Antenna Systems & Technology - Spring 2014 - (Page 22)

NEW PRODUCTS & SERVICES COMPONENTS / SUBSYSTEMS New Antenna-Tuning Circuit Boosts LTE Smartphone Performance STMicroelectronics has announced that its latest Antenna-Tuning Circuit, the STHVDAC-253M, was selected to control the smart antennatuning function in a LTE smartphone that is being launched by a large Asian manufacturer at Mobile World Congress 2014 in Barcelona. Smart Antenna Tuning in mobile phones makes the radio-frequency transmission and reception almost insensitive to external conditions, which brings multiple benefits to the user, including stronger signal/ more bars, fewer dropped calls, faster data rates, and longer battery life. Antenna tuning combines the fixed inductance of the mobile device's built-in antenna with electronically controlled capacitances, the Antenna-Tuning Circuit precisely controls tunable capacitors, such as ST's STPTIC series, to optimally match the resonant frequency of the antenna and the frequency band being used. The STHVDAC-253M is a dedicated ASIC that integrates three high-voltage Digital-to-Analog Converters, allowing it to simultaneously optimize antenna performance in three different frequency bands. ST's smart-tuner device takes advantage of the recently introduced MIPI RFFE[1] standard that mobile chipset suppliers have adopted as the control interface from the RF block to the various front-end modules such as power amplifiers, low-noise amplifiers, filters, switches, DC/DC-converters, and antennas. Manufacturers of mobile devices must constantly strive to offer customers better user experiences despite extreme cost sensitivity. ST's solution allows LTE smartphones to improve the user experience via a new level of antenna performance that customers are going to love. Before the development and adoption of RFFE, the standard control was SPI (Serial Peripheral Interface), which required customers to modify their drivers to support the antenna tuning circuit. The STHVDAC253M supports all MIPI RFFE features such as Extended Mode, triggers and 26MHz clock operation, while coming in 30 percent smaller footprint than other existing solutions, with corresponding cost and boardsize benefits to the phone manufacturer. Housed in a Flip Chip CSP 0.4 mm pitch package, samples of the STHVDAC-253M will be available through e-distribution from mid-March 2014. Pricing for 1,000 units is $0.57. 40 GHz Directional Couplers with Multi-Octave Bandwidths AtlanTecRF has introduced directional couplers with frequency capability up to 40 GHz in a number of bands including 18-40, 6-40, 2-40 and the ultrawide band version 1-40 GHz. Each frequency range in the AKC series is available in a choice of either 10, 20 or 30 dB coupling and the lightweight units feature aluminium housings and 2.92 mm stainless steel female connectors. Launching the series, AtlanTecRF's Marketing Co-ordinator, Karen McDermott said, "This new and versatile range of directional couplers will have applications in so many fields that it's difficult to enumerate them but we anticipate a big uptake from microwave engineers across the board." Coupling accuracy and flatness are ±1.0 dB max across the individual bands, while typical VSWR is 1.5:1 and power handling capability is 30 watts. The wide operating temperature range of -55°C to 85°C enables use in difficult environments as does the miniature and rugged construction with 18 to 40 GHz unit sizes down to just 28 by 15 by 11 mm. 22 Antenna Systems & Technology Spring 2014 www.AntennasOnline.com http://www.AntennasOnline.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Antenna Systems & Technology - Spring 2014

Editor’s Choice
What's So Exciting About the Future of M2M? Everything
Antenna Design for LTE Enabled Tablets
Recent Progress on Plasma Antennas
Guest Column: Don't Let Your Choice of Tool Hinder Your Cable and Antenna Testing
Antennas
Components/Subsystems
Short-Range Wireless
Software / System Design
Test & Measurement
Industry News
Marketplace

Antenna Systems & Technology - Spring 2014