6 July 2011

GCT launches first 4x4 MIMO WiMAX 2 single-chip

GCT Semiconductor Inc (GCT) of San Jose, CA, USA, a fabless designer and supplier of CMOS-based RF transceivers and system-on-chip (SOC) integrated circuits for 3G and 4G wireless communications, has announced the GDM7225 WiMAX 2 (IEEE 802.16m) single-chip, which integrates RF, MAC and PHY functions.

Designed to serve the growing demands of the WiMAX broadband market, the monolithic WiMAX 2 single-chip offers a 4x4 Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) system, enabling high-speed wireless broadband communications four to five times faster than existing WiMAX technology. The GDM7225 allows for higher data rates and provides backward compatibility with existing 16e mobile WiMAX (IEEE 802.16e) requirements. With the new WiMAX 2 single-chip, GCT is collaborating with UQ Communications Inc of Japan to enhance their 4G WiMAX network.

“As the demand for wireless broadband continues to grow exponentially, UQ Communications Inc is committed to advancing and improving our mobile WiMAX capacity,” says the firm’s president Akio Nozaka. “Our cooperation with GCT enables us to take full advantage of the potential of mobile WiMAX 2 in Japan,” he adds.

“WiMAX 2 is the natural next-generation option for WiMAX operators to improve network performance cost-effectively and enhance the user-experience,” believes GCT's president & CEO Dr Kyeongho ‘KH’ Lee. “Our new WiMAX 2 single-chip will power the terminal devices needed by operators that are upgrading their networks,” he adds. “The announcement of GDM7225 today demonstrates our continuing efforts to advance the 4G ecosystem and provide market-proven 4G SoC solutions to our WiMAX and LTE customers.”

GDM7225 features a complete transceiver that supports full coverage of the 2GHz WiMAX band in Japan and other countries, and offers what is claimed to be the world’s first 4x4 MIMO performance enabled by four independent RF receivers. GCT says that, with its proprietary MIMO modem technology, GDM7225 enables performance at speeds of up to 150Mbps downlink and 50Mbps uplink (based on device specifications). It also supports multi-carrier operation (10MHz + 10MHz) up to 20MHz bandwidth.

Tags: MIMO WiMAX 2 single-chip

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