Experimental gain and noise figure performance of distributed MESFET amplifiers

Experimentally measured results for the power gain and noise figure performance of two-stage and five-stage hybrid-microwave-distributed amplifiers employing MESFETs are presented. It is shown that for the frequency range of 1 to 16 GHz, both amplifiers exhibit an approximately flat gain response within their different operating bandwidths. For the two-stage amplifier an average noise figure of 7 dB over 1 to 14 GHz is measured, while for the five-stage amplifier a figure of less than 5 dB is obtained for 1 to 9 GHz. The measured results are compared to theoretically obtained values and found to be in reasonable agreement over most of the band.