In booth 1507 at the 2012 IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium (IMS) in Montreal, Canada (19–21 June), Skyworks Solutions Inc of Woburn, MA, USA (which manufactures high-reliability analog and mixed-signal semiconductors) has launched a line of high-power RF switches (up to 100W) supporting diverse market applications including TD-LTE infrastructure base stations, repeaters and low-frequency military/microwave UHF and UVF radios. The firm claims that the highly integrated single-pole double-throw (SPDT) solutions offer high-performance, cost-competitive devices in a compact design.
''By replacing expensive mechanical switches and complicated relays, our newest devices simplify architectures for applications with challenging power levels,'' says VP of analog components David Stasey, citing design wins at several tier-one customers across multiple and diverse markets.
The SKY12207-478LF (0.9–4.0GHz), SKY12208-306LF (0.02–2.7GHz) and SKY12210-478LF (0.9–4.0GHz) are high-power SPDT silicon-based PIN diode switches. The 4mm x 4mm, 16-pin quad flat no lead (QFN) packaged devices features low insertion loss (0.4dB), high isolation (44 dB) and what is claimed to be excellent power handling (50W and 100W) and superb linearity with low direct current (DC) power consumption. They all operate with a 5V or 28V positive DC voltage supply across a broad frequency range (20MHz–4.0GHz). Skyworks has also developed a complementary driver application circuit to align with the switches.
