To clarify, I intend to operate at a fixed frequency, no modulation, preferably somewhere in the 900MHz ISM band, driven by an amp operating at less than 5W. Each run of the experiment should only last a few minutes at most.
Probably due to me not knowing any better, I'm leaning towards making my own amp along with bypass filtering. The amp section would be based on modules such as:
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Hello Mark,
The first amplifier you linked above would probably be your best choice. The two Philips modules are designed for the GSM cellular standard, which is pulsed with 12.5% duty cycle. They are not thermally capable of operating at high power with a continuous carrier. The Hitachi module was designed for the long ago obsolete TACS standard which is continuous carrier.
You wouldn't need to use a filter with these amplifiers. They narrowband 3 stage designs; the input, output, and interstage matching networks will have more than enough selectivity. You could verify this by measuring S21 of the amplifier with no filter. Be sure to use sufficient attenuation on the input and/or output to prevent damage to port 2 receiver in the VNA.
Andy - K?AF
