In stand I-2 (hall 2) at GSMA’s Mobile World Congress (MWC2018) in Barcelona, Spain (26 February – 1 March), Skyworks Solutions Inc of Woburn, MA, USA (which makes analog and mixed-signal semiconductors) has launched its first family of products from its Sky5 platform enabling 5G connectivity.
The wireless engines, which include highly integrated, high-performance transmit/receive front-end solutions as well as diversity receive (DRx) modules, are designed specifically for new spectrum in the sub-6GHz range, are baseband agnostic and compliant with 3GPP standards. Future products will include modules that address eLAA and C-V2X applications in the same frequency ranges.
To meet early demand for sub-6GHz 5G new radio (NR) usage cases, Skyworks is leveraging its technology portfolio to meet requirements for low, mid, high and ultra-high cellular frequency bands. Through its SkyBlue enabling technology, these modules also provide what is claimed to be industry-leading power efficiency. All Sky5 solutions will support new 5G waveforms and spectrum in addition to enhanced carrier aggregation and dual connectivity (4G/5G) while delivering high levels of integration and performance.
“Skyworks’ innovative Sky5 architectures are accelerating the deployment of 5G wireless communications,” says Joel King, VP & general manager of Advanced Mobile Solutions. “We recognize that 5G requires significantly more powerful and complex connectivity solutions and are excited to employ our systems expertise, operational scale and solid customer partnerships to resolve these challenges.”
According to Ericsson’s June 2017 Mobility Report, 15% of the world's population is expected to be covered by 5G in 2022. North America is projected to be first in adoption rates for 5G, with a quarter of all mobile subscriptions in the region to be on 5G by 2022.
The GSMA reports that 60% of the world’s population is already covered by 4G networks and more than 2.5 billion individuals are connected to 3G or 4G networks and services. LTE-Advanced networks will form the foundation for rapid rollout of 5G, providing both networks and platforms to further digitize economies and societies.
All Sky5 solutions offer MIPI interface and are highly flexible, with customizable architectures to optimize performance, footprint and power efficiency. Initial products include:
SKY78250 – a 5G NR power amplifier module with integrated filtering and dual-path low-noise amplifiers (LNA) supporting N77, N78, N79 and B42, B43, B48 bands. This device also uses SkyBlue technology and integrates a dual antenna output. SKY97005 – a 5G NR diversity receive module with integrated filtering and dual-path LNAs supporting N77, N78, N79 and B42, B43, B48 bands. This device also incorporates a dual antenna interface. SKY85762 – an eLAA front-end module with a dual-mode power amplifier and simultaneous LAA/Wi-Fi receive functionality (for release in late 2018). SKY85761 – a cellular Vehicular-to-Everything (C-V2X) front-end module with Class 2 power and integrated gain control (for release in late 2018).
