The F6522 from Renesas is a 27.5 to 31 GHz Active Beamforming IC designed for Transmit Ka-Band SATCOM planar phased array antenna applications. The IC has a single common RF input port and eight independently controlled output channels, which can drive eight single-polarized elements or four dual-polarized elements of an electronically scanned array (ESA). Each channel has 6-bits of digital phase control covering 360 degrees and 25 dB of gain control with a minimum step size of 0.2 dB, enabling precise beam pattern and polarization control. Operating from a single supply of 2.1 to 2.5V, the RFIC has a nominal small-signal gain of 28 dB of with a typical P1dB of 11 dBm per channel.
The F6522 features a low power standby mode as well as independent enable controls for every channel. The device SPI bus and control pins operate from standard 1.8V logic at speeds up to 50 MHz. Advanced digital modes and large on-chip memory allow for less than 100 ns beam position switching times at the array level, which reduces dead time and latency. This beamforming IC is available in a compact and CTE-matched 62-pin FCCSP package (3.8 × 4.6 × 0.9 mm) with all single-ended 50-ohm matched RF ports that greatly simplifies the physical integration of the device onto large antenna panels.
