Two capacitors are used at each of
the PCB pads for both Pins 1 and
3. The value of the bypass capaci-
tors is a balance between provid-
ing a small reactance for good RF
grounding, yet not being so large
that the capacitor’s parasitics
introduce undesirable resonances
or loss.
Figure 11. Layout for RF Bypass.
If the source resistor biasing
method is used, a ground pad
located near either Pin 1 or Pin 3
may be used to connect the
current-setting resistor (R
bias
)
directly to DC ground. If the R
bias
resistor is not located immediately
adjacent to the MGA-725M4 (as
may be the case of dynamic
control of the device’s linearity),
then a small series resistor (e.g.
10
) located near the ground
terminal will help de-Q the
connection from the MGA-725M4
to an external current-setting
circuit.
PCB material
FR-4 or G-10 type dielectric
materials are typical choices for
most low cost wireless applica-
tions using single or multi-layer
printed circuit boards. The thick-
ness of single-layer boards usually
range from 0.020 to 0.031 inches.
Circuit boards should be con-
structed so that distance to ground
for RF signals are less than 0.031
inches. Using PCB layer stacks
that are greater than this are not
recommended due to excessive
inductance in the vias.
Application Example
An example evaluation PCB layout
for the MGA-725M4 is shown in
Figure 12. This evaluation circuit is
designed for operation from a
+3-volts supply and includes
provision for a 2-bit DIP switch to
set the state of the MGA-725M4. For
evaluation purposes, the 2-bit
switch is used to set the device to
either of four states: (1) bypass
mode-switch bypasses the amplifier,
(2) low noise amplifier mode–low
bias current, (3) and (4) driver
amplifier modes–high bias currents.
Figure 12. PCB Layout for Evaluation Circuit.
A complete evaluation amplifier
optimized for use at 1900 MHz is
shown with all related compo-
nents and SMA connectors in
Figure 13. A schematic diagram of
the evaluation circuit is shown in
Figure 14 with component values
in Table 1.
Table 1. Component Values for 1900 MHz
Amplifier.
R1
R2
R3
R4
L1
RFC
SW1, SW2
SC
=5.1k
=5.1k
=10
=24
=3.9nH
=22nH
DIP switch
Short
C
C0
C1
C2
C3
C4
C5
C6
=100pF
=1000pF
=100pF
=47pF
=30pF
=22pF
=22pF
=30pF
The on-board resistors R3 and R4
form the equivalent source bias
resistor R
bias
as indicated in the
schematic diagram in Figure 14. In
this example, resistor values of
R3=10
and R4=24
were
chosen to set the nominal device
current for the four states: (1)
bypass mode, 0 mA, (2) LNA
mode, 20 mA, (3) driver, 35 mA,
and (4) driver, 40 mA.
C
C0
C
C2
C6
C5
L1
C1
R1
R2 C0
SW
R3
C4
C3
RFC
SC
C0
V
V
V
IN
CSP
Out
AGILENT
MGA-71,72
9/00
Figure 13. Complete Amplifier with Component Reference Designators.