Achieve control & reliability for 2.45GHz RF systems

8th September 2015

Nat Bowers

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Datasheet

Engineered to replace magnetrons and other vacuum tube-era technologies, an RF power transistor has been introduced by Freescale Semiconductor. The MRF7S24250N delivers exceptional precision, control and reliability for manufacturers of products targeting industrial applications such as heating/drying, material welding and plasma lighting systems; as well as medical applications used for skin treatment, bloodless surgery and cancer treatment.

The MRF7S24250N supports accurate power control over the full dynamic range, up to 250W, enabling greater ease of use than industrial magnetrons. The possibility to shift frequencies and phases opens the door to new use cases where RF energy can be directed only where needed. In addition, the transistor offers advantages inherent to solid-state equipment such as the potential to operate for hundreds of thousands of hours with no performance degradation over time, while delivering a consistent power level that virtually eliminates the need to interrupt the target system for periodic maintenance.

The 32V RF power LDMOS transistor can deliver 250W continuous wave with 14.5dB of gain and 55% efficiency. It is built on the same plastic packaging technology as the previously announced MRFE6VP61K25N, MRFE6VP6600N and MRF8VP13350N transistors, with up to 30% lower thermal resistance than industry-standard air-cavity ceramic transistor packages. This allows the transistor to be operated at a lower junction temperature, while reducing heat dissipation requirements to help lower the overall system cost.

The MRF7S24250N is supported by Freescale’s RF Power Tool, which eases access to solid-state RF technology without the need for an expensive rack of test equipment or extensive RF technical knowledge. This PC-driven tool operates both as a signal generator and as a measurement bench that provides 10 data points, including transistor temperature and reflected power.

Pierre Piel, Head of RF Industrial Operations, RF business, Freescale, commented: “The reliability and enhanced control advantages of solid-state RF power transistors have long been understood, but until now, industrial system designers lacked the tools that make it easy to deploy and fully leverage them. Our new tools augment Freescale’s leading-edge components, delivering tremendous value to our customers in terms of time to market and development costs.”

The MRF7S24250N is in full production and a reference circuit is available, along with an RF power amplifier module compatible with the RF Power Tool.