DC-Assisted Stabilization of Internal Oscillations for Improved Symbol Transitions in a Direct Antenna Modulation Transmitter

TL;DR

This paper introduces a DC-assisted stabilization method for internal oscillations in direct antenna modulation transmitters, significantly improving signal fidelity and efficiency by reducing parasitic oscillations.

Contribution

A novel modified direct antenna modulation system with an auxiliary DC source is proposed to stabilize energy storage and suppress internal oscillations.

Findings

10-20 dB reduction in error vector magnitude

2-3 times lower radiation Q-factor

20% higher radiation efficiency

Abstract

Internal oscillations in switched antenna transmitters cause undesirable fluctuations of the stored energy in the system, reducing the effectiveness of time-varying broadbanding methods, such as energy-synchronous direct antenna modulation. To mitigate these parasitic oscillations, a modified direct antenna modulation system with an auxiliary DC source is introduced to stabilize energy storage on the antenna. A detailed circuit model for a direct antenna modulation system is used to identify the origin of the oscillations and to justify the selection of the DC source. Measured phase shift keyed waveforms transmitted by the modified system show significant increases in signal fidelity, including a 10-20 dB reduction in error vector magnitude compared to a time-invariant system. Comparison to an equivalent, scalable time-invariant antenna suggests that the switched transmitter behaves as though it has 2-3 times lower radiation Q-factor and 20% higher radiation efficiency.