Skyworks Introduces Industry’s First BAW Filters to Enable WiMAX and WLAN Co-Existence

WOBURN, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Skyworks Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:SWKS), an innovator of high performance analog and mixed signal semiconductors enabling mobile connectivity, today introduced the industry’s first bulk acoustic wave (BAW) filters for customer premise equipment (CPE) to allow co-existence between wireless local area networks (WLAN) in the home and enterprise, and WiMAX networks which cover wider areas including neighborhoods and cities. As both networks operate at very closely spaced frequency bands, these unique BAW filters reject the interfering frequencies while allowing the desired signals to pass for the selected network.

“WiFi and WiMAX are converging markets and OEMs have a critical need for both signals to co-exist on the same device,” said Stan Swearingen, Skyworks’ vice president and general manager. “Skyworks is uniquely meeting this design challenge and has introduced filtering technology to address these requirements and, in turn, support a variety of applications including access points, PCMCIA cards, USB dongles, notebook and ultra-mobile personal computers, as well as femto and pico base stations.”

BAW filters are integral components of radio frequency (RF) architectures and according to Strategy Analytics demand is projected to exceed $1.5 billion by 2010. Given their particular combination of small footprint, low profile and high performance, they are extremely valuable in enabling next-generation wireless products, which increasingly require greater functionality and reduced form factors. Combined with the company’s portfolio of switches, power amplifiers (PAs), front-end modules (FEMs) and transceivers, Skyworks is a one-stop supplier for wireless equipment manufacturers requiring highly integrated RF solutions for a wide array of air interfaces and system architectures. Skyworks entered the BAW filter market three years ago as part of its strategic effort to develop diverse, differentiated and more highly integrated products.

About the SKY33107 and SKY33108

The SKY33107 is a WiFi reject/WiMAX pass, and the SKY33108 is a WiFi pass/WiMAX reject, BAW filter. Both 3 x 3 millimeter (mm) devices have very low in-band insertion loss and input and output return loss. They also exhibit excellent rejection – in the 2.4 gigahertz (GHz) WLAN band for the SKY33107, and 2.495-2.690 GHz WiMAX band for the SKY33108. The SKY33107 is intended for use in 2.495-2.690 GHz WiMAX band transmitter applications which also contain WLAN 802.11 b, g, n transmitters, while the SKY33108 is targeted at 2.400-2.473 GHz WiFi band transmitter applications which also encompass 2.495-2.690 GHz WiMAX transmitters. Both filters can operate over a -20 to 85° Celsius temperature range and are available in a lead (Pb)-free, restriction of hazardous substances (RoHS)-compliant package.

About BAW Filters

Filters are the first line of defense against interference at the front-end of all radios, as they block unwanted frequencies, while the desired frequency band is transmitted with very low loss. As an increasing number of communication systems use adjacent RF frequency bands, very high selectivity filters have become more critical in ensuring that those systems with close frequency bands do not interfere with each other.

A great challenge for RF filters is to provide low loss in the desired transmission band, and yet give high rejection at nearby frequencies, such as those just outside the passband. BAW filter technology is ideally suited for achieving such high selectivity since it works by transducing electrical signals into very low loss (high Q) resonant acoustic vibrations in piezoelectric structures.

BAW filters are fabricated using semiconductor wafer fabrication techniques similar to those already used by Skyworks to manufacture heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT) PAs and pseudomorphic high electron mobility transistor (pHEMT) switches. Skyworks is leveraging wafer fabrication expertise to achieve high precision, high repeatability, and large volume capability to address the RF filter needs of the wireless communications industry.

Pricing and Availability

Engineering samples are available now, with full launch scheduled for the fourth quarter. For customized pricing, please contact sales@skyworksinc.com.

About Skyworks

Skyworks Solutions, Inc. is an innovator of high performance analog and mixed signal semiconductors enabling mobile connectivity. The company's power amplifiers, front-end modules and direct conversion radios are at the heart of many of today's leading-edge multimedia handsets. Leveraging core technologies, Skyworks also offers a diverse portfolio of linear products that support automotive, broadband, cellular infrastructure, industrial and medical applications.

Headquartered in Woburn, Mass., Skyworks is worldwide with engineering, manufacturing, sales and service facilities throughout Asia, Europe and North America. For more information, please visit Skyworks’ Web site at: www.skyworksinc.com.

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