Avnera™ Corp., a fabless semiconductor company specializing in wired-quality wireless audio, used Jazz Semiconductor's® 0.18-micron RFCMOS process (CA18) to develop its semiconductor chip technology for wireless speakers, microphones, headphones and headsets that solves many interference problems. Avnera’s products include the AudioMagic™ chip, which enables uncompressed CD-quality sound for music applications, and the VoiceMagic™ chip, which offers wideband voice (16 kHz sampling rate) transmission, fixed end-to-end voice latency to support echo cancellation and a small and cost-efficient form factor. AudioMagic and VoiceMagic are the first two product families under the AvneraAudio™ brand.

Avnera utilized Jazz’s CA18 process, an RF optimized 0.18-micron CMOS platform. Available RF modules such as high density MIM capacitors allow for high precision, area optimized analog circuits. Thick top metal inductors allow for differentiated, high performance RF radio design. The customized high density digital library enables high levels of digital integration resulting in the remarkably low power consumption and highly integrated RFCMOS platform. The CA18 design enablement suite includes the Process Control Model Tool (PCMT) and the Jazz Inductor Toolbox (JIT) in addition to next generation PSP and MOSVAR high frequency models. The CA18HR process offers 1.8 V and 3.3 V CMOS, vertical PNP transistors, 4fF/µm² stacked MIM capacitors, resistors (poly and Nwell) and high-Q octagonal inductors. Options include triple well isolation, six layers of metal and thick top metal. The process also offers a high voltage transistor useful for the integration of power and battery management functions.

“We are offering consumers a wireless solution that is easy to use with high quality at an affordable price,” said Manpreet Khaira, CEO, Avnera Corp. “By using Jazz’s advanced RF CMOS process, we are able to offer an audio solution that includes breakthrough streaming transmission technology with six layers of interference protection, all on a single piece of silicon that can be delivered at a distinctively lower total system cost.”