High-speed S-band linear microwave amplifier system for the VIOLET CubeSat mission
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Date
2023-05
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University of New Brunswick
Abstract
CubeSat NB’s VIOLET mission selected the amateur frequencies in S-band to transmit the payload data and communicate with the ground station. The communication system must follow the frequency coordination and power requirement allocated within the international amateur radio union (IARU) license. In this thesis, the design, simulation, fabrication, and testing of a linear microwave amplifier system that offers an easy interface with the VIOLET structure is presented. The proposed system is a multistage amplifier transceiver system that can amplify the signal up to the IARU permissible EIRP limit of 33 dBm. Matching networks, stability analysis, and special power amplifier biasing schemes were optimized to achieve the mission requirements. The test result exhibits 31.5 dBm output power at the rated input with no noticeable harmonic power. The cascaded amplifier provides 46 dB to 47 dB signal gain within the 2 MHz VIOLET bandwidth.