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Spatial Power Combiner Technology

Conference Paper · July 2015

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Davide Passi Alberto Leggieri

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Spatial Power Combiner Technology

Davide Passi1 , Alberto Leggieri1 , Franco Di Paolo1 , Antonio Tafuto2 , and Marco Bartocci2
1
University of Roma “Tor Vergata”, Via del Politecnico 1, Roma 00133, Italy
2
Elettronica SpA, Via Tiburtina Valeria Km 13.7, Roma 00100, Italy

Abstract— This article describes the spatial power combining techniques dealing with the
state of the art of Spatial Power Combiners (SPC) considering recent developments. A brand-
new splitting scheme is proposed where different types of SPC are grouped according to the space
where power combining and splitting occur. This paper should provide compendium knowledge
for SPC design and selection of the opportune SPC basing on the target application.

Figure 1: New splitting scheme.

The fundamental SPC Amplifier’s concept is to provide a large power value with minimum losses.
For this aim, SPC has several characteristics that make it unique and innovative. First one is
that the electromagnetic energy coming from input is divided as much as possible in the space,
without using transmission lines, and it is sent to many SSPA. After amplified energy is collected,
it is sent to output port without using transmission lines. Another common feature of SPC is the
presence of probes, antennas or transitions to collect the spatial RF energy and send it to a two
wired transmission line. The system’s quality is usually determined from its efficiency. In SPC
technology efficiency can be defined basing on the portion of power sent to the active devices
respect to the amount of power provided at the input port, such as it quantifies the capability
of the combiner to intercept incoming energy and distribute it to N energy dividing/combining
internal ports.
There are TEM and NON TEM spatial combiners, cavity based, open space and 2D&Half ones.
Non TEM SPC use waveguides to confine RF electromagnetic energy and they can be completely
closed or slotted to couple energy to another slotted waveguide. This type is composed by three
families: the single waveguide family, with longitudinal probes and transverse probes, the coupled
waveguides and the multimodal interference families.
Then RF probes can be realized in several technologies, as monopoles, dipoles, patches or slots
or combinations among them. In many other cases Fin Line transition are realized, especially
when wide band applications are needed.
Two examples taken by our design experience are going to show: an X band and Ka band SPC.
Single waveguide with transverse probes and amplifiers is named Grid Amplifier. The basic
concept in SPC Grid Amplifiers is to intercept the incoming signal with a defined polarization,
amplify it with the active device and then send the amplified signal using the orthogonal polar-
ization respect the incoming one.
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A different type of SPC is the Multimodal Interference SPC, uses the interferences among many
propagating modes in an overmoded waveguide. This multimodal interference effect is also named
“Talbot’s effect”.
The Coupled Waveguides SPC use two waveguides connected between them through two wires
transmission lines, so it is possible to insert amplifying active devices between these two waveg-
uides.
Coupled Waveguides SPC are divided in two subgroups, the distributed probes group and fixed
group of probes. In the first case, probes are located along the waveguide, while in the second
case probes are located just near the shortest wall of the waveguide.
TEM SPC use TEM transmission lines to confine RF electromagnetic energy. The simplest and
well known TEM structure is the coaxial transmission line, here there are going to illustrate two
versions, the classic circular and the square one.

Figure 2: Non TEM and TEM SPC.

Cavity Based SPC use a closed cavity excited by an input port, and the output ports are realized
inserting probes inside such cavity.
This family consists of two different groups and differing from the modality of input port coupling
with the cavity: if the coupling is made through a conical transmission line the SPC is named in
literature as Conical Transmission Line, otherwise it is named Simple Cavity SPC.
Their efficiency is very high due to the fact that they use closed cavities and thus energy is well
confined inside it.
Open Space SPC use amplifiers connected to probes placed in an open space environment. Usually
lens are used to focus the beam to and from grid amplifier.
2D&Half SPC, that are two dimensions and half SPC, remember SIW technology (Substrate
Integrated Waveguide) or micro open space SPC.