Microwaves & RF articles from May 2007

Microwaves & RF archives from May 2007

Survey omission.(feedback)(Letter to the editor)
May 1, 2007... I PICKED UP MY March edition of Microwaves & RF with much anticipation, and put it down shortly thereafter with much dismay at our omission (from the frequency-synthesizer survey, "Frequency Synthesizers Fit Many Formats," p. 33). On page 43,...

UWB development.(feedback)(Letter to the editor)
May 1, 2007... THANK YOU for printing my comments in your March issue concerning Yeap Yean Wei's article in the December 2006 issue ("Design A Simple, Low-Cost UWB Source," p. 68) and for his response to my comments as well. It seems to me that we both...

An informal Hawaiian survey.(from the editor)(Editorial)
May 1, 2007... Hawaii is no doubt one of the world's more beautiful locations. Whether it is the right spot for the microwave industry's most important technical conference and exhibition remains to be seen. An early sampling of companies based in the...

India's wireless industry is experiencing incredible growth.(the front end)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... EL SEGUNDO, CA -- According to a report from iSuppli Corp., India emerged in 2006 as one of the fastest-growing wireless telecom markets in the world. In 2006, the number of mobile-phone service subscribers in India grew to 149.5 million in...

Mobile broadband grows 117 percent.(the front end)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... SCOTTSDALE, AZ -- Shipments of mobile broadband equipment built for data services grew 117 percent year over year, according to year-end numbers in the Sky Light Research Wireless Broadband Point to Multipoint 2006 Quarterly Market Share...

203 million mobile phones will use Linux OS by 2012.(the front end)(operating system)
May 1, 2007... LONDON, ENGLAND -- The Linux community is assaulting the mobile-phone environment with a two-pronged attack that focuses on commercial operating-system solutions and realtime-operating-system (RTOS) replacement. In a report entitled "Mobile...

Kudos.(the front end)(briefs)(Ultraflex International Inc.)
May 1, 2007... DURHAM, NC -- For contributions in the field of integrated-circuit (IC) technology, Dr. Isik C. Kizilyalli, director of technology at Nitronex, has been selected as a 2007 Fellow by the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE)....

Microwave technology reaches Hawaiian shores: the MTT-S, the industry's leading microwave conference and exhibition, held for the first time outside the continental US, offers updates on new technologies and products.(News Report)
May 1, 2007... Honolulu, Hawaii is almost synonymous with the terms "vacation" and "rest and relaxation." But for one week in June, it will be the place where thousands of microwave engineers come to work, learn, and perhaps sneak off to one of those sandy...

Antennas set patterns for wireless growth: although an antenna's role is often underestimated, this component is critical to the performance of both fixed and mobile wireless devices.(News Report)
May 1, 2007... The cellular market and other wireless technologies owe their success to the constant engineering of software, materials, components, and more. One of the most important components in any wireless product is of course the antenna, as it both...

Test laboratory finds cures for ESD ailments: for seven years, White Mountain Labs has quietly built a strong following among semiconductor companies in need of their expertise in ESD testing and analysis.(News Report)(electrostatic discharge)
May 1, 2007... Electrostatic discharge (ESD) is not to be taken lightly. Just ask any engineer who has mishandled an RF or microwave transistor or delicate memory chip only to learn later that the device was inadvertently "fried." ESD can plague otherwise...

Silicon Motion agrees to acquire FCI.(financialnews)(Silicon Motion Technology Corp.)(Future Communications Inc.)
May 1, 2007... Silicon Motion Technology Corp., a fabless semiconductor company that designs, develops, and markets universally compatible, high-performance, low-power semiconductor solutions for the multimedia consumer market, announced that it has entered...

ANADIGICS, Inc.(CONTRACTS)(Kunshan New and Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... ANADIGICS, Inc. -- Has entered into an investment contract with the Kunshan New and Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone (KSND) to jointly construct a 6-in. gallium-arsenide (GaAs) integrated-circuit (IC) wafer-fabrication facility (fab) for...

Sirit, Inc.(CONTRACTS)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Sirit, Inc. -- Announced that it has secured an order totaling $2.0 million from the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) in Southern California. The contract calls for Sirit to deliver its UHF RFID transponder technology over the next...

WPCS International, Inc.(CONTRACTS)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... WPCS International, Inc. -- Has been awarded a variety of new contracts totaling approximately $10.6 million. Some of the new contracts awarded to WPCS, through its subsidiaries, include projects to be completed for the United States...

Lockheed Martin.(CONTRACTS)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Lockheed Martin -- Announced that it has been awarded a $6 million contract to develop and integrate a demonstration payload that will temporarily transmit a third civil signal on a modernized Global Positioning Block IIR (GPS IIR-M) satellite....

Hittite Microwave Corp.(FRESH STARTS)(Financial report)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Hittite Microwave Corp. -- Reported revenue for the first quarter ended March 31, 2007 of $36.3 million, representing an increase of 30.4 percent compared with $27.9 million for the first quarter of 2006. Net income for the quarter was $12.0...

Conexant Systems, Inc.(FRESH STARTS)(Financial report)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Conexant Systems, Inc. -- Released financial results for the second quarter of fiscal 2007, which ended on March 30, 2007. For the second fiscal quarter, the company reported revenues of $199.9 million, consistent with the updated revenue...

Curtiss-Wright Corp.(FRESH STARTS)(Financial report)
May 1, 2007... Curtiss-Wright Corp. -- Reported its financial results for the quarter ended on March 31, 2007. The results included: * Net sales for the first quarter of 2007 increased 18 percent to $332.6 million from $282.6 million in the first quarter...

Endwave Corp.(FRESH STARTS)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Endwave Corp. -- Announced the acquisition of privately held ALC Microwave, Inc. for approximately $6.6 million in cash. ALC is a provider of logarithmic amplifier subsystems to many US and international defense prime contractors. Since its...

Cascade Microtech, Inc.(FRESH STARTS)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Cascade Microtech, Inc. -- Announced that Peregrine Semiconductor Corp. has placed a multimillion-dollar order for Cascade Microtech's Pyramid Probe cards for its advanced RF-CMOS integrated-circuit (IC) production. The probe cards, which have...

RF Micro Devices, Inc.(FRESH STARTS)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... RF Micro Devices, Inc. -- Added a research and development center to their Shanghai facility, which is located in Shanghai's Zhanjiang High-Tech Park. The new center will expand RFMD's product-development capacity to support original...

International Communications Group (ICG).(FRESH STARTS)(Financial report)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... International Communications Group (ICG) -- Announced a record-breaking year in 2006, posting their largest increase in sales to date--35 percent over 2005. ICG experienced a double-digit increase in market share in the business aviation sector...

G.T. Microwave, Inc.(FRESH STARTS )(SEMIC RF Electronic GmbH signs contract with G.T. Microwave Inc.)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... G.T. Microwave, Inc. -- Appointed SEMIC RF Electronic GmbH (www.semic.de) to represent them in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.

iTerra names Katz as president and CEO.(people)(DR. Avi Katz appointed as chief executive officer at iTerra Communications L.L.C.)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... ITerra Communications has appointed DR. AVI KATZ as president, CEO, and member of the board of directors. Dr. Katz was previously president and CEO of Intransa. He also had been CEO of Equator Technologies.

Zarlink Semiconductor, Inc.(people)(DR. Adam Chowaniec appointed at Zarlink Semiconductor Inc.)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Zarlink Semiconductor, Inc. -- DR. ADAM CHOWANIEC to the board of directors; continues as chairman of the board of directors at Tundra Semiconductor.

Quantam Leap Packaging, Inc.(people)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Quantam Leap Packaging, Inc. -- FRITZ JOHNSON to vice president of business development; formerly employed in senior sales and product-management positions at Kyocera America, Inc., Johnson Matthey Electronics, and Sumitomo Bakelite.

Trident Microsystems, Inc.(people)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Trident Microsystems, Inc. -- DAVID L. TEICHMANN to general counsel, vice president of human resources, and corporate secretary; formerly senior vice president, general counsel, and secretary of GoRemote Internet Communications, Inc.

eASIC Corp.(people)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... eASIC Corp. -- FRED N. LANCIA II to vice president of sales; formerly vice president of sales and product marketing for KeyEye Communications.

Silicon Motion Technology Corp.(people)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Silicon Motion Technology Corp. -- RIYADH LAI to CFO; formerly head of the Technology Group at ING Corporate Finance, Asia.

Endicott Interconnect Technologies, Inc.(people)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Endicott Interconnect Technologies, Inc. -- ROBERT WHITEHOUSE to director of engineering; formerly held senior engineering-management positions with Epec LLC, Sanmina-SCI, Hadco, United Technologies Corp., Digital Equipment Corp., and Texas...

Silterra Malaysia Sdn. Bhd.(people)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Silterra Malaysia Sdn. Bhd. -- LAI YIT LOONG to vice president of sales and marketing; formerly vice president of sales and marketing for Taiwan and Southeast Asia at Nvidia. Also, DR. TZU YIN CHIU to president and COO; formerly senior vice...

Prototron Circuits.(people)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Prototron Circuits -- RONALD S. SNARTLAND to production manager of the Tucson, AZ facility; formerly employed with Viasystems, Tri-Star, and Continental Circuits.

Tundra Semiconductor Corp.(people)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Tundra Semiconductor Corp. -- DR.BENNY CHANG to chief technology officer (CTO); continues as vice president of engineering. Also, ED VOPNITO to vice president of operations; formerly director of engineering.

Applied Wave Research, Inc.(people)(Dane Collins appointed )(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Applied Wave Research, Inc. -- DANE COLLINS to CEO; formerly executive vice president.

Silterra USA.(people)(Dr. Charles Chan appointed )(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Silterra USA -- DR. CHARLES CHAN to president; formerly held the position of vice president of foundry outsourcing at Huahong International.

Millennia Technology, Inc.(people)(Pat Sims appointed)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Millennia Technology, Inc. -- PAT SIMS to materials manager; formerly director of sourcing and materials at the Cattron Group International.

NXTcomm.(people)(Michael Cerami appointed)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... NXTcomm -- MICHAEL CERAMI to director of sales; formerly employed with CTIA--the Wireless Association.

Eurotherm.(people)(Dan Dudici appointed )(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Eurotherm -- DAN DUDICI to product manager for Action Instruments; formerly product marketing manager at Omron Electronics.

Credence Systems Corp.(people)(Joy E. Leo appointed )(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... Credence Systems Corp. -- JOY E. LEO to senior vice president of finance and CFO; formerly vice president of finance and administration, CFO, and secretary for Artisan Components, Inc.

Education.(Calendar)
May 1, 2007... SHORT COURSES R.A. Wood Associates Short Courses Introductory RF and Microwaves June 4-5 (Boston, MA) September 10-11 (Syracuse, NY) November 5-6 (Philadelphia, PA) RF and Microwave Receiver Design June 6-8...

High-Impedance Electromagnetic Surface improves antenna performance.(R & D roundup)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... HIGH-IMPEDANCE ELECTROMAGNETIC surface (HIS) is a new kind of artificial metallic electromagnetic structure. By not supporting propagating surface currents in the manner of conventional metallic conductors, HIS technology offers advantages to...

Pulse generator delivers 500-ps output pulse width at 40-mV amplitude.(R & D roundup)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... UNLIKE OTHER RF SYSTEMS, which use a narrow-band carrier, impulse-radio-Ultra-Wide-Band (IR-UWB) wireless communication is carrierless. It utilizes short pulse signals to transmit data over a very wide spectrum for short-range, high-data-rate...

FSS design concept uses silicon as switch substrate.(R & D roundup)(frequency selective surface)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... USUALLY, A FREQUENCY-SELECTIVE surface (FSS) comprises one or more screens with two-dimensional periodic patterns, which are generated by a unit cell containing metallic patches or apertures. Now, a design composed of a metallic cross-dipole...

Multiple antennas arm effective MIMO systems: understanding the interactions among different combinations of receive and transmit antenna elements can help increase the capacity of cellular wireless systems.(Design Feature)(multiple-input-multiple-output)
May 1, 2007... Capacity is critical for the profitability of larger wireless networks, and multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) systems provide potentially high capacity. (1) These systems use multiple antenna elements in both the transmitter and receiver to...

Protocol dictates requirements for RFID ICs: simulation tools can predict IC performance for realistic system-level operating conditions in the design of radio blocks for passive backscatter UHF RFID tag circuits.(Design Feature)
May 1, 2007... Growth in the RF-identification (RFID) market appears strong with sales of $1.7 billion in 2004 projected to reach $5.9 billion in 2008. This upsurge in demand is driven by the promises of next-generation RFID systems, which vow to provide...

Achieve first-pass LTCC design success with DFM: understanding the effects of process and component variations can help in constructing LTCC circuit designs that deliver desired performance levels in spite of those variations.(Design Feature)(Low-temperature-cofired-ceramic)(Design for Manufacturing)
May 1, 2007... Low-temperature-cofired-ceramic (LTCC) circuit technology supports compact, multilayer designs and is now widely used in wireless applications, especially in RF modules and system-in-package (SiP) designs. It has a number of advantages over...

Evaluating trimmer capacitor choices: understanding how to make the most of a trimmer capacitor involves an array of choices in packages, dielectric materials, and performance parameters.(Design Feature)
May 1, 2007... Capacitors are essential circuit elements that store and supply charge on demand. With inductors and resistors, they are the building blocks of passive circuits and the supporting components for active circuits While fixed-value capacitors over...

Analyze matching networks for low-noise amplifiers: by reducing the components count to just a couple of circuit elements, it is possible to generate impedance matching networks for a wide range of low-noise-amplifier matching conditions.(Design Feature)
May 1, 2007... Low-noise amplifiers (LNA) set the general noise figure and sensitivity of receivers and other high-frequency systems. Although a variety of excellent low-noise transistors is currently available based on numerous process technologies,...

Technique sets standard for balanced VNA tests: by working with actual differential signals rather than interpolation methods, these vector analyzers can provide more realistic evaluation of high-frequency amplifier performance.(Design Feature)(vector network analyzer)
May 1, 2007... Differential or ba anced measurements performed with a vector network analyzer (VNA) are typically done with a "virtual" approach. The device under test (DUT) is stimulated with unbalanced signals as in the manner of testing single-ended...

Mobile WiMAX promises portable broadband wireless: growth of WiMAX as a mobile wireless broadband access solution will depend on limiting the number of design solutions and the amount of different components needed.(Design Feature)
May 1, 2007... WiMAX may represent the "future" of wireless broadband connectivty, but it will not succeed without the support of many in the WiMAX Forum working with vendor companies. The WiMAX Forum is dedicated to making the WiMAX wireless communications...

Amplifiers perform up to standards of WiMAX output devices.(application notes)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... WIMAX OUTPUT DEVICES are tested to verify the amplifier device's linearity as well as the fidelity of the signal that is being amplified. A test amplifier must boost WiMAX signals with sufficient power while maintaining original signal quality....

Subsystem performance is defined for multicarrier 3G transceiver.(application notes)(third-generation)
May 1, 2007... ALTHOUGH THERE ARE potentially many benefits from a wideband-code-division-multiple-access (WCDMA) multicarrier third-generation (3G) transceiver, questions remain about whether the implementation of such a transceiver is feasible. In...

High-VSWR tuners ease device matching to 6 GHz: these high-performance load-pull tuners enable on-wafer measurements on power transistors at impedances of 1 [ohm] and less and at GSM RF power levels to +35 dBm.
May 1, 2007... Load-pull tuning systems provide tremendous insight into high-frequency devices under variable-impedance conditions. In terms of device and component optimization, for example, a load-pull tuner makes it possible to find the impedance-matching...

Spread-spectrum radios hop across 900-MHz band: these frequency-hopping radios provide high-speed wireless data to a wide range of industrial applications, operating at low power in the unlicensed 902-to-928-MHz band.(Product Technology)
May 1, 2007... Spread-spectrum technology has long provided the military with secure communications. For almost as long, it has also fueled the growth of FreeWave Technologies (Boulder, CO), a leading supplier of long-distance, high-data-rate radios to...

Fast frequency synthesizers switch across 6400 MHz: these fast-switching frequency synthesizers provide fine frequency resolution, generous output power, and low noise for a wide range of commercial and military applications.(Product Technology)
May 1, 2007... Fast-switching frequency synthesizers play a special role in many systems that require the speed, such as automatic-test-equipment (ATE) systems, setups for antenna and radar-cross-section (RCS) measurements, and even in radar and...

Traveling-wave antenna feeds space applications: this compact and low-profile antenna design provide medium gain at L-band frequencies using a simple, repeatable microstrip branchline configuration.(Product Technology)
May 1, 2007... Circularly polarized antennas serve a variety of satellite-communications applications, including geostationary satellites providing narrow-scan earth coverage. Although many antenna configurations are available for the task, a traveling-wave...

Coupling cuts phase noise in planar resonator VCOs: a unique coupling mechanism was applied to the design of fundamental-frequency VCOs at frequencies through 4.2 GHz with significant reductions in phase noise.(Product Technology)
May 1, 2007... Voltage-controlled oscillators (VCOs) are the tunable signal sources in a wide range of synthesizers, communications networks, test equipment, and other systems. Ideally, they provide wide tuning ranges with excellent phase-noise...

TCXO delivers stability to [+ or -]7 X [10.sup.-8].(editor's choice)(temperature-compensated crystal oscillator)(Editorial)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... TO SATISFY APPLICATIONS that require excellent stability, almost no heat dissipation, and no warm-up time, a microprocessor-controlled temperature-compensated crystal oscillator (TCXO) has been spawned. The T1220 offers oven-controlled-like...

Active doubler includes booster amplifier.(editor's choice)(Editorial)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... A NEW ACTIVE DOUBLER is versatile enough to be either operated in a saturated power mode or backed off for linear applications. The model XX1001-QK accepts input signals from 18 to 21 GHz and provides output signals from 36 to 42 GHz with +25...

Power dividers extend from 380 to 2700 MHz.(editor's choice)
May 1, 2007... BY LEVERAGING A UNIQUE airline coaxial structure, a line of unequal power dividers manages to maintain a fixed split ratio over a 380-to-2700-MHz bandwidth. Ripple and insertion loss are kept to a minimum. Insertion loss, for example, is 1.36...

55-GHz bandpass filter limits loss to 2 dB.(editor's choice)(Brief article)
May 1, 2007... THE MODEL F55-4V bandpass filter flaunts a 2-percent passband at 55 GHz. The filter assembly consists of four high-Q, iris-coupled waveguide cavities with optional waveguide-to-coax adapters at each end. The passband insertion loss is 2 dB. The...

The RF power behind design innovation: extensive expertise and experience in characterization, modeling, packaging, and applications support backs a long-time leader in RF power discrete and integrated-circuit (IC) devices.(MICROWAVE DESIGN WHITE paper)
May 1, 2007... Power density in active devices is increasing according to the demands of transistor users. Applications in commercial wireless, avionics, broadcast, industrial, and medical systems are pushing the envelope for solid-state power, with growing...