TQP3M9007

The TQP3M9007 from Qorvo is a high linearity low noise amplifier gain block covering the 100 MHz to 4000 MHz frequency range in a low-cost SOT-89 surface-mount package. It is designed using Qorvo’s high-performance Enhancement-mode Pseudomorphic High Electron Mobility Transistor (E-pHEMT) process, which provides an excellent combination of high linearity, low noise figure, and broadband performance.

At 1900 MHz, the TQP3M9007 delivers 13 dB gain with a 1.3 dB noise figure and +41 dBm output third-order intercept point (OIP3), while drawing only 125 mA from a single +5 V supply. This combination of low noise and high linearity in a single device is relatively rare; most LNA gain blocks optimize for either low noise or high linearity, but the TQP3M9007 achieves both simultaneously.

The device is internally matched to 50 Ohms at both input and output, making it a cascadable gain block that can be directly inserted into a 50 Ohm RF signal chain without external matching networks. This significantly simplifies the RF design process and reduces the bill of materials compared to unmatched transistor solutions that require custom matching circuits.

The internal active bias circuit is a key feature that eliminates the need for external bias resistors or voltage dividers. The active bias circuit automatically adjusts the gate bias voltage to maintain a constant drain current over temperature and supply voltage variations. This ensures stable gain, noise figure, and linearity performance across the full operating temperature range (-40 to +85 degrees C case temperature) and supply voltage range (3.0 to 5.25 V).

The external component count is minimal: one RF choke inductor (56 nH at 1900 MHz) between VDD and the output, two DC blocking capacitors (100 pF) at the input and output RF ports, and two bypass capacitors (27 pF and 0.1 uF, plus a 4.7 uF bulk capacitor) on the VDD supply line. All external components are 0603 size, resulting in a very compact application circuit footprint.

The +41 dBm OIP3 makes the TQP3M9007 suitable for applications in the receive chain of wireless infrastructure equipment (cellular base stations, repeaters, distributed antenna systems) where the LNA must maintain linearity in the presence of strong interfering signals from adjacent channels. The 1.3 dB noise figure at 1900 MHz is low enough for most macro base station receiver applications where the system noise figure budget is typically 2-3 dB.

The device is also usable in transmit chains as a driver amplifier, where the high linearity ensures minimal spectral regrowth and the 13 dB gain provides adequate drive level for subsequent power amplifier stages. The +23.6 dBm output P1dB corresponds to approximately 230 mW of linear output power, sufficient for driving medium-power amplifiers.

The broadband frequency coverage (100 MHz to 4000 MHz) spans all major cellular bands (GSM 900/1800, WCDMA, LTE Bands 1-41), as well as Wi-Fi (2.4 GHz), Bluetooth, and other ISM band applications. The performance varies with frequency as shown in the typical values table, with the best noise figure at 900 MHz (1.2 dB) and the best OIP3 at 2100-2600 MHz (+42.2 dBm).

CRITICAL LIFECYCLE NOTE: The TQP3M9007 was announced as End-of-Life (EOL) on June 11, 2025 (PCN 25-0092). The last time buy date was December 21, 2025. This device is no longer available for new orders from Qorvo. For new designs, the recommended replacement is the TQP3M9038, which offers improved performance (0.05-4 GHz, 15.1 dB gain, 20.7 dBm P1dB, +40 dBm OIP3) in a smaller 3×3 mm QFN package. Existing designs using the TQP3M9007 should plan a migration to the TQP3M9038 or alternative devices as remaining stock is depleted.

The TQP3M9007 operates as a single-stage E-pHEMT low noise amplifier with internal active bias and 50 Ohm matching networks.

E-pHEMT Transistor: The core amplifying element is an Enhancement-mode Pseudomorphic High Electron Mobility Transistor (E-pHEMT). The enhancement-mode operation means the transistor is normally off (no drain current when gate voltage is 0 V), requiring a positive gate bias voltage to turn on. This contrasts with depletion-mode PHEMT devices that require a negative gate voltage. The E-pHEMT process provides high electron mobility in the 2-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) channel, resulting in high transconductance (gm), low channel resistance, and excellent high-frequency performance. The pseudomorphic InGaAs channel provides higher electron mobility than standard GaAs channels, contributing to the low noise figure.

Internal Active Bias Circuit: The active bias circuit automatically generates the correct gate bias voltage to maintain the target drain current (125 mA typical) over temperature and supply voltage variations. The circuit uses a reference transistor (a scaled replica of the RF transistor) biased at the same current density, along with an operational amplifier that adjusts the gate voltage of the RF transistor to match the reference current. This feedback loop compensates for transistor threshold voltage shifts with temperature and supply voltage changes. The active bias circuit eliminates the need for external bias resistors and provides significantly better bias stability than simple resistive bias networks.

Internal Matching Networks: The input and output of the E-pHEMT transistor are internally matched to 50 Ohms using on-chip lumped element networks (series and shunt inductors and capacitors fabricated using the GaAs IC process). The input matching network is optimized for minimum noise figure (near the optimum noise reflection coefficient Gamma_opt), while the output matching network is optimized for maximum linearity and gain. The internal matching limits the bandwidth to the specified 100-4000 MHz range; outside this range, the return loss degrades and the gain drops.

Signal Flow: The RF input signal enters through the DC blocking capacitor and is applied to the gate of the E-pHEMT transistor through the input matching network. The transistor amplifies the signal, and the amplified signal appears at the drain, which is connected through the output matching network to the RF output port. An external RF choke inductor (56 nH at 1900 MHz) connects the drain to the VDD supply, providing a DC path for the drain current while presenting a high impedance at the RF frequency so that the RF signal is directed to the output port rather than the supply.

Noise Figure: The 1.3 dB noise figure at 1900 MHz is achieved by the combination of the low-noise E-pHEMT device, the input matching network optimized for minimum noise, and the active bias circuit that maintains the optimal bias point. The noise figure is dominated by the transistor’s minimum noise figure (Fmin) and the noise matching loss. The E-pHEMT process provides Fmin values below 0.5 dB at 2 GHz, but the practical noise figure is higher due to matching network losses, package parasitics, and the compromise between noise matching and input return loss matching.

Linearity (OIP3): The +41 dBm OIP3 is a result of the high linearity of the E-pHEMT transistor at the 125 mA bias current. The third-order intercept point is primarily determined by the transistor’s transconductance nonlinearity (gm3) and the output matching network. The active bias circuit helps maintain consistent linearity over temperature. The OIP3 is measured with two tones at +4 dBm per tone output power, separated by 1 MHz, using the 2:1 rule for IM3 product suppression.

Stability: The TQP3M9007 is specified as unconditionally stable, meaning the Rollett stability factor K is greater than 1 and the stability measure B1 is greater than 0 at all frequencies. This is achieved through internal stabilization networks (typically resistive loading at frequencies below the operating band) that prevent oscillation without significantly degrading the in-band noise figure and gain performance. Unconditional stability ensures the device will not oscillate regardless of the source and load impedances presented at its input and output.