjust the bias voltages/currents and/or characteristics of the input RF signal (e.g., frequency, pulse width, duty cycle, power level, etc.) to maximize/optimize linearity of the amplifier. The power management system 809_1 in cooperation with the computer 102 and/or the RF signal generator 103 can be configured to dynamically adjust the bias voltages/currents and/or characteristics of the input RF signal (e.g., frequency, pulse width, duty cycle, power level, etc.) to maximize/optimize power efficiency of the amplifier. Machine learning (ML) techniques/algorithms can be used to determine the bias voltages/currents and/or characteristics of the input RF signal that would optimize linearity and/or power efficiency.

[0161] FIG. 15 schematically illustrates an implementation of a power management system 1501 that is configured to dynamically adjust the bias power provided to an implementation of an amplifier 1511. The amplifier 1511 can be a FET amplifier (e.g., a HEMT transistor). The power management system 1501 can be similar to the power management system 809_1 discussed above. Accordingly, the power management system 1501 can share all or many of the architectural/functional/operational characteristics of the power management system 809_1 discussed above. The power management system 1501 comprises a control system 1503, an electronic processing system 1505 configured to execute machine learning algorithms, a drain bias voltage/current sensor and modulator module 1507, and a gate bias voltage/current sensor and modulator module 1509. In various implementations, the drain bias voltage/current sensor and modulator module 1507 and the gate bias voltage/current sensor and modulator module 1509 can be combined in a single module. In some implementations, the drain bias voltage/current sensor can be separate from the drain bias current/voltage modulator. Similarly, the gate bias voltage/current sensor can be separate from the gate bias current/voltage modulator in some implementations.

[0162] The power management system 1501 can comprise other sensors (e.g., temperature sensor) as discussed above with reference to FIGS. 8A-8C. In various implementations, the power management system 1501 can be configured to interface with a power distributing unit that is configured to convert power from a power source (e.g., AC power line, battery, generator, etc.) to voltages/currents required to bias the amplifier 1511. In various implementations, the power management system 1501 can be configured to control the power distributing unit, as discussed above. The power distributing unit can be similar to the power adapting system 823 and/or the power distributor 108. In various implementations, the power management system 1501 can be configured to communicate with components in the input signal path (e.g., RF signal generator 103, amplifiers or other electrical components) to the amplifier 1511 through a master controller (e.g., computer 102) and provide information that can be used to control characteristics of the input signal (e.g., frequency, waveform characteristics, input power level, pulse width, duty cycle, etc.). In various implementations, the power management system 1501 can be configured to directly communicate with and/or control components in the input signal path to vary characteristics of the input signal (e.g., frequency, waveform characteristics, input power level, pulse width, duty cycle, etc.).

[0163] The drain bias voltage/current sensor and modulator module 1507 is configured to (i) sense the drain current and voltage; and (ii) adjust the drain bias voltage and/or current of the amplifier 1511. The gate bias voltage/current sensor and modulator module 1509 is configured to (i) sense the gate current and voltage; and (ii) adjust the gate bias voltage and/or current of the amplifier. Adjusting the gate bias voltage/current and/or the drain bias voltage/current can change output power, gain provided by the amplifier, efficiency, thermal performance and/or linearity of the amplifier 1511.

[0164] Without subscribing to any particular theory, linearity of the amplifier can be characterized by an amount of 3^rd order intermodulation distortion (IMD3) and/or 5^th order intermodulation distortion (IMD5). As discussed above, the drain current can be used to determine the temperature of the amplifier 1511 and/or the health of the amplifier 1511. Accordingly, the power management system 1501 can be used to check the health of the amplifier 1511 and preventive maintenance can be performed on the amplifier by changing the gate bias voltage and/or drain bias voltage in case there's a degradation in the health of the amplifier. In some implementations, the power management system 1501 can be configured to provide warnings regarding the health of the amplifier which can be used to replace systems/devices with failing amplifiers.

[0165] Various implementations of the power management system 1501 can be configured to store the values of the sensed current and voltage at the gate and drain terminals and temperature in corresponding registers from where they can be read through digital interface. In various implementations, the current, voltage and temperature values stored in the registers can be obtained by averaging over multiple current, voltage and temperature values.

[0166] As discussed above, the power management system 1501 can be configured to dynamically adjust (or modulate) the bias voltage/current provided to the gate and the drain terminals of the amplifier 1511 based on sensed voltages/currents at various terminals of the amplifier and/or characteristics of the input signal or output signal to maximize/pareto optimize one or more figures of merit including but not limited to linearity, power efficiency, and output power. Without relying on any particular theory, the output power of the amplifier 1511 will reach a maximum value at a certain value of gate bias voltage, drain bias voltage and input power level. Any further increase in the input power level, the gate bias voltage or the drain bias voltage/current will not increase the output power beyond the maximum value. This operating state is referred to as saturation. The efficiency of the amplifier 1511 is also maximum when the amplifier 1511 is operated close to saturation. However, the linearity of the amplifier may decrease when the amplifier is operated close to saturation. This is depicted in FIG. 16 which shows the variation in the amount of two-tone 3^rd order intermodulation distortion (IMD3) as a function of drain efficiency for an implementation of the amplifier 1511. Without any loss of generality, the increase in efficiency is obtained by increasing the bias voltage at the gate terminal and/or the bias voltage at the drain terminal of the amplifier 1511.

[0167] In FIG. 16, curve 1601 shows the variation in the amount of two-tone 3^rd order intermodulation distortion (IMD3) as a function of drain efficiency for a first input power level and a first bias voltage level provided to the gate terminal which results in an output power of 50 dBm. In FIG. 16, curve 1603 shows the variation in the amount of two-tone 3^rd order intermodulation distortion (IMD3) as a function of drain efficiency for a second input power level and a second bias voltage level provided to the gate terminal which results in an output power of 55 dBm. In FIG. 16, curve 1605 shows the variation in the amount of two-tone 3^rd order intermodulation distortion (IMD3) as a function of drain efficiency for a third input power level and a third bias voltage level provided to the gate terminal which results in an output power of 60 dBm. The second bias voltage level is greater than the first bias voltage level and the third bias voltage level is greater than the second bias voltage level. At the third bias voltage level, the implementation of the amplifier 1511 is operated close to saturation. It is noted from FIG. 16 that when operated close to saturation, the efficiency of the implementation of the amplifier 1511 is greater than the efficiency when operated at the first or second bias voltage level. However, at the third bias voltage level the amount of two-tone 3^rd order intermodulation distortion (IMD3) is also greater than the amount of two-tone 3^rd order intermodulation distortion (IMD3) when operated in the first or second bias voltage level. A higher amount of two-tone 3^rd order intermodulation distortion (IMD3) corresponds to an increase in non-linearity. Accordingly, by adjusting the bias voltage level at the gate terminal and/or the power level of the input signal, the linearity of the amplifier can be improved. Without any loss of generality, adjusting the bias voltage provided to the drain terminal and/or the power level of the input signal can also affect linearity of the amplifier.

[0168] It is further noted from FIG. 16, that for a given output power lower than the saturated output power, a small sacrifice in the efficiency can provide a marked reduction in the amount of two-tone 3^rd order intermodulation distortion (IMD3). For example, with reference to curve 1603, the amount of two-tone 3^rd order intermodulation distortion (IMD3) decreases from about −30 dBc at an efficiency of about 0.35 to −42 dBc at an efficiency of about 0.34. Thus, efficiency and linearity can be optimized by adjusting the bias voltage/current levels at the gate and/or drain terminals of the amplifier. In the illustrated implementation the input power level and the bias voltage/current levels can be adjusted to operate the amplifier 1511 near the dip in the curve 1603 designated by point A to pareto optimize efficiency and linearity.

[0169] Based on a specification from a user or requirements of an application, the power management system 1501 can be configured to modulate the bias voltage/current levels at the gate and/or drain terminals to change the amount of power output from the amplifier 1511, the degree of linearity (as indicated by the amount of IMD3) and the efficiency of the amplifier 1511. This is further explained with reference to FIG. 16. The power management system 1501 can be configured to set the bias voltage/current level at the gate and/or drain terminals to a first setting such that the output power of the amplifier 1511 is below the maximum output power. For example, the amplifier 1511 can be configured to operate at/near point A of curve 1603 or at/near point B of curve 1601 when biased at the first setting. In this setting, the amount of IMD3 is close to a minimum resulting in an increase in the linearity of the amplifier 1511. The power management system 1501 can change the bias voltage/current level at the gate and/or drain terminals to a second setting such that the output power of the amplifier 1511, the efficiency and/or the degree of linearity is changed. For example, the amplifier 1511 can be configured to operate at/near point C of curve 1603 or at/near point D of curve 1601. Although the amplifier 1511 is configured to operate in the linear regime when biased at the second setting, the amount of IMD3 is not reduced to the lowest possible value for that output power. The power management system 1501 can be further configured to change the bias voltage/current level at the gate and/or drain terminals to a third setting such that the amplifier is configured to output the maximum possible output power. In this setting, the amplifier is operated at or near saturation, such as for example along the curve 1605. In this setting, the amplifier is configured to operate in the non-linear regime.

[0170] The power management system 1501 can be configured to change the bias current/voltage levels at the gate and/or drain terminals instantaneously or sufficiently instantaneously. For example, the time taken to switch the bias current/voltage levels from the first setting to the second or third setting can be in the range from a few nanoseconds to a few milliseconds. The power management system 1501 can be configured to change the Dbias current/voltage levels to change the operating state of the amplifier 1511 to points along the curve 1601/1603 or to points between curves 1601, 1603 and 1605.

[0171] Referring to FIG. 17, curve 1703 is a power transfer curve that illustrates the variation of the output power of the amplifier 1511 with variation of the input power of the amplifier. As noted from FIG. 17, the variation of output power to the variation of input power is along the line 1701 or close to the line 1701 when the input power level is less than P_in-1 indicating a linear relationship between the output power and the input power. The amplifier is considered to operate in a linear regime when the input power is below P_in-1. The output power starts to deviate from the line 1701 for input power greater than P_in-1 indicating a non-linear relationship between the output power and the input power. The output power saturates at a level P₂ when the input power is greater than P_in-3. Any increase in power beyond P_in-3 will not cause any further increase in the output power. The amplifier is considered to operate in the saturated regime for input power greater than P_in-3. The amplifier is considered to operate in the non-linear regime for input power between P_in-1 and P_in-3. In addition to changing the bias voltage/current level at the gate and/or drain terminal of the amplifier, the power management system 1501 can provide feedback/instructions to change the power of the RF signal input to the amplifier to change the operating state of the amplifier smoothly along the curve 1703 from linear regime to non-linear regime to saturation regime. For instance, changing the operating state of the amplifier smoothly can involve making continuous transitions along the curve 1703. This feature of the power management system 1501 can be advantageous as discussed below with reference to FIG. 18.

[0172] Consider a RF system (e.g., an electromagnetic pulsed radiation system) comprising an amplifier 1511 controlled by the power management system 1501. It may be desirable to operate the RF system in three different operating modes—a first radar mode, a second EMP mode, and a third communication mode. In the first mode, it may be advantageous to operate the amplifier 1511 in the non-linear regime. In the second mode, it may be advantageous to operate the amplifier 1511 in the saturation regime such that the output power is maximized. In the third mode, it may be advantageous to operate the amplifier 1511 in the linear regime. For such a system, the power management system 1501 can provide instructions/feedback to control the input power level to change the operating state of the amplifier 1511 between first, second and third mode. Additionally, the power management system 1501 can vary the bias voltage/current levels at the gate and drain terminals of the amplifier 1511 to improve linearity of the amplifier 1511, the efficiency of the amplifier 1511 and/or other figures of metric discussed above.

[0173] FIG. 18 shows the variation of the power output from the amplifier 1511 with time for the three different operating modes. In FIG. 18, the amplifier 1511 is configured to operate in the first mode between times t₁ and t₂, t₅ and t₆ and t₉ and t₁₀. In this mode, the output power from the amplifier 1511 is set to P₁. The output power P₁ can have a value between P_1max and P_1min shown in FIG. 17. The corresponding input power can have a value between P_in-1 and P_in-2 shown in FIG. 17. The amplifier 1511 is configured to operate in the second mode between times t₂ and t₃, t₆ and t₇ and t₁₀ and t₁₁. In this mode, the output power from the amplifier 1511 is set to P₂ which is greater than P₁. The corresponding input power can have a value greater than or equal to P_in-1. The amplifier 1511 is configured to operate in the third mode between times t₃ and t₄, t₇ and t₈ and t₁₁ and t₁₂. In this mode, the output power from the amplifier 1511 is set to P₃ which is lesser than P₁. The output power P₃ can have a value less than P_1min shown in FIG. 17. The corresponding input power can have a value less than P_in-1. As discussed above, the bias voltage/current levels can be adjusted to optimize various figures of merit for each of the first, second and third operating modes. As shown in FIG. 18, the time duration in each of the three operating modes as well as the duration of inactive time can be variable. The bias settings and/or input power level can be changed instantaneously or sufficiently instantaneously (e.g., in a range from about 1 nanosecond to about 1 millisecond) between the different operating modes.

[0174] The amplifier 1511 can be calibrated to determine the input power level and the bias voltage/current levels corresponding to the first, second and third operating modes. The determined bias voltage/current levels can be stored in a memory accessible to the power management system 1501. The power management system 1501 can be configured to change the operating mode of the amplifier 1511 based on an input received from a user or a controller. In various implementations, the power management system 1501 can be configured to turn off the amplifier 1511 during periods of inactivity between times t₄ and t₅, and t₈ and t₉, as discussed above to improve thermal management. In addition to changing the bias current/voltage levels to change the operating mode of the amplifier 1511, the power management system 1501 can be configured to modulate the bias voltage to the gate terminal in response to one or more sensed characteristic of the amplifier, such as, for example drain current to improve efficiency or thermal performance of the amplifier 1511.

[0175] Further to helping in improving thermal performance of the amplifier, adjusting the gain bias voltage can also change the class of the amplifier 1511. For example, changing the gate bias voltage can change the conduction angle which denotes the class of the amplifier. As the gate bias voltage increases, the conduction angle decreases from 360 degrees to 0 degrees corresponding to a change in amplifier class. The different classes of amplifier can include but not be limited to class A, class B, class AB, class C, class D, class E, class F, class G, class H, class S and class T. Accordingly, the power management system 1501 can be configured to change the amplifier class from one of class A, class AB, class B, class C, class D, class E, class F, class G, class H, class S and class T to another one of class A, class AB, class B, class C, class D, class E, class F, class G, class H, class S and class T. Adjusting the bias voltage/current level to the drain can optimize the efficiency of the amplifier 1511 for a particular class of amplifier.

Dynamic Adjustment of Parameters of an Active Electronic Device

[0176] Various implementations of the power management system can comprise real-time machine intelligence to control multiple parameters of an active electronic device (e.g., an amplifier or a switch) to optimize the performance of the active electronic device 1910. FIG. 19 schematically represents an implementation of the power management system configured to control various parameters of the electronic device 1910 to optimize the performance of an active electronic device 1910 (e.g., an amplifier or a switch) in response to one or more sensed characteristics of the electronic device 1910.

[0177] The power management system comprises a control system 1901 that can control one or more variable parameters of the electronic device 1910, and a sensing system 1903 that can sense one or more sensed characteristic of the electronic device 1910. The one or more variable parameters of the electronic device 1910 can comprise drain voltage, gate bias voltage/current, RF input power and/or parameters of the input/output matching network. The one or more sensed characteristics of the electronic device 1910 can also comprise RF input power, RF output power, current/voltage at various nodes of the active electronic device 1910 and/or temperature of the active electronic device 1910.

[0178] This feature of the power management system can advantageously allow for precise control of power amplifiers, precise monitoring of voltage and current at various nodes of the power amplifier. Additional advantages include auto calibration for phase, temperature, process variation, voltage, predictive maintenance, power efficiency improvement, linearity enhancement, power out optimization, and optimization over varying temperature, voltage, process, and waveform variation. For phased array applications, this features can help in optimizing the phased array including but not limited to optimization over VSWR and phased array position.

[0179] FIG. 20A shows an implementation of the power management system that is configured to control the bias power (shown by curve 2003) provided to the active electronic device in response to a sensed variation in the input power of the RF signal (shown by curve 2001). As the RF input power decreases, the bias power provided to the active electronic device, can also decrease as shown in FIG. 20A. This can advantageously help in optimizing the efficiency of the active electronic device, linearity of the active electronic device, thermal performance of the active electronic device or any other figures of merit of the active electronic device.

[0180] For example, the sensing system 1903 can comprise an envelope tracking system that generates an envelope signal. Without any loss of generality, the envelope signal can track the variation in the amplitude of the signal. Depending of the control system 1901 can adjust the bias voltage provided to the drain and/or the gate terminal of the active electronic device active 1910 in accordance with the variation of the envelope signal. For example, in those implementations, where the active electronic device active 1910 comprises a three terminal electronic device, the voltage at the drain and/or gate terminal of the active electronic device 1910 can be increased when the amplitude of the envelope signal increases and voltage at the drain terminal of the active electronic device 1910 can be decreased when the amplitude of the envelope signal decreases as shown in FIG. 20B. To accomplish this, the control system 1901 can comprise a variable power supply that can vary the bias voltages provided to the drain and/or the gate terminal electronic device 1910. The control system 1901 can be configured to vary the voltages to the drain and/or the gate terminal electronic device 1910 at a rate between about a few hundred kilohertz and 1 GHz. For example, the rate at which the bias voltages provided to the drain and/or the gate terminal of the electronic device 1910 can be greater than or equal to about 1 MHz and less than or equal to about 100 MHz. In some implementations, the control system 1901 can be configured to track the variation in the envelope signal above a threshold level as indicated by line 2005 in FIG. 20B. In such implementations, the bias voltage to the drain and/or the gate voltage can be set at respective threshold voltage levels. The respective threshold voltage levels can correspond to the drain and/or the gate voltages that maximize/optimize one or more figures of merit (e.g., efficiency, linearity, power out, gain, etc.) of the electronic device 1910. Based on the variation of the envelope signal above the threshold level as indicated by line 2005, the bias voltage to the drain and/or the gate terminals of the electronic device 1910 can be varied between a maximum gate/drain voltage levels above the respective threshold voltage levels and the respective threshold voltage levels. The bias voltage to the drain and/or the gate terminals of the electronic device 1910 are maintained at the respective threshold voltage levels for variation of the envelope signal below the threshold level as indicated by line 2005. Without subscribing to any particular theory, adjusting the bias power levels to the amplifier in accordance with the variation of the envelope signal below the threshold level as indicated by line 2005 may degrade the one or more figures of merit and thus may not be desirable. The threshold level of the envelope signal below which the bias power is not varied can be determined empirically. In some implementations, the threshold level of the envelope signal below which the bias power is not varied can be determined by machine learning techniques. In some implementations, the threshold level of the envelope signal below which the bias power is not varied can be provided by a user or an electronic computing system.

[0181] An implementation of the envelope tracking system can comprise a weighted filter to track the peaks of the input signal. The weights can be determined based on the slew response time of the circuits and components of that adjust the bias voltages to the drain and/or the gate terminals of the electronic device 1910.

[0182] In various implementations, the control system 1901 can include an electronic processing system that can execute one or more algorithms (e.g., slew reduction algorithm) to adjust the rate at which the voltage to the drain and/or the gate terminals of the electronic device 1910 is varied. The rate at which the voltage to the drain and/or the gate terminals of the electronic device 1910 is varied can depend on multiple factors including but not limited, the envelope bandwidth, the rate at which the switches and other circuits of the variable power supply are able to operate in order to vary the voltage levels to the gate and/or drain terminal, and/or the improvement in the one or more figures of merit of the electronic device 1910.

[0183] In a particular implementation, where the input signal is a pulsed signal, the control system 1901 can be configured to modulate (or vary) the gate and the drain voltage levels between a respective maximum and a minimum on-voltage levels in accordance with the envelope signal during the duration of the pulse. The gate and the drain voltage levels can be reduced to a respective off-voltage levels in between pulses. The respective off-voltage levels can be below the respective minimum on-voltage levels for the gate and the drain terminals. The respective off-voltages can correspond to levels that turn-off the active electronic device 1910.

[0184] In various implementations, the power management system can comprise machine intelligence that generates a time constant for the active electronic device or a system comprising the active electronic device. The time constant can correspond to the time taken for the active electronic device or a system comprising the active electronic device to respond to a change in the control parameter. For example, the time constant can correspond to the slew response time or the rate at which the switches and other circuits of the variable power supply are able to operate in order to vary the voltage levels to the gate and/or drain terminal. Accordingly, in many implementations, if the variation in the input power of the RF signal is known, the power management system can cause a change in the control parameter prior to the variation in the input power of the RF signal occurs based on the generated time constant.

[0185] FIG. 21 is a flowchart of a method to generate a time constant of the active electronic device or a system comprising the active electronic device. The time constant of the active electronic device or a system comprising the active electronic device can be generated using a device characterization set-up in which various parameters of the active electronic device are varied, and their effect on the various of figures of merit are investigated. The method comprises varying a system and/or a device parameter as shown in block 2101. The system and/or a device parameter can include but are not limited to bias voltage/power, input power, and temperature. The method further comprises obtaining various system and/or device characteristics in response to the system and/or device parameter variation, as shown in block 2103. The system and/or device characteristics can include but are not limited to linearity, output power, efficiency, and signal-to-noise ratio. The method further comprises generating a time constant of the system and/or device that characterizes the response of the system and/or device to the variation of the system and/or device parameter, as shown in block 2105. For example, the time constant can correspond to the slew response time or the rate at which the switches and other circuits of the variable power supply are able to operate in order to vary the voltage levels to the gate and/or drain terminal.

[0186] FIG. 22 is a flow chart of a method to adjust the bias power provided to the active electronic device based on the sensed variation in the power or waveform characteristics of the input signal. The method comprises sensing a variation in the power and waveform characteristic of the signal input to an amplifier, as shown in block 2201; and adjust the bias power provided to the amplifier based on (i) a time constant of the system and/or amplifier; and (ii) the sensed variation in the power and waveform characteristic of the signal input to the amplifier to optimize the power efficiency of the amplifier, as shown in block 2203.

[0187] FIG. 23 is a flow chart of a method to adjust the bias power of the active electronic device based on a sensed characteristic of the active electronic device. The method comprises sensing a variation in the power and waveform characteristic of the signal input to an amplifier, as shown in block 2301; and adjusting the bias power provided to the amplifier based on (i) a time constant of the system and/or amplifier; and (ii) the sensed variation in the characteristics of the amplifier to optimize the power efficiency of the amplifier, as shown in block 2303.

[0188] In various implementations, the power management can also be configured to vary elements of the matching network (e.g., 834 and 836) at the input or output of the active electronic device 1910. For example, the matching network at the input or output of the active electronic device 1910 can comprise variable resistors, inductors or capacitors that can be controlled by the control system 1903 in response to one or more sensed characteristic. In various implementations, the power management system can be configured to change the capacitance of the storage capacitors (e.g., 838) in response in one or more sensed characteristic. For example, the storage capacitance can have a smaller capacitance value if the power of the input signal is less than a threshold power and vice versa. This can be implemented by providing a plurality of storage capacitors that can be connected or disconnected via a switch controlled by the control system 1903.

[0189] In various implementations, the power management system can be configured to control a plurality of active electronic devices. The parameters of the active electronic device can be individually adjusted based on the sensed characteristics of the individual device and the desired output from the plurality of active electronic devices.

[0190] Although certain examples refer to the use of field-effect transistors (FETs) as switching devices, other transistor types can be used, such as bipolar junction transistors (BJTs) or insulated-gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs).

[0191] Features, materials, characteristics, or groups described in conjunction with a particular aspect, embodiment, or example are to be understood to be applicable to any other aspect, embodiment or example described herein unless incompatible therewith. All of the features disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings), and/or all of the steps of any method or process so disclosed, may be combined in any combination, except combinations where at least some of such features and/or steps are mutually exclusive. The protection is not restricted to the details of any foregoing embodiments. The protection extends to any novel one, or any novel combination, of the features disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings), or to any novel one, or any novel combination, of the steps of any method or process so disclosed.

[0192] While certain embodiments have been described, these embodiments have been presented by way of example only, and are not intended to limit the scope of protection. Indeed, the novel methods and systems described herein may be embodied in a variety of other forms. Furthermore, various omissions, substitutions and changes in the form of the methods and systems described herein may be made. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that in some embodiments, the actual steps taken in the processes disclosed and/or illustrated may differ from those shown in the figures. Depending on the embodiment, certain of the steps described above may be removed, others may be added. For example, the actual steps and/or order of steps taken in the disclosed processes may differ from those described and/or shown in the figure. Depending on the embodiment, certain of the steps described above may be removed, others may be added. For instance, the various components illustrated in the figures and/or described may be implemented as software and/or firmware on a processor, controller, ASIC, FPGA, and/or dedicated hardware. Furthermore, the features and attributes of the specific embodiments disclosed above may be combined in different ways to form additional embodiments, all of which fall within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0193] In some cases, there is provided a non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions, which when executed by at least one computing or processing device, cause performing any of the methods as generally shown or described herein and equivalents thereof.

[0194] Any of the memory components described herein can include volatile memory, such random access memory (RAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), double data rate (DDR) memory, static random access memory (SRAM), other volatile memory, or any combination thereof. Any of the memory components described herein can include non-volatile memory, such as magnetic storage, flash integrated circuits, read only memory (ROM), Chalcogenide random access memory (C-RAM), Phase Change Memory (PC-RAM or PRAM), Programmable Metallization Cell RAM (PMC-RAM or PMCm), Ovonic Unified Memory (OUM), Resistance RAM (RRAM), NAND memory (e.g., single-level cell (SLC) memory, multi-level cell (MLC) memory, or any combination thereof), NOR memory, EEPROM, Ferroelectric Memory (FeRAM), Magnetoresistive RAM (MRAM), other discrete NVM (non-volatile memory) chips, or any combination thereof.

[0195] Any user interface screens illustrated and described herein can include additional and/or alternative components. These components can include menus, lists, buttons, text boxes, labels, radio buttons, scroll bars, sliders, checkboxes, combo boxes, status bars, dialog boxes, windows, and the like. User interface screens can include additional and/or alternative information. Components can be arranged, grouped, displayed in any suitable order.

[0196] Conditional language used herein, such as, among others, “can,” “could,” “might,” “may,” “e.g.,” and the like, unless specifically stated otherwise, or otherwise understood within the context as used, is generally intended to convey that certain embodiments include, while other embodiments do not include, certain features, elements and/or steps. Thus, such conditional language is not generally intended to imply that features, elements and/or steps are in any way required for one or more embodiments or that one or more embodiments necessarily include logic for deciding, with or without other input or prompting, whether these features, elements and/or steps are included or are to be performed in any particular embodiment. The terms “comprising,” “including,” “having,” and the like are synonymous and are used inclusively, in an open-ended fashion, and do not exclude additional elements, features, acts, operations, and so forth. Also, the term “or” is used in its inclusive sense (and not in its exclusive sense) so that when used, for example, to connect a list of elements, the term “or” means one, some, or all of the elements in the list.

[0197] Disjunctive language such as the phrase “at least one of X, Y, Z,” unless specifically stated otherwise, is otherwise understood with the context as used in general to present that an item, term, etc., may be either X, Y, or Z, or any combination thereof (e.g., X, Y, and/or Z). Thus, such disjunctive language is not generally intended to, and should not, imply that certain embodiments require at least one of X, at least one of Y, or at least one of Z to each be present.

[0198] Language of degree used herein, such as the terms “approximately,” “about,” “generally,” and “substantially” as used herein represent a value, amount, or characteristic close to the stated value, amount, or characteristic that still performs a desired function or achieves a desired result. For example, the terms “approximately”, “about”, “generally,” and “substantially” may refer to an amount that is within less than 10% of, within less than 5% of, within less than 1% of, within less than 0.1% of, or within less than 0.01% of the stated amount.

[0199] Unless otherwise explicitly stated, articles such as “a” or “an” should generally be interpreted to include one or more described items. Accordingly, phrases such as “a device configured to” are intended to include one or more recited devices. Such one or more recited devices can also be collectively configured to carry out the stated recitations.

[0200] The foregoing description, for purposes of explanation, used specific nomenclature to provide a thorough understanding of the disclosure. However, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that specific details are not required in order to practice the disclosed embodiments. Thus, the foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments are presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to the precise forms disclosed; obviously, many modifications and variations are possible in view of the above teachings. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the disclosure and its practical applications, they thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the disclosure and various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. It is intended that the claims as presented herein or as presented in the future and their equivalents define the scope of the protection.