POWER-AMPLIFIER TRANSMITTER

POWER-AMPLIFIER TRANSMITTERS are used in many recently developed radar sets. This type of transmitter was developed because of the need for more stable operation of the moving target indicator (mti). In a magnetron transmitting system, the high-power magnetron oscillator has a tendency to drift in frequency because of temperature variations, changes in the modulating pulse, and various other effects. Frequency drift is compensated for, in part, by the use of automatic frequency control (afc) circuits designed to control the frequency of the local oscillator in the receiver system. This, however, does not completely eliminate the undesirable effects of frequency drift on mti operation.

The power-amplifier transmitter system does the same thing as the keyed-oscillator transmitter but with fewer stability problems. It generates, shapes, and amplifies pulses of rf energy for transmission.

Figure 2-10 is a block diagram of a typical power-amplifier transmitter system. In this transmitter system a multicavity klystron tube amplifies lower-powered rf pulses that have been generated and shaped in other stages. CROSSED-FIELD AMPLIFIERS (AMPLITRONS) are used in radar systems with a wide band of transmitted frequencies because they are stable over a wider frequency range. A crossed-field amplifier transmitter is discussed later in this section.

Figure 2-10. - Power amplifier transmitter block diagram.

In figure 2-10, the power-amplifier chain input signals are generated by heterodyning (mixing) two frequencies. That is, two different frequencies are fed to a mixer stage (mixer amplifier) and the resultant, either the sum or difference frequency, may be selected as the output. (The operation of mixer circuits is explained in more detail in the section on receivers.) The low-power pulse is then amplified by intermediate power amplifier stages and applied to the klystron power-amplifier. The klystron power-amplifier concentrates the rf output energy into a very narrow frequency spectrum. This concentration makes the system more sensitive to smaller targets. In addition the detection range of all targets is increased.

To examine the operation of the transmitter, we will trace the signal through the entire circuit. The local oscillator shown at the left of figure 2-10 is a very stable rf oscillator that produces two cw rf outputs. As shown, the cw output is sent to the receiver system; the cw output is also one of the two rf signals fed to the mixer amplifier by way of the two BUFFER AMPLIFIER STAGES. The buffer amplifiers raise the power level of the signal and also isolate the local oscillator.

The COHERENT OSCILLATOR (COHO) is triggered by the system trigger and produces as its output an rf pulse. This rf pulse is fed directly to the mixer amplifier.

The mixer-amplifier stage receives three signals: the coherent rf pulse, the local oscillator cw rf signal, and a dc modulating pulse from the low-voltage modulator. The coherent and local oscillator signals are mixed to produce sum and difference frequency signals. Either of these may be selected as the output. The modulator pulse serves the same purpose as in the keyed-oscillator transmitter, because it determines the pulse width and power level. The mixer stage functions only during the modulator pulse time. Thus the mixer amplifier produces an output of rf pulses in which the frequency may be either the sum or difference of the coherent and local oscillator signals.

The mixer-amplifier feeds the pulses of rf energy to an intermediate power amplifier. This amplifier stage is similar to the buffer-amplifier stage except that it is a pulsed amplifier. That is, the pulsed amplifier has operating power only during the time the modulator pulse from the low-voltage modulator is applied to the stage. The amplified output signal is fed to a second intermediate power amplifier that operates in the same manner as the first.

From the second intermediate power amplifier, the signal is fed to the KLYSTRON POWER AMPLIFIER. This stage is a multicavity power klystron. The input rf signal is used as the exciter signal for the first cavity. High-voltage modulating pulses from the high-voltage modulator are also applied to the klystron power amplifier. These high-voltage modulating pulses are stepped up across a pulse transformer before being applied to the klystron. All cavities of the klystron are tunable and are tuned for maximum output at the desired frequency.

Provisions are made in this type of transmitter to adjust the starting time of the modulating pulses applied to the coherent oscillator, mixer amplifier, intermediate power amplifiers, and klystron power-amplifier. By this means the various modulator pulses are made to occur at the same time.

This transmitter produces output rf pulses of constant power and minimum frequency modulation and ensures good performance.

Q.22 What is the primary advantage of power-amplifier transmitters over keyed-oscillator transmitters?
Q.23 In the power amplifier shown in figure 2-10, what two signals are mixed to produce the output signal?
Q.24 What type of klystron is used as the final stage of a power-amplifier transmitter?

Figure 2-11 is a block diagram of a power-amplifier transmitter that uses a FREQUENCY SYNTHESIZER to produce the transmitted frequency rather than the heterodyning mixer. The frequency synthesizer allows the transmitter to radiate a large number of discrete frequencies over a relatively wide band. Such a system is commonly used with frequency-scan search radars that must transmit many different frequencies to achieve elevation coverage and to compensate for the roll and pitch of a ship.

Figure 2-11. - Power amplifier transmitter using crossed-field amplifiers.

A typical frequency synthesizer consists of a bank of oscillators producing different fixed frequencies. The outputs of a relatively few fixed oscillators can be mixed in various combinations to produce a wide range of frequencies. In mti systems the selected oscillator frequencies are mixed with a coherent oscillator frequency to provide a stable reference for the mti circuits. The frequency synthesizer also produces the local oscillator signals for the receiver system. Because the transmitted pulse changes frequency on each transmission, the local oscillator signal to the receiver must also change and be included in the transmitted frequency. A system of this type is frequency-programmed by select gates from the synchronizer.

The detailed operation of frequency synthesizers is beyond the scope of this manual but may be found in the technical manuals for most frequency scan radar systems.

The first rf amplifier receives the pulses of the selected frequency from the synthesizer and a modulator pulse (from the first stage modulator) at the same time. The rf pulse is usually slightly wider than the modulator pulse which prevents the amplifier tube from pulsing when no rf energy is present. Most pulsed rf amplifiers will oscillate at an undesired frequency if pulsed without an rf input. The output of the first rf amplifier is an amplified rf pulse that is the same width as the first stage modulator pulse. The second stage modulator is designed to produce a pulse slightly narrower than the first stage modulator pulse; this also prevents the amplifier from pulsing when no rf is present. Therefore, the second stage amplifier receives a modulator pulse a short time after the first stage rf arrives at the input. As shown in figure 2-11, the same procedure is repeated in the third and final stage.

The amplifiers in this type of power-amplifier transmitter must be broad-band microwave amplifiers that amplify the input signals without frequency distortion. Typically, the first stage and the second stage are traveling-wave tubes (twt) and the final stage is a crossed-field amplifier. Recent technological advances in the field of solid-state microwave amplifiers have produced solid-state amplifiers with enough output power to be used as the first stage in some systems. Transmitters with more than three stages usually use crossed-field amplifiers in the third and any additional stages. Both traveling-wave tubes and crossed-field amplifiers have a very flat amplification response over a relatively wide frequency range.

Crossed-field amplifiers have another advantage when used as the final stages of a transmitter; that is, the design of the crossed-field amplifier allows rf energy to pass through the tube virtually unaffected when the tube is not pulsed. When no pulse is present, the tube acts as a section of waveguide. Therefore, if less than maximum output power is desired, the final and preceding cross-field amplifier stages can be shut off as needed. This feature also allows a transmitter to operate at reduced power, even when the final crossed-field amplifier is defective.

Q.25 What transmitter component allows the radiation of a large number of discrete frequencies over a wide band?
Q.26 What is the result of pulsing a pulsed rf amplifier when no rf is present?