Новини світу мікро- та наноелектроніки

Learn how a bifilar coil can be used to design transformers for high-frequency RF applications.

Renesas says the new SoC effectively walks the tightrope between on-chip memory and die size.

Infineon Technologies AG of Munich, Germany has announced its joint Innovation Application Center in Shenzhen with mobile charging and consumer electronics products firm Anker Innovations of Changsha, Hunan, China. With the center already fully operating, it is paving the way for more energy-efficient and CO2-saving charging solutions that support decarbonization...

Guerrilla RF Inc (GRF) of Greensboro, NC, USA — which develops and manufactures radio-frequency integrated circuits (RFICs) and monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMICs) for wireless applications — has announced the formal release of two ¼W linear power amplifiers PAs and two low-noise amplifiers LNAs earmarked specifically for the automotive market. All four devices were qualified to meet rigorous AEC-Q100 quality standards — a critical benchmark for semiconductor devices used in automotive applications. These new PAs and LNAs are used primarily in cellular compensators (essentially cellular ‘signal boosters’ serving to amplify and enhance cellular signals within the cabin of vehicles)...

In booth 1667 (Hall C) at SPIE Photonics West 2024 (30 January–1 February), KYOCERA SLD Laser Inc (KSLD) of Goleta, near Santa Barbara, CA, USA — which is commercializing gallium nitride (GaN)-based laser light sources for automotive, mobility, specialty lighting and consumer applications — is demonstrating new LaserLight technologies including a high-speed, bidirectional link for underwater wireless optical communication (UWOC) and custom-chip GaN laser capabilities...

submitted by /u/EqualOk4963 [link] [comments]

If you are ever in a pinch you can use a PoE splitter. I was doing some soldering work in the shop with the pinecil soldering iron and found a PoE splitter in a bin. submitted by /u/studdmufin [link] [comments]

submitted by /u/Kittenslover99 [link] [comments]

Gerber layers don’t have to be a mystery. Knowing the names and purposes of each Gerber layer used in PCB manufacturing can improve your designs and ease communication with the board house.

submitted by /u/kkessler64 [link] [comments]

Two linear power amplifiers (PAs) and two low-noise amplifiers (LNAs) from Guerrilla RF serve as signal boosters to enhance in-cabin cellular signals. Qualified to AEC-Q100 Grade 2 standards, the GRF5507W and GRF5517 PAs and the GRF2106W and GRF2133W LNAs operate over a temperature range of -40°C to +105°C.

The GRF5507W power amp has a tuning range of 0.7 GHz to 0.8 GHz, while the GRF5517W spans 1.7 GHz to 1.8 GHz. Each device delivers up to 23 dBm of output power with adjacent channel leakage ratio (ACLR) performance of better than -45 dBc. Further, this ACLR figure is achieved without the aid of supplemental linearization schemes, like digital pre-distortion (DPD). According to the manufacturer, the ability to beat the -45-dBc ACLR metric without DPD helps meet the stringent size, cost, and power dissipation requirements of cellular compensator applications.

The GRF2106W low-noise amplifier covers a tuning range of 0.1 GHz to 4.2 GHz, and the GRF2133W spans 0.1 GHz to 2.7 GHz. At 2.45 GHz (3.3 V, 15 mA), the GRF2106W provides a nominal gain of 21.5 dB and a noise figure of 0.8 dB. A higher gain level of 28 dB is available with the GRF2133W, along with an even lower noise figure of 0.6 dB at 1.95 GHz (5 V, 60 mA).

Prices for the GRF5507W and GRF5517W PAs in 16-pin QFN packages start at $1.54 in lots of 10,000 units. Prices for the GRF2106W and GRF2133W LNAs in 6-pin DFN packages start at $0.62 and $0.83, respectively, in lots of 10,000 units. Samples and evaluation boards are available for all four components.

GRF5507W product page

GRF5517W product page

GRF2106W product page

GRF2133W product page

Guerrilla RF 

Find more datasheets on products like this one at Datasheets.com, searchable by category, part #, description, manufacturer, and more.

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Renesas offers the DA14592 Bluetooth LE SoC, which the company says is its lowest power and smallest multicore Bluetooth LE device in its class. The device balances tradeoffs between on-chip memory and SoC die size to accommodate a broad range of applications, including crowd-sourced locationing, connected medical devices, metering systems, and human interface devices.

Along with an Arm Cortex-M33 CPU, the DA14592 features a software-configurable Bluetooth LE MAC engine based on an Arm Cortex-M0+. A new low-power mode enables a radio transmit current of 2.3 mA at 0 dBm and a radio receive current of 1.2 mA.

The DA14592 also supports a hibernation current of just 90 nA, which helps to extend the shelf-life of end products shipped with the battery connected. For products requiring extensive processing, the device provides an ultra-low active current of 34 µA/MHz.

Requiring only six external components, the DA14592 lowers the engineering BOM. Packaging options for the device include WLCSP (3.32×2.48 mm) and FCQFN (5.1×4.3 mm) The SoC’s reduced BOM, coupled with small package size, helps designers minimize product footprint. Other SoC features include a sigma-delta ADC, up to 32 GPIOs, and a QSPI supporting external flash or RAM.

The DA14592 Bluetooth LE SoC is currently in mass production. Renesas also offers the DA14592MOD, which integrates all of the external components required to implement a Bluetooth LE radio into a compact module. The DA14592MOD module is targeted for world-wide regulatory certification in 2Q 2024.

DA14592 product page 

Renesas Electronics  

Find more datasheets on products like this one at Datasheets.com, searchable by category, part #, description, manufacturer, and more.

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The 129CP digital water pressure sensor from Sensata allows remote monitoring by utilities to identify distribution issues, leaks, and other non-revenue water events. Integrated into residential and commercial water meters, the 129CP improves metering efficiency and reliability.

Water utilities manage extensive infrastructure to pump and deliver water to residential houses and commercial buildings. According to the International Water Association, 30% of water produced worldwide is wasted due to leaks within the network, metering inaccuracies, unauthorized consumption, or other issues.

By combining precision pressure monitoring with digital I2C communication, the 129CP sensor delivers granular insights into water usage. It monitors pressure from 0 to 232 psi (sealed gauge), while consuming less than 2 µA at a 1-Hz measurement rate.

Rugged construction enables the 129CP to survive 10 to 15 years in challenging high-moisture, high-shock environments. The device operates from a supply voltage of 1.7 V to 3.6 V over a temperature range of +2°C to +85°C. 

129CP product page

Sensata Technologies 

Find more datasheets on products like this one at Datasheets.com, searchable by category, part #, description, manufacturer, and more.

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Microchip’s PIC16F13145 MCUs enable the creation of hardware-based, custom combinational logic functions directly within the MCU. The integration of a configurable logic block (CLB) module in the microcontroller allows designers to optimize the speed and response time of embedded control systems.  It also helps eliminate the need for external logic components.

CLB operation is not dependent on CPU clock speed. The CLB module can be used to make logical decisions while the CPU is in sleep mode, reducing both power consumption and software reliance. According to Microchip, the CLB is easily configured using the GUI-based tool offered as part of MPLAB Code Configurator.

The PIC16F13145 family of CLB-enabled MCUs is intended for applications that use custom protocols, task sequencing, or I/O control to manage real-time control systems in industrial and automotive sectors. Devices include a 10-bit ADC with built-in computation, an 8-bit DAC, and comparators with a 50-ns response time.

Prices for the PIC16F131xx microcontrollers start at $0.47 each in lots of 10,000 units.

PIC16F13145 product page

Microchip Technology 

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Alpha & Omega’s AONA66916 100-V N-channel MOSFET comes in a DFN 5×6-mm designed to afford top and bottom side cooling. In addition to improved thermal performance, the device offers low on-resistance of 3.4 mΩ at 10 VGS and a wide safe operating area, making it well-suited for telecom, solar and DC/DC applications.

When using a standard DFN 5×6-mm package, heat dissipation is primarily through the bottom contact, transferring most of the power MOSFET’s heat to the PCB. Alpha & Omega’s latest DFN package enhances heat transfer by maximizing the surface contact area between the exposed top contact and the heat sink.

The AONA66916 MOSFET provides low thermal resistance, with top-side RthJC of 0.5°C/W maximum and bottom-side RthJC of 0.55°C/W maximum. The top-exposed DFN 5×6-mm package of the AONA66916 shares the same footprint of the company’s standard DFN 5×6-mm package, eliminating the need to modify existing PCB layouts.

The AONA66916 MOSFET costs $1.85 each in lots of 1000 units. It is available now in production quantities, with a lead time of 14 to16 weeks.

AONA66916 datasheet

Alpha & Omega Semiconductor 

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Gallium nitride (GaN) power IC and silicon carbide (SiC) technology firm Navitas Semiconductor Corp of Torrance, CA, USA and SHINRY of Shenzhen, China (a tier-1 supplier of on-board power supplies to auto-makers such as Honda, Hyundai, BYD, Geely, XPENG, and BAIC) have opened a joint R&D power laboratory to accelerate the development of new-energy vehicle (NEV) power systems enabled by Navitas’ GaNFast technology...

IC designers can now securely share thermal models across the supply chain—without compromising critical details about chip architecture.

Infineon Technologies AG of Munich, Germany has announced a partnership in which it will provide its 1200V CoolSiC MOSFET power semiconductor devices — in combination with EiceDRIVER compact 1200V single-channel isolated gate drive ICs — to Sinexcel Electric Co Ltd of Shenzhen, China (a provider of core power equipment and solutions for the energy Internet) to further improve the efficiency of energy storage systems...

Packaging innovation has always been critical to the cooling of components, especially for power-switching devices such as MOSFETs and IGBTs. The non-stop demand to make these devices smaller and lighter also applies to RF PA modules, even though the inner workings of these analog modules are very different than those of on/off switching of power devices. This need for “make it less, but also do more” is especially intensified due to the multichannel requirements of massive MIMO 5G systems.

Nonetheless, when it comes to packaging details, the primary concern of designers is “What does it do for me?” more than “How did you do it?” Yet the “how” part is important, as it defines the capabilities if newer parts and sets the groundwork for future innovations which build on it.

A good example is the top-side cooling (TSC) for RF power amplifier (PA) modules introduced by NXP Semiconductors in 2023. This advance was not “hey, we’ve got a new package in the works” but it was coupled with deliverable parts—always a big plus a world where pre-release hype and promotion are considered normal (thankfully, not so much in the no-nonsense “analog” world from DC to RF).

NXP’s packaging results in an RF PA module which is thinner and lighter than existing designs, with a better thermal path as well. This top-side cooling contrasts with conventional bottom-side cooling (BSC), where the thermally conductive paths transfer heat from the package components—primarily the PA itself—to the PCB, which is thermally bonded to a cold plate or heat sink. While TSC is not unique to NXP (other vendors have somewhat different implementations), the NXP approach is illustrative, Figure 1.

Figure 1 Compared to the bottom-side cooling approach (left), NXP’s top-side cooling (right) flips the placement of the thermal coin as well as active and passive components, for a thinner and more thermally conductive package. Source: NXP

In a usual BSC approach, the dissipation of the PA is conducted through a metallic “coin” in the PCB and then to a heat sink on the underside of the board. The associated module components, including the PA, circulator, and filter, are mounted on the top side of the board, and all are covered by an RF electromagnetic (EM) shield. To complete the signal path, the antenna array is connected to the board.

In contrast, with TSC, the PA chip is connected to a direct-bonded copper-ceramic substate on the top side of the package. The chip is mounted on the surface of the board, thus making direct contact with the external heat sink. The benefit of this arrangement is that it maximizes dissipation and thermal performance, while yielding a smaller package which increases functional density.

Specifically, in the TSC arrangement, the coin is connected instead to the other side of the board and directly to the heat sink, while the circulator and dielectric filter are also mounted there. As a result, all the RF components are on one side of the PCB. At the same time, the shield is integrated into the heat sink rather than on top side of the PCB, which puts the antenna closer to the board with a clean separation of thermal and RF paths. The overall design shortens the connectors, improving RF performance while reducing thickness and weight of the overall assembly.

In contrast, bottom-side cooling is a compromise between thermal performance and use of the board’s real estate since module components can be placed on one side only. The result is lower functional density of the board while it is being challenged to support multiple RF channels.

TSC is not just a preliminary investigation or available as sampling prototypes. Off-the-shelf RF power modules such as the A5M35TG140-TC are available for 32T32R-class, 200-W 5G radios covering 3.3 GHz to 3.8 GHz. The devices combine LDMOS and GaN semiconductor technologies to create 10.5 W (average) fully integrated Doherty PAs to with ~30 dB gain and 46 percent efficiency along with 400 MHz of instantaneous bandwidth—all in a package measuring just 14mm × 10mm × 2 mm thick, Figure 2.

Figure 2 The A5M35TG140-TC is one of three similar multi-GHz PA modules, each with a simple schematic which does not begin to indicate their sophisticated underlying processes or advanced package implementation. Source: NXP

There are also evaluation boards which ease the design task of assessing the PA module performance and characteristics without having to “reinvent the wheel” of a relatively simple-looking schematic and layout which inevitably has its RF subtleties, Figure 3.

Figure 3 Vendor-supplied evaluation boards are essential to speeding up the assessment and design-in process. Source: NXP

All these substantive improvements in packaging still leaves one evasive cooling question: where is this mythical, wonderful place called “away” to which all the dissipated heat is being conveyed? By doing a better job of getting heat away from the package, in addition to shrinking the package itself, are you making your previous thermal problem into someone else’s headache, as they now must contend with heat you toss off? Or would you have had that total amount of heat anyway, but with a different distribution across the PCB and within the chassis? Have you seen any other power-package developments for non-switching devices with which you were impressed?

Bill Schweber is an EE who has written three textbooks, hundreds of technical articles, opinion columns, and product features.

Related Content

• Stop blaming the supply for your dissipation woes
• Call on mechanical engineers to solve your tough thermal problems
• No place to hide from PCB thermal and RF considerations
• Oven Performance Shows Flip Side of Thermal Management

References (all from NXP)

• 5G Radios Shrink With NXP’s New Top-Side Cooling For RF Power
• Fact sheet: Top-Side Cooling RF Power Modules for 5G Infrastructure
• A5M36TG140-TC Top-Side Cooling Evaluation Board

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