Content

Digital Attenuators Range DC To 10 GHz

July 28, 2010

A trio of 1-b digital attenuators has been developed by Hittite Microwave Corp. for commercial and military applications from DC to 10 GHz. Models HMC800LP3E, HMC801LP3E, and HMC802LP3E are GaAs monolithic-microwave-integrated-circuit (MMIC) digital attenuators with attenuation levels of 10, 15, and 20 dB, respectively. They provide accuracy to 0.5 dB with input third-order intercepts to +55 dBm and switching speeds as fast as 120 ns. The digital attenuators, which accept CMOS/ TTL control signals at low DC current, exhibit insertion loss as low as 2 dB. They are housed in RoHS-compliant 3 x 3 mm QFN leadless packages.

About the Author

Jack Browne | Technical Contributor

Jack Browne, Technical Contributor, has worked in technical publishing for over 30 years. He managed the content and production of three technical journals while at the American Institute of Physics, including Medical Physics and the Journal of Vacuum Science & Technology. He has been a Publisher and Editor for Penton Media, started the firm’s Wireless Symposium & Exhibition trade show in 1993, and currently serves as Technical Contributor for that company's Microwaves & RF magazine. Browne, who holds a BS in Mathematics from City College of New York and BA degrees in English and Philosophy from Fordham University, is a member of the IEEE.