Chip makers inundate 3GSM with new products
The world's leading GaAs chip manufacturers have all launched a handful of products at the GSM World Congress in Barcelona, Spain.
RF Micro Devices (RFMD) selected the event to unveil its RF3159 quad-band power amplifier (PA) that it says is specifically designed to support EDGE mobile devices using linear transmit architectures.
The company s module, which is housed in a 6x6 mm package, will be available for general sampling in April, with mass production ramping in May.
RFMD has also released the RF5184, a PA that can serve as the final RF amplifier in WCDMA wireless handheld devices.
"With the RF5184, RFMD expands its support of WCDMA-enabled devices in the US and Japan regional markets, where WCDMA penetration is expected to grow significantly," said Konrad Alvarino, general manager of the components business unit at RFMD.
Meanwhile, Skyworks chose 3GSM to launch its Helios II EDGE radio, which is claimed to reduce RF board space by half when compared to previous Helios designs.
The Woburn-headquartered chip maker has also unveiled the SKY77512, a quad-band front-end module (FEM) designed for linear modulation, and the SKY77519, an FEM that is suitable for open-loop EDGE operation.
TriQuint has also release several products at 3GSM, including a GaAs PHEMT switch for 3G handsets that can use both WCDMA and GSM bands.
Another new product from the company is the TQM7M5003 quad-band PA module, which is intended for used in GSM/EDGE handsets and has been optimized for partnering with Qualcomm's multi-mode transceiver chipsets.
Commenting on this particular product release, Paul Cooper, TriQuint's product marketing manager, said: "We believe we're offering the customer exactly what the market has been asking for: a smaller module that occupies less board space with superior efficiency for longer talk times, all in a form factor that requires no external bypass components, no collector supply voltage routing and no directional coupler."
