MANPOWER-the start of something good [GaAs power and transmitter MMICs]

Power devices and MMICs are key components in all modern telecommunication systems. The EC supported MANPOWER project had as its objectives transmitter circuits at frequencies from 900 MHz through to around 30 GHz. These circuits, fabricated in GaAs MESFET, GaAs based pseudomorphic HEMT and HBT technologies, were aimed at the main frequency bands for hand held telephones, VSAT and millimetric telecomms. The main thrust of the work was in the mobile phone area where the high efficiency and low operating voltage capability of the GaAs MESFET offers a number of system advantages in this application. The programme successfully developed 3 V operating transmit MMICs which are now being sold in large numbers to the mobile phone manufacturers. Fourteen different organisations combined their efforts to meet the major objectives of the project