Turn-key back-end production services firm Presto Engineering Inc of San Jose, CA, USA (which provides semiconductor product engineering & test and supply chain management to integrated device manufacturer, fabless and electronics companies) is collaborating with fabless wireless chipset firm Peraso Technologies of Toronto, Canada to develop a comprehensive test solution for Peraso's recently launched 60GHz semiconductor products.
The Peraso chipset is currently in full mass production, with Presto providing test services at volumes of tens of thousands of parts per month. The new solution is the first phase of a project that will culminate in a high-efficiency test solution – 40x faster and capable of supporting high-volume production (millions of devices per month) for the consumer electronics market – planned for later in 2016. The 60GHz spectrum provides the foundation for WiGig technology and, with the increased demand for faster wireless connectivity, is quickly changing how users stream and connect to the Internet.
"Presto contributed expertise in high-frequency RF testing that was absolutely essential in our collaboration," says Peraso's CEO Ron Glibbery. "Together, we were able to develop an innovative solution that provides reliable testing at speeds and costs sufficient to support our infrastructure integrated circuits. We are well on our way to completing a test solution that will reduce the cost of test by another 40x and support the high growth we anticipate with the introduction of products into the consumer electronics market," he adds.
"This collaboration with Peraso allowed us to combine our extensive experience in RF test with Peraso's expertise in 60GHz ICs to develop a solution for high-speed/low-cost testing where none previously existed," says Presto's CEO Michel Villemain. "We have already made significant progress in the next phase of the development that will offer significantly reduced test times and an overall lower cost of test," he adds. "The successful collaboration demonstrates the benefits we provide to fabless manufacturers, ranging from test services to comprehensive supply chain management."
The Peraso X610 WiGig chip-set constitutes a complete baseband to 60GHz solution and is compliant with the single-carrier modulation and coding schemes of the IEEE 802.11ad specification. Incorporating the PRS4601 WiGig baseband IC and the PRS1126 WiGig transceiver, the chip-set provides the core functionality for a low-cost, high-performance multi-gigabit per second solution that operates across the industrial temperature range. As manufacturers continue to seek solutions to bring WiGig-enabled devices quickly to market, Presto and Peraso aim to drive down the cost and implementation time with the new test solution.
The testbed consists of a set of custom hardware components mounted on an automated test equipment (ATE) load board, and associated test programs, that together provide comprehensive automated testing of both baseband (~2GHz) and high-frequency (60GHz) functionality.