Tech News
HDMI Transmitters Deliver Flawless HD Video and Ultra-slim Multimedia Designs for Portable Electronics
Analog Devices has introduced two of the industry's smallest and thinnest low-power transmitters to incorporate HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) version 1.4 specification support for 3-D display resolutions and extended colourimetry. With a 25 percent smaller footprint than competing offerings (only 3.45 mm x 3.45 mm x 0.505 mm), ADI's low-power transmitters --the 80 MHz ADV7525 and the 150 MHz ADV7526 --enable mobile device designers to achieve new levels of miniaturisation, flawless HD video performance and power efficiency. They are compatible with the industry's smallest, lowest power ADV7611 and ADV7612 receivers recently announced by ADI.
Smoke-Detector IC from Microchip offers low-voltage operation with programmable operating modes and calibration
Microchip announced the RE46C190 3V photo smoke-detector IC with horn driver and boost regulator. The world's first smoke-detector IC to offer low-voltage operation with programmable calibration and operating modes, the RE46C190 IC enables the optimum operating modes to be selected and calibrated during manufacturing. This simplifies smoke-detector design and manufacturing, as well as reducing component count and cost. Additionally, the IC's low typical operating current of 8 microamperes enables up to 10 years of operation from a single Lithium battery. Two Alkaline batteries may also be used to power the RE46C190.
Picochip shares femtocell roadmap to enable complete 3G basestation on a USB dongle
Picochip today unveiled its vision for next-generation femtocells, including picoXcell technology that will allow its customers to create an entire 3G cellular basestation in an ultra-small form factor such as a USB dongle. The concept of a basestation on a USB dongle is one of several Picochip developments in the spotlight at CES 2011, (Las Vegas Convention Center, Jan 6 – 9). Others include enabling technology for small form factor public access HSPA+ femtocells (sometimes known as picocells or microcells); picoArray technology that is already delivering 4G services around the world and enabling LTE trials today; and the company's new platform for dual mode (LTE and HSPA+) small cells.
NXP Ships Dual Silicon Tuner for Cable
NXP announced the TDA18260, a dual silicon tuner for cable, is in volume production and available immediately. The TDA18260 simplifies the design of high-definition multi-tuner cable set-top boxes, enabling up to 6 channels with high performance on each stream. The dual cable silicon tuner IC from NXP eliminates tuner-to-tuner interference as well as the need to add complex, costly RF components such as low-noise amplifiers, splitters, Surface Acoustic Wave (SAW) filters and incremental crystal oscillators.
Texas Instruments simplifies connected audio product development with the DA8x Aureus nSDK, enabling up to nine months of development time savings
Helping audio consumer electronics manufacturers stay ahead of the latest trends in connected entertainment, Texas Instruments is launching the networked audio software development kit (nSDK), allowing developers to quickly and easily integrate Internet radio and online streaming services into end products based on the DA8x Aureus platform of audio processors. The flexible nSDK enables developers to easily and quickly achieve high-performing, cost-effective solutions for connected consumer products, offering up to nine months of development time savings. The nSDK eases and accelerates ARM-based development for applications such as Internet radios, networked audio video receivers (nAVRs) and other connected audio products.
Low-energy DECT variant targets sensor networks
Wireless sensor nodes need to run on batteries for many years. SiTel Semiconductor and RTX Telecom are proposing a new ultra-low-energy extension to the existing DECT standard especially for this kind of application. There is already a host of low-energy networking standards available. But according to SiTel's Steven Leussink, DECT ULE offers many unrivalled mix of advantages for bandwidth, interference preventions and network topology.
AMD Fusion APU Era Begins
AMD has launched a new class of accelerated processor that combines more compute capabilities than any processor in the history of computing. The AMD Fusion Family of Accelerated Processing Units (APUs) incorporate - in a single die design - multi-core CPU (x86) technology, a powerful DirectX®11-capable discrete-level graphics and parallel processing engine, a dedicated high-definition video acceleration block, and a high-speed bus that speeds data across the differing types of processor cores within the design. New generations of desktop, notebook and HD netbooks are now available based on AMD Fusion APUs at affordable price points. Tablets and embedded designs based on AMD Fusion APUs are expected be available later in Q1 2011. The new range of products features include stutter-free HD video playback, breakthroughs in computational horsepower to handle the most demanding applications2, DirectX 11-capable graphics and all-day battery life.1
Barix Ethernet Powered IP Speaker Device Gets European Debut at ISE
Barix AG comes to ISE 2011 (February 1-3, RAI Exhibition Centre, Amsterdam, Booth #2A71) with a new IP Audio innovation that gives systems integrators and end users the freedom of choice to turn nearly any 8-ohm speaker into an IP speaker solution.
LEDs grown on semi-polar GaN wafers
Ostendo Technologies, Inc. (Ostendo) and Technologies and Devices International, Inc. (TDI), part of the Oxford Instruments Group, are pleased to announce that LED structures grown on their semi-polar (11-22) GaN wafers have resulted in more than 2.5x the emission intensity of the c-plane GaN based LED structures.
Peregrine Semiconductor and Soitec Announce New Bonded Silicon-on-Sapphire Substrate for RFIC Manufacturing
Peregrine Semiconductor Corporation, a leading provider of high-performance radio-frequency (RF) integrated circuits (ICs), and Soitec (Euronext Paris), the world's leading supplier of silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafers and advanced solutions for the electronics and energy industries, today announced the joint development and ramp in production of a new, bonded silicon-on-sapphire (SOS) substrate which has been qualified for use in manufacturing Peregrine's next-generation STeP5 UltraCMOS RF IC semiconductors.
New microwave power divider can handle 250W at frequencies up to 2.5GHz
New from Link Microtek is the Model 2372A-2 two-way power divider, which operates over microwave frequencies from 500MHz to 2.5GHz and can handle an input power of up to 250W CW or 2kW peak. Manufactured by Narda, the device can also be used as a non-coherent 125W-per-signal power combiner and is suitable for a variety of applications in telecommunications infrastructure.
In-System Emulation Technology VarioTAP meets TigerSHARC DSP from Analog Devices
GOEPEL electronic has developed a dedicated model library for the TigerSHARC series of Digital Signal Processors (DSP) from Analog Devices to support the innovative emulation technology VarioTAP®. VarioTAP's functional range goes from programming of external Flash devices, interlaced bus emulation tests (BET) up to emulation tests on system level. It is based on processor specific library models in software IP form.
Philips Lumileds Claims a Lead in LED Industry with Mass Production on 150 mm Wafers
Philips Lumileds is the first power LED manufacturer in mass production on 150 mm wafers and is now producing millions of GaN based LEDs weekly on the larger substrates. Lumileds has the most advanced LED manufacturing and operations environment and capability in the world. The company continues to lead the industry in never before possible lumen-per-dollar and lumen-per-watt performance in lighting applications and in the drive to increased adoption of solid-state lighting solutions.
STMicroelectronics Unveils Next-Generation ICs for Feature-Rich Price-Competitive Set-Top Boxes
STMicroelectronics has extended its strategy supporting competitively priced high-performing STBs by unveiling two new System-on-Chip ICs that allow standard-definition (SD) or high-definition (HD) equipment to share the same printed-circuit-board (PCB) design and leverage software developed for earlier product generations.
Halving Energy Losses with New Semiconductor Materials for the Benefit of Renewables, Telecommunications and Lighting Systems
Six partners from the semiconductor and solar industries are joining forces in the NEULAND project funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) to explore new avenues for the efficient use of electricity from renewable sources. NEULAND stands for innovative power devices with high energy efficiency and cost effectiveness based on wide bandgap compound semiconductors. The project aims to reduce the losses in feeding electricity into the grid, e.g. in photovoltaic inverters, by as much as 50 percent – without significantly increasing system costs. This is to be achieved using innovative semiconductor devices based on silicon carbide (SiC) and gallium nitride on silicon (GaN-on-Si).
New Tunable Near-IR Bandpass Filter
New to Semrock's VersaChrome widely tunable thin-film optical filter line-up is the TBP01-800/12, pushing tunable imaging into near-IR territory with a wavelength tuning range of over 100 nm. Unique in the marketplace, VersaChrome filters offer wavelength tunability over a very wide range of wavelengths (> 12% of the normal incidence wavelength) by adjusting the angle of incidence with essentially no change in spectral performance.
STMicroelectronics Boosts Embedded-Touch Performance for 8-Bit Microcontrollers
STMicroelectronics has extended and enhanced its STMTouch capacitive touch-sensing firmware library allowing designers to add advanced user-interface features to applications using 8-bit STM8 microcontrollers. The second-generation STMTouch firmware now supports over 200 STM8 part numbers, including the advanced STM8S family and the STM8L, featuring ultra low-power EnergyLite™ technology. Another new feature is support for touch detection via charge-transfer, which delivers high sensitivity and robustness. In addition, simultaneous channel acquisition reduces CPU usage to help designers optimize application features and power consumption. The library also provides improved wheel and slider controls that feature 256-level resolution while using only three microcontroller I/Os as sensor channels.
TI’s new Multi-DC/DC Color LED Kit delivers more design flexibility for lighting systems that require a variety of LED types and string lengths
Providing all of the open source hardware and software needed to jumpstart LED lighting design, Texas Instruments announced its new TMS320C2000 real-time microcontroller (MCU) Multi-DC/DC Color LED Kit. The new kit includes separate DC/DC power stages to control two RGB and two white LED strings or up to eight white LED strings.
High-Performance RF Power Detector Simultaneously Delivers rms and Envelope Outputs
Analog Devices introduced a new highly integrated, high-performance RF detector for use in wireless, instrumentation, defense, and other broadband applications. ADI's new ADL5511 TruPwr rms (root mean square) and envelope detector (an electronic circuit that takes a RF signal as input and provides an output that represents the envelope of the signal) offers a high level of integration and functionality by combining two RF functions into one small chip, thereby simplifying designs and reducing BOM (bill of materials) cost.
Innovative High-Density RFID Memory from STMicroelectronics Simplifies and Speeds Up Maintenance of Professional Equipment
An innovative RFID device from STMicroelectronics now allows technical equipment to 'talk back,' providing detailed information, such as a full maintenance history, to speed up servicing and simplify record keeping for OEMs and equipment operators.
Renesas and Imagination show POWERVR SGX MP enabled SoC
Imagination Technologies' partner Renesas Electronics Corporation, a premier supplier of advanced semiconductor solutions, has debuted a new SoC (System-on-Chip) with POWERVR SGX MP (multi-processor) graphics. The SoC delivers impressive levels of mobile and embedded graphics performance, over 5x that of the best current generation devices.
Imagination announces Android for META-based SoC application platforms
Imagination Technologies, a leading multimedia and communications technologies company, announces Android support for its META multi-threaded processor family, including META connected application platform solutions.
User-programmable linear Hall-effect sensor IC
The new A1356 from Allegro MicroSystems Europe is a user-programmable linear Hall-effect sensor IC with a pulse width modulated (PWM) output. Featuring built-in filtering to provide low jitter and high sensing accuracy, the new product complements Allegro's existing line of linear devices with PWM outputs by offering a device with a significantly higher carrier frequency of 2 kHz, allowing it to resolve rapid changes in magnetic field.
White Paper Ceramic Chip Antennas vs. PCB Trace Antennas: A Comparison Now Available
Pulse Electronics has posted the white paper Ceramic Chip Antennas vs. PCB Trace Antennas: A Comparisonon the Pulse Electronics website. The purpose of a trace antenna on a printed circuit board (PCB) is to provide a method of wireless communication. The trace is laminated on the PCB's surface or, in some cases, the traces can occupy several layers of a multilayer board and vias are used to interconnect the traces on each layer. A ceramic antenna is a separate component that is attached during the final stage in the surface mount process. Pulse Electronics' article, written by Jouni Lifländer, RF designer at Pulse Finland Oy, discusses the advantages and disadvantages of each type of antenna and which antenna best fits specific situations.
ON Semiconductor unveils BelaSigna R261 high performance voice capture System-on-Chip
ON Semiconductor has introduced BelaSigna R261. This complete system-on-chip (SoC) solution for portable consumer electronics incorporates a highly optimized digital signal processor (DSP) with an advanced dual-microphone noise reduction algorithm to improve speech intelligibility in noisy environments, while preserving voice naturalness.
Avago Introduces New Low-Power Optical Sensors That Enable Wireless Mice to Operate on a Single AA Battery for over a Year
Avago today announced two new low-power optical sensors for wireless mouse applications. The ADNS-2080 and ADNS-3000 LED-based sensors leverage an advanced low-power architecture and automatic power management modes to enable over a year of battery life for cordless mice using a single AA battery.
Mentor Graphics Teams with Infineon to Deploy State-of-the-Art Verification
Mentor Graphics announced it has successfully supported Infineon to improve Infineon's verification productivity and effectiveness by assessing the status quo and by jointly establishing improved SystemVerilog (SV) methodologies. Mentor supported Infineon in this deployment based on Mentor's functional verification solutions. The cornerstone of Infineon's new verification environment is the Questa® functional verification platform. The technologies linked with the Questa platform, when applied with the established methodologies, improve Infineon's verification process.
LATTICE MachXO2 PLD FAMILY: Offers up to 30% Lower Cost and Over 100X Power Reduction
The new MachXO2 PLD family from Lattice offers designers of low-density PLDs an unprecedented mix of low cost, low power and high system integration in a single device. Built on a low power 65-nm process featuring embedded Flash technology, the MachXO2 family delivers a 3X increase in logic density, a 10X increase in embedded memory, more than a 100X reduction in static power and up to 30% lower cost compared to the MachXO™ PLD family. In addition, several popular functions used in low-density PLD applications, such as User Flash Memory (UFM), I2C, SPI and timer/counter, have been hardened into the MachXO2 devices, providing designers a "Do-it-All-PLD" for high volume, cost sensitive designs
Cypress TrueTouch Solution Drives Touchschreens for HTC's Hot New HTC 7 Surround And HTC 7 Mozart Phones
Cypress Semiconductor announced that HTC has selected the TrueTouch solution from Cypress to implement the touchscreens in the hot new HTC 7 Surround and HTC 7 Mozart mobile phones. Both of the new smartphones are based on the Windows® Phone 7 Series recently introduced by Microsoft.
STMicroelectronics Innovation Delivers Virtually Invisible Protection for Highest Performing High-Definition Connections
STMicroelectronics has simplified design and reduced the real-estate needed to protect the electronics behind the latest high-speed multimedia connections, with an all-in-one device compatible with today's highest signal speeds and featuring the smallest package dimensions currently on the market.
EasyPoint blog will be focused on Hall-sensor IC solutions for human machine interface applications
austriamicrosystems today announced that it has launched the EasyPoint blog, to discuss solutions, issues and trends for joystick modules for many different products such as Mobile Phones, Game Consoles, Remote Controls, Portable Navigation Devices and Digital Still Cameras.
Panasonic and imec present thin film packaged MEMS resonator with industry record Q factor and low bias voltage
Panasonic and imec present at the International Electron Devices Meeting in San Francisco an innovative SiGe (silicon germanium) thin film packaged SOI-based MEMS resonator featuring an industry-record Q factor combined with a low bias voltage. The high Q factor was achieved by implementing a resonator that operates in a torsional vibration mode, and, by vacuum encapsulation of the resonator in a thin film package. This groundbreaking resonator paves the way towards miniaturization and low power consumption of timing devices used in a variety of applications such as consumer electronics and automotive electronics.
Robust 3.3V/5V RS232/RS485 Multiprotocol Transceivers Provide Integrated Switchable Termination
Linear Technology - LTC2870 and LTC2871 multiprotocol transceivers with switchable integrated termination for 3.3V and 5V systems. RS485 systems require a termination resistor on the ends of the communication bus to minimize signal reflections. Both the LTC2870 and LTC2871 integrate pin-controlled termination resistors that allow for easy interface reconfiguration, eliminating external resistors and control relays. The termination resistors, when enabled, are automatically switched on or out to match the transceiver's protocol selection of RS232 or RS485. Both devices also feature high ESD protection: ±26kV HBM (LTC2870) or ±16kV HBM (LTC2871) on the transceiver bus pins, when powered off or operating. The LTC2870 can be configured as two RS232 single-ended transceivers or one RS485 differential transceiver on shared I/O lines, whereas the LTC2871 offers independent control of two RS232 transceivers and one RS485 transceiver, each on dedicated I/O lines. Both devices reduce component count for multiprotocol networks and offer on-the-fly configurability.
Real-time hydration advice from new ‘smart’ drinks bottle
Cambridge Consultants, a leading technology product design and development firm, today announced the development of the i-dration drinks bottle. The i-dration is a device that works, in synchronisation with a smartphone, to help sportspeople maintain optimum levels of hydration for improved performance. The company has developed the concept to demonstrate the full potential of mobile applications and how they can be brought to life through dedicated devices, or 'hardware apps'.
Peregrine Semiconductor and Soitec Announce New Bonded Silicon-on-Sapphire Substrate for RFIC Manufacturing
Peregrine Semiconductor and Soitec (Euronext Paris), the world's leading supplier of silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafers and advanced solutions for the electronics and energy industries, today announced the joint development and ramp in production of a new, bonded silicon-on-sapphire (SOS) substrate which has been qualified for use in manufacturing Peregrine's next-generation STeP5 UltraCMOS™ RF IC semiconductors. This announcement marks an achievement for both companies in the evolution of bonded SOS wafers. Soitec's core direct wafer-bonding technologies and state-of-the art industrial know-how combined with Peregrine's legacy SOS process development and IC design expertise enabled the rapid development of a tuned substrate that delivers leading-edge RF performance required by the ever-advancing mobile wireless and industrial markets.
Texas Instruments offers field-proven Telogy Software voice processing modules free to developers designing with C55x and C64x+ DSPs
Extending its broad suite of voice processing software, Texas Instruments today announced the availability of a robust set of voice and fax processing modules used to create voice transcoding and VoIP media gateway solutions. Based on TI's field-proven Telogy SoftwareTM, Voice Library Version 1.0 (VoLIB) and Fax Library Version 1.0 (FAXLIB) are available for the first time in object code for TI's TMS320C55x ultra-low power (ULP) and TMS320C64x+ digital signal processors (DSPs). Combined with TI's DSP technology, VoLIB and FAXLIB reduce product development time and provide an open environment for OEMs to differentiate their products with specific modules from TI's voice and fax libraries.
Infineon launches SOLID FLASH Technology for its New Generation of Security ICs Based on 90nm Technology
Infineon today at the "Cartes & Identification" Trade Show in Paris announced the introduction of 90nm SOLID FLASH™ technology for its new generation of security ICs. With SOLID FLASH, Infineon is the worldwide first supplier of security products combining the advantages of highly flexible and reliable Flash with outstanding and secure contactless performance, targeting applications like payment, government ID, high-end mobile communications and transport. Leveraging its proven, longstanding expertise in automotive Flash and the comprehensive history from selling more than three billion chip card devices using EEPROM/Flash-based non-volatile memory, Infineon now offers its customers a variety of SOLID FLASH products with both high flexibility and ROM-like security. Dedicated security features enable a secure and reliable product usage, which has already been officially acknowledged by EMVCo and Common Criteria EAL 5+ (high) certifications for the first SOLID FLASH products.
Altera Ships New MAX V CPLD Family
Expanding its most popular CPLD offering, Altera announced the availability of the new MAX V device family. The MAX V family uses half the total power compared to competitive CPLDs while maintaining the instant-on, single-chip, non-volatile characteristics of the original MAX series.
Altera Unveils Process Technology Strategy for Its 28-nm Product Portfolio
Altera announced its 28-nm process technology strategy targeting its 28-nm product portfolio. In addition to the previously announced support for TSMC's 28-nm High Performance (28HP) process technology for its high-end FPGA family, Altera will also utilize TSMC's 28-nm Low-Power (28LP) process technology for use in its low-cost and midrange product families. Leveraging two distinct process technologies in its 28-nm product portfolio enables Altera to provide customers a broad selection of optimized devices. Across high-end, midrange and low-cost products, Altera offers the optimal process technology to address customer needs.
STMicroelectronics Facilitates Contactless Communication between Mobile Phones and Other Electronic Devices
The latest secure microcontrollers and non-volatile memory technologies from STMicroelectronics open new possibilities for interaction between mobile phones and other electronic devices. Equipped with ST's NFC chip, a mobile phone can easily upload and download data over the air from any equipment fitted with ST's industry-unique RF-enabled EEPROM memory, from personal health monitors to TV sets and washing machines, without consuming any on-board power.
