Wide Bandwidth Class-S Power Amplifiers for Ultrasonic Devices

Area of Science:

• Electrical Engineering
• Acoustics
• Signal Processing

Background:

• High-resolution ultrasonic systems require wide bandwidth ultrasonic devices.
• Power amplifiers must maintain constant output voltages across these wide bandwidths.
• Existing power amplifier designs may not meet the demands for consistent performance in ultrasonic applications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design and present the first wide bandwidth Class-S power amplifier specifically for ultrasonic devices.
• To evaluate the performance of the developed Class-S power amplifier in terms of bandwidth and flatness.
• To compare the performance of the Class-S power amplifier against a commercial Class-A power amplifier.

Main Methods:

• Designed and fabricated a novel wide bandwidth Class-S power amplifier.
• Utilized pulse-echo measurements to assess amplifier performance.
• Conducted time and frequency analyses to evaluate bandwidth flatness.
• Compared the frequency range and output voltage stability of Class-S and Class-A amplifiers.

Main Results:

• The developed Class-S power amplifier achieved a -6 dB bandwidth of 125.07% at 20 MHz.
• The Class-S amplifier exhibited a relatively flat bandwidth across the tested frequency range (17-23 MHz).
• A commercial Class-A amplifier showed significantly uneven bandwidth performance, particularly at higher frequencies within the same range.

Conclusions:

• The designed Class-S power amplifier offers a wide and flat bandwidth suitable for ultrasonic devices.
• This Class-S amplifier design demonstrates potential for enhancing the performance of high-resolution ultrasonic systems.
• The findings suggest Class-S amplifiers are a viable alternative for applications requiring consistent wide bandwidth performance.