By Phil Miguelez, Fred Slowik, Stuart Eastman, Motorola
GaAs hybrid and MMIC technology has enabled improved distortion performance and bandwidth expansion capability up to 1 GHz for the past 10 years. Now a new HFC semiconductor technology, Gallium Nitride (GaN), is coming on line with significant improvements in surge voltage ruggedness, better thermal performance, and capability of higher output levels to extend reach and further bandwidth expansion for new and existing cable plants.
Higher output levels achievable with GaN technology enable operators to lower initial capital costs and operational expenses for fiber deep network deployments. This paper will describe the advantages of GaN technology compared to current GaAs devices and provide design examples showing the potential cost savings in high to low density green field applications. Brown field extensions and bandwidth extensions where GaN can help to minimize cost will also be covered.