Peregrine Semiconductor Corp., a fabless provider of high-performance radio frequency integrated circuits (RFICs), announced a single-pole, single throw (SPST) antenna tuning switch for LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) smartphones. This latest addition to Peregrine’s series of tuning devices leverages Peregrine’s UltraCMOS® process using the HaRP™ and DuNE™ enhancements to deliver an ideal combination of performance and integration to 4G wireless platforms.  In a related announcement today, the PE613010 antenna tuning switch has already been chosen by Pantech to drive performance in its new Vega LTE-A handset.

Peregrine’s tuning products are designed to help 4G handset manufacturers implement tunable antennas, the benefits of which include faster data throughput, smaller size and enhanced overall consumer experience. Based on Peregrine’s UltraCMOS technology, the PE613010 antenna switch delivers the industry’s lowest resistance-on (Ron) of 1.2 Ohms from 700-2700 MHz. This maximizes radiated performance of the antenna in support of higher data throughput, increased battery life and longer range for fewer dropped calls. Manufacturers can achieve this performance while also minimizing size in support of thinner form factor phones. The new PE613010 antenna tuning switch is supplied in a miniature 2 x 2 x 0.55 mm package that requires zero external components.

“The emergence of LTE-A networks places significant RF design challenges on handset manufacturers to deliver an optimal user experience despite supporting the ever increasing number of frequency bands and higher data throughput,” said Dylan Kelly, vice president of the mobile wireless solutions business unit at Peregrine Semiconductor.  “The new PE613010 antenna tuning switch helps to solve these challenges, and as a result, has already been integrated into multiple 4G handsets. The feedback from customers has been very positive as Peregrine’s tuning solutions enable the performance gains required at the antenna for smartphones to support the full capabilities of LTE-A networks.”

The PE613010 antenna tuning switch features high RF power handling and ruggedness, while meeting challenging harmonic and linearity requirements of LTE-A with Peregrine’s HaRP technology.

With single-pin low voltage CMOS control, all decoding and biasing is integrated on-chip and no external bypassing or filtering components are required.  The PE613010 also features ESD tolerance of 2kV HBM on all pins, providing a monolithically integrated solution for tunable antennas.

Development Tool Support

Peregrine Semiconductor also announced availability of the PE613010 Evaluation Kit, available now through Peregrine’s global direct sales representatives and worldwide distribution partners. 

Packaging, Pricing & Availability

The PE613010 antenna tuning switch is available now, in RoHS compliant, 10-lead QFN package measuring just 2 x 2 x 0.55 mm.  Samples, volume-production quantities and pricing are available today, by contacting Peregrine.  For more information, visit http://www.psemi.com.