Patent classifications
H03F2200/102
TRACKER CIRCUIT, TRACKER MODULE, AND VOLTAGE SUPPLY METHOD
In an exemplary aspect, a tracker circuit is provided that includes a first switch circuit configured to generate a plurality of discrete voltages, based on an input voltage, a second switch circuit configured to select at least a first voltage from the plurality of discrete voltages as a supply voltage, a filter circuit that is connected to the second switch circuit and is configured to filter the supply voltage and generate a filtered supply voltage that is provided to an amplifier via a voltage supply path between the filter circuit and the amplifier, and a third switch circuit including a capacitor and a switch that are connected in series between a ground and the voltage supply path.
TRACKER CIRCUITS AND VOLTAGE SUPPLY METHOD
A tracker circuit includes a pre-regulator circuit configured to convert an input voltage into a regulated voltage using a power inductor, a switched-capacitor circuit configured to generate a plurality of discrete voltages, based on the regulated voltage, and a power modulation circuit configured to select at least one voltage from the plurality of discrete voltages and output the at least one voltage to a first output terminal. Further, the tracker circuit includes one or more bypass paths configured to bypass at least the switched-capacitor circuit and the power modulation circuit, and to provide a second supply voltage from the pre-regulator circuit to a second output terminal, the second supply voltage is output by the second output terminal.
Multi-mode power management apparatus
A multi-mode power management apparatus is provided. In embodiments disclosed herein, the multi-mode power management apparatus can be configured to operate in different power management modes across a wide range of modulation bandwidth (e.g., 80 KHz to over 200 MHz). The multi-mode power management apparatus includes a power management integrated circuit (PMIC) and an envelope tracking integrated (ET) circuit (ETIC), which are implemented in separate dies. The PMIC is configured to generate a low-frequency current and a low-frequency voltage. The ETIC is configured to generate a pair of ET voltages. Depending on the power management mode, the multi-mode power management apparatus can selectively output one or more of the ET voltages and the low-frequency voltage to different stages (e.g., driver stage and output stage) of a power amplifier circuit, thus helping to maintain optimal efficiency and linearity of the power amplifier circuit across the wide range of modulation bandwidth.
Composite cascode power amplifiers for envelope tracking applications
Composite cascode power amplifiers for envelope tracking applications are provided herein. In certain embodiments, an envelope tracking system includes a composite cascode power amplifier that amplifies a radio frequency (RF) signal and that receives power from a power amplifier supply voltage, and an envelope tracker that generates the power amplifier supply voltage based on an envelope of the RF signal. The composite cascode power amplifier includes an enhancement mode (E-MODE) field-effect transistor (FET) for amplifying the RF signal and a depletion mode (D-MODE) FET in cascode with the E-MODE FET.
Radio-frequency Amplifier with Supply and Load Modulation
An electronic device may include wireless circuitry. The wireless circuitry may include a radio-frequency amplifier having a data input configured to receive a radio-frequency signal generated from a baseband signal, supply modulation blocks configured to output a power supply voltage, derived from the baseband signal, for powering the radio-frequency amplifier, and load modulation blocks configured to output a load control signal, derived from the baseband signal and a bandwidth reduced envelope signal output from the supply modulation circuitry, for tuning an adjustable load component of the radio-frequency amplifier. The supply modulation blocks can include a full envelope generator, a bandwidth reduction block for outputting the bandwidth reduced envelope signal, an envelope shaping block, and an envelope tracker. The load modulation blocks can include an inverse amplifier gain model and a load shaping block.
Target voltage generation in an envelope tracking integrated circuit
Target voltage generation in an envelope tracking (ET) integrated circuit (ETIC) is provided. The ETIC is configured to generate a time-variant ET voltage based on a time-variant target voltage for amplifying a radio frequency (RF) signal modulated for communication in multiple time intervals. In embodiments disclosed herein, the ETIC is self-contained to generate the time-variant target voltage based on a sensed signal having a time-variant sensed envelope that tracks a time-variant power envelope of the RF signal. Since the time-variant target voltage is generated to track the time-variant sensed envelope, which further tracks the time-variant power envelope, the time-variant ET voltage can better track the time-variant power envelope of the RF signal when the time-variant ET voltage is provided to a power amplifier(s) that amplifies the RF signal.
Electronic device including power amplifier and front-end module including power amplifier
According to various embodiments, an electronic device may include: a communication processor, a radio frequency (RF) integrated circuit (RFIC) configured to receive a signal output from the communication processor and to modulate the signal into an RF signal, a power management circuit, a first power amplifier configured to amplify an RF signal output from the RFIC based on power supplied from the power management circuit, a second power amplifier configured to amplify the RF signal output from the RFIC based on the power supplied from the power management circuit, at least one capacitor connected in parallel to a power supply terminal of the first power amplifier, and at least one switch connected between the power supply terminal and the at least one capacitor, wherein the communication processor is configured to: identify a power amplification mode based a frequency band of the RF signal, and control the at least one switch by outputting a control signal corresponding to the identified power amplification mode.
Amplifiers operating in envelope tracking mode or non-envelope tracking mode
Various envelope tracking amplifiers are presented that can be switched between an ET (envelope tracking) mode and a non-ET mode. Switches and/or tunable components are utilized in constructing the envelope tracking amplifiers that can be switched between the ET mode and the non-ET mode.
Envelope tracking power converter
A tracking power converter for a radio frequency power amplifier includes a boost converter circuit, a switching network circuit, a filter circuit, and a controller circuit. The boost converter circuit provides a boosted voltage in response to a battery voltage. The switching network provides a switching signal in response to the boosted voltage, a first switch enable signal, a second switch enable signal, and a third switch enable signal. The filter circuit provides a power converter output voltage in response to the switching signal. The controller circuit provides the first switch enable signal, the second switch enable signal, and the third switch enable signal in response to a predetermined reference voltage, the switching voltage, the boosted voltage, and the battery voltage.
Apparatus and methods for envelope tracking in a mobile device
Apparatus and methods for envelope tracking in a mobile device are disclosed herein. In certain configurations, a method includes amplifying a radio frequency (RF) input signal using a power amplifier, providing power to the power amplifier from a power amplifier supply voltage, controlling a voltage level of the power amplifier supply voltage based on a control voltage using a DC-to-DC converter, adjusting the voltage level of the power amplifier supply voltage based on an envelope of the RF input signal using an error amplifier, low pass filtering the power amplifier supply voltage to generate a filtered voltage using a low pass filter, and generating the control voltage based on comparing the filtered voltage to a reference voltage using a comparator.