MEMS analysis
RF MEMS tipped for mobile growth IHS iSuppli teardown analysis identifies first use of RF MEMS part
I
HS has identified a radio frequency microelectromechanical system (RF MEMS) device in a new Samsung mobile phone, marking the first known use of such a part in a volume- shipping product and sounding the starting gun for an RF MEMS market that is set to grow by a factor of 200 by the year 2015.
Samsung’s Focus Flash Windows smartphone includes an RF MEMS device from WiSpry Inc., according to the IHS iSuppli Teardown Service at information and analysis provider IHS .
RF MEMS devices like the WiSpry part can provide a range of benefits in mobile phones, including the reduction of signal interruptions and dropped calls, faster data transmission rates and improved design and power efficiency. This will pave the way for other mobile phones to adopt RF MEMS, causing
global sales of such devices to rise to $150 million in 2015, up from just $720,000 in 2011.
“RF MEMS have been promoted by suppliers as the next big thing in mobile phones for nearly a decade,” noted Jérémie Bouchaud, senior principal analyst. MEMS and sensors for IHS. “However, although they have been shipping since 2005 in low volume for instrumentation applications, interest among mobile phone makers in the use of RF MEMS didn’t pick up until mid-2010, when users began to report problems with signal reception with the iPhone 4 after they held the device in certain ways. This so-called “death grip” problem can be alleviated through the use RF MEMS. When combined with the other benefits delivered by RF MEMS, the market for these parts is set for rapid growth in the coming years.”
The IHS teardown of the Focus Flash revealed a MEMS-based antenna tuning module labeled A2101 in a die-on-LGA package near the antenna connectors. The tunable impedance match (TIM) device, as WiSpry calls it, consists of a network of inductors combined with WiSpry’s CMOS- integrated, digitally tunable and low-loss MEMS capacitors. The WiSpry single-chip design integrates logic circuits/serial interface for control, on-board high-voltage charge pump and high- voltage MEMS drivers, together with fully encapsulated digital MEMS capacitors on a single chip.
Tuning in
There are multiple direct benefits of using RF MEMS to tune and match the antenna for the network operators, mobile phone makers and users. Beyond mitigating the signal dropout issue because of the death grip, RF MEMS can improve the antenna efficiency in mobile phones, which can increase transmission data rates. For example, in the U.S. long -term evolution (LTE) 4G standard, antenna tuning can boost data rates by as much as 40 percent.
Furthermore, RF MEMS enables mobile phones to employ smaller antennas that have the same or greater efficiency than larger ones. This can allow the design of thinner phones. The improved antenna efficiency also can allow network operators
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www.siliconsemiconductor.net Issue III 2012
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