February 15, 2007 Newsletter

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Microwaves & RF UPDATE
PlanetEE - www.planetee.com
MWRF - www.mwrf.com
February 15, 2007
==============================

Greetings and welcome to your personal copy of PlanetEE's Microwaves 
and RF UPDATE e-newsletter. Please see below for address-change or 
subscribe/unsubscribe instructions.

Today's Table of Contents:

1. Hard To Argue With WiMAX Forum 
2. Research Shows Rapid Growth In RFID 
3. Skyworks Shows WCDMA Modules At 3GSM 
4. ANADIGICS Adds To WiMAX PAs At 3GSM 
5. Mobile WiMAX Forum PlugFest Explores Interoperability 
6. G. T. Microwave Hatches Up 100-W Phase Shifter 
7. SMA Adapter Helps Protect Connectors 
8. Happenings - Conferences 


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1.  Viewpoint 
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Hard To Argue With WiMAX Forum

Questions regarding WiMAX as a broadband services solution are no 
longer "if" but more "when" and "how large a market." Generally, when 
a entire industry gets behind a particular standard, as was the case 
with IEEE 802.11, products are sold. The WiMAX Forum 
(www.wimaxforum.org) is that industry spark for WiMAX, bringing 
companies together with a common goal of driving the market through 
products that work seamlessly together. The nonprofit organization 
promises that WiMAX Forum certified products will be fully 
interoperable and support wireless metropolitan area networks (MANs) 
for broadband services.

By organizing its interoperability PlugFests (see News item #5), the 
WiMAX Forum provides equipment suppliers and test equipment developers 
an open environment to test compatibility. In doing so, the WiMAX 
Forum helps speed products to market, and helps customers feel 
confident that those products will interoperate properly. Admittedly, 
the mobile portion of WiMAX may find more difficult market penetration 
than the fixed version of WiMAX (that "last mile" for broadband 
services). Still, the list of players involved in the WiMAX Forum's 
second mobile PlugFest is impressive. Hard to argue that these 
companies won't make WiMAX a success, based on their past histories. 

JACK BROWNE
Technical Director

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2. News
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Research Shows Rapid Growth In RFID

Research firm IDTechEx predicts that 1.71 billion 
radio-frequency-identification (RFID) tags will be sold in 2007, with 
a total RFID market size (including software and integration) of $4.96 
billion. The largest part of the market will be in RFID cards, with 
the non-card segment projected to be $1.97 billion globally. Excluding 
cards, 58.4 percent of the market in 2007 will be in the US and 33 
percent in Europe. The report, "RFID Forecasts, Players and 
Opportunities 2007-2017," authored by IDTechEX Chief Executive Officer 
(CEO) Raghu Das, projects that the RFID market will rise to more than 
$27 billion by 2017. 
IDTechEx ---> http://www.idtechex.com/

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3. News
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Skyworks Shows WCDMA Modules At 3GSM

Skyworks Solutions announced new additions to its Intera(TM) line of 
front-end modules at this week's 3GSM World Congress 2007 in 
Barcelona, Spain. Developed for wideband-code-division-multiple-access 
(WCDMA) applications in PCS bands I, II, IV, V, and VI, the compact 
modules are designed to extend battery life and simplify integration 
with virtually any baseband architecture. The WCDMA FEMs support high 
speed uplink packet access (HSUPA), high speed downlink packet access 
(HSDPA), and feature a built-in power coupler and detector. They also 
include the company's patent-pending bulk-acoustic-wave (BAW) filter 
technology. Model SKY77433 for Band I is a fully matched 16-pin, 
full-duplex FEM in a small and efficient 4 x 7 mm package for 
universal mobile telecommunications systems (UMTS) in Europe and Asia. 
Model SKY77434 for Band II is a 4 x 7 mm FEM for U.S. PCS 
applications. Model SKY77435 for Band IV is a 4 x 7 mm FEM for 
advanced wideband systems (AWS), otherwise known as the Federal 
Communications Commission (FCC) Auctioned Spectrum. Finally, model 
SKY77436 for Band V is a 4 x 7 mm FEM for the US cellular market with 
Band VI covered for Japan. 
Skyworks Solutions, Inc. ---> http://www.skyworksinc.com/

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4. News
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ANADIGICS Adds To WiMAX PAs At 3GSM

Another company making news at the 3GSM World Congress 2007 in 
Barcelona was ANADIGICS, announcing that it had expanded its line of 
WiMAX power amplifiers (PAs) with the introduction of the AWN6423 for 
mobile WiMAX. In support of the IEEE 802.16e-2005 standards, the new 
PA operates in the 2.5 to 2.7 band allocated for broadband mobile 
wireless services housed in a compact 4.5 x 4.5 mm module. It 
integrates a step attenuator and output power detector. According to 
Ron Michels, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Broadband 
Products at ANADIGICS, "Our WiMAX power amplifiers provide high 
linearity and advanced functional integration to support high 
performance solutions for the world's emerging broadband wireless 
systems, and superior efficiency to increase battery life for a more 
satisfying mobile experience." The PA module achieves 20-percent 
efficiency from a +3.3-VDC supply with EVM of 2.5 percent with 16QAM 
signals and +23.5-dBm output power. 
ANADIGICS ---> http://www.anadigics.com/

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5. News
**********
Mobile WiMAX Forum PlugFest Explores Interoperability

The Second public Mobile WiMAX Forum PlugFest convened this week in 
Malaga, Spain, with 35 WiMAX test equipment and product manufacturers 
gathering to investigate the interoperability of their devices. Hosted 
by AT4 Wireless Labs, the PlugFest attracted chipset and system 
developers, including Accton Technology Corp., Adaptix, Airspan 
Networks, Alcatel-Lucent, Alvarion, Aperto Networks, Beceem, GCT 
Semiconductor, Huawei Technologies, Intel, LG Electronics, Motorola, 
Navini, Nokia, PicoChip, POSDATA, Redline Communications, Redpine 
Signals, Runcom Technologies Ltd., Samsung, SEQUANS Communications, 
SOMA Networks, Telsima, Wavesat Wireless Inc., and ZTE Corp. Test 
equipment suppliers included Aeroflex, Agilent, Anritsu, Rohde & 
Schwarz, and Tektronix. According to WiMAX Forum President and 
Chairman Ron Resnick, "The fact we have 35 companies participating in 
this week's PlugFest underscores the significant interest and strong 
momentum leading up to mobile WiMAX Forum Certification in mid 2007."
WiMAX Forum ---> http://www.wimaxforum.org/

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*********
6. News
*********
G. T. Microwave Hatches Up 100-W Phase Shifter

Model P6D-38N-0CC is a digital phase shifter capable of handling 100-W 
CW power from 700 to 1400 MHz. It provides full 360-deg. phase control 
over that frequency range, shifting in 5.63-deg. steps with 6-b TTL 
digital control. The phase error as a function of frequency is less 
than 20 deg. over the full frequency range while the amplitude balance 
is better than 1 dB full range. The switching speed to change phase 
states is an impressive 3 microseconds. The phase shifter, which 
measures 5 x 2 x 0.56 inches, requires power supplies of +5 VDC and 
600 mA and -9.6 VDC and 100 mA. Proper heat sinking must be applied at 
a 100-W CW power level. 
G. T. Microwave ---> http://www.gtmicrowave.com/

*********
7. News
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SMA Adapter Helps Protect Connectors

Delta Electronics Manufacturing Corp. has introduced a "Connector 
Saver" adapter to prevent damage to SMA connectors on components and 
cable assemblies for testing. The adapter features an SMA jack on one 
end and an SMA plug modified for "Slide-on" mating on the other end. 
When the jack end is fitted to an SMA plug on a cable assembly under 
test, the slide-on interface saves time when connecting the assembly 
to an analyzer's test port. Conversely, when testing devices fitted 
with SMA jack inputs or outputs, the adapter allows the test cable to 
be mated to the device with a straight push, saving the time need to 
thread and torque a standard SMA plug. The adapter requires 10 lbs 
maximum engagement force and 6 ounces minimum disengagement force. The 
adapter exhibits maximum VSWR of 1.03:1 from DC to 18 GHz. 
Delta Electronics Manufacturing Corp. ---> http://www.deltarf.com/

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8.  Happenings - Conferences
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International Conference and Exhibition on Device Packaging
March 19-22, 2007
Doubletree Paradise Valley Resort
Scottsdale, AZ
http://www.imaps.org/devicepackaging/

RFID World 2007
March 26-28, 2007
Grapevine, TX
http://www.rfid-world.com/

ARMMS RF And Microwave Society Conference
April 16-17, 2007
Milton Hill House
Steventon, Abington, Oxfordshire, England
http://www.armms.org/

IEEE Sarnoff Symposium 2007
April 30-May 2, 2007
Sarnoff Labs
Princeton, NJ
http://www.sarnoffsymposium.org

2007 IEEE/MTT-S International Microwave Symposium
June 3-8, 2007
Hawaii Convention Center
Honolulu, HI
http://www.ims2007.org/

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MICROWAVES AND RF (MWRF) UPDATE e-NEWSLETTER CONTACTS
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Technical Director: Jack Browne
mailto:[email protected]

Managing Editor: John Curley
mailto:[email protected]

Advertising/Sponsorship Opportunities:
Paul Barkman at 1-908-704-2460 or
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