- News
24 February 2016
Qorvo expands RF Fusion family with low-, mid- and high-band front-end modules
Qorvo Inc (which provides core technologies and RF solutions for mobile, infrastructure and defense applications) has expanded its RF Fusion family with front-end modules (FEMs) that leverage the firm's RF product portfolio, advanced packaging and process technologies, and systems-level expertise to integrate all major transmit and receive RF functionality into highly integrated split-band placements.
The new RF Fusion modules showcase the firm's unique ability to tightly integrate all major RF functionality across all major frequency bands into compact, high-performance placements, claims Eric Creviston, president of Qorvo's Mobile Products group. "With RF Fusion, Qorvo is providing leading smartphone OEMs the highest level of integration and performance, helping them to simplify and accelerate the launch of their next-generation Rel-12 carrier aggregation (CA)-capable 4G smartphones and tablets," he adds.
RF Fusion solutions support all major cellular basebands and all major LTE bands to provide OEMs with a highly compact, scalable source for the entire cellular front end, while speeding an OEM's time to RF compliance under the most stringent of 3GPP standards, says the firm.
The new RF Fusion FEMs – the QM75001, QM78013 and QM78012 – are split-band placements delivering coverage of 2.3–2.7GHz, 1.7–2.1GHz and 698–915MHz, respectively. The modules are also optimized for superior performance with envelope tracking (ET) power management integrated circuits (PMICs), and provide complete support for next-generation receive and transmit carrier aggregation functionality.
RF Fusion modules complement Qorvo's expanding family of RF Flex solutions, which can be mated with the firm's LowDrift and NoDrift high-performance duplexers to enable flexible and configurable front-end systems for mobile devices in emerging markets as well as emerging cellular Internet of Things (IoT) applications.
Qorvo's RF Fusion family of RF front-end modules comprises the following:
- RF Fusion HB module: QM75001 is a multimode multiband module that integrates all major transmit and receive RF functionality for high-frequency band coverage of global cellular networks while delivering what is claimed to be best-in-class performance and the industry's smallest form factor. A subset of the functional content of the QM78064 RF Fusion HB module, the QM75001 integrates multimode, multiband power amplifiers (PAs), FDD and TD-LTE capable transmit/receive switches, LowDrift filters for bands 38, 40 and 41-wide, and full support for intra-band uplink carrier aggregation, inter-band downlink carrier aggregation, advanced power tracking and envelope tracking. The highly integrated QM75001 delivers a 35% reduction in board area compared with a discrete solution, and is available in a compact 4.0mm x 3.0mm x 0.8mm multi-layer laminate substrate placement.
- RF Fusion MB module: QM78013 is a multimode multiband module that integrates all major transmit and receive RF functionality for mid-frequency band coverage of global cellular networks while delivering what is claimed to be best-in-class performance and the industry's smallest form factor. The QM78013 integrates multimode, multiband FDD and TD-LTE PAs, mode switching, LowDrift band 25 duplexer, a LowDrift-based multiplexer capable of multi-downlink carrier aggregation for bands 1 and 3 in addition to band 4, along with an antenna switch and coupler. QM78013 PA chains can fully support intra-band uplink carrier aggregation in FDD and TD-LTE bands, such as B1 and B39 respectively, as well as inter-band downlink carrier aggregation, while operating in both advanced power tracking and envelope tracking modes. The highly integrated QM78013 delivers a 30% reduction in board area compared with a discrete solution, and is available in a compact 5.5mm x 7.7mm x 0.875 mm multi-layer laminate substrate placement.
- RF Fusion LB module: QM78012 is a multimode multiband module that integrates all major transmit and receive RF functionality for low-frequency band coverage of global cellular networks while delivering what is claimed to be best-in-class performance and the industry's smallest form factor. The QM78012 integrates a multimode, multiband FDD PA, mode switching, multiple LowDrift duplexers addressing bands 5/26, 8, 12/17, 20, 28a and 28b, receive aggregation switch, along with an antenna switch. The QM78012 is also designed to reduce harmonic radiation, allowing for improved performance in complex low-band plus mid-band carrier aggregation combinations, while operating in both advanced power tracking and envelope tracking modes. The highly integrated QM78012 delivers a 30% reduction in board area compared to a discrete solution, and is available in a compact 5.5mm x 7.2mm x 1.0mm multi-layer laminate substrate placement.
Qorvo is showcasing its expanding portfolio of RF solutions for smartphones, tablets and other high-performance mobile data devices at the 2016 GSMA Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, Spain (22-25 February).