RF & Wireless News Imec
RF & Wireless News Imec Reports Record ADC for Next-Generation SDR Nanoelectronics research centre imec presented at the VLSI circuits symposium 2014 (Honolulu, June 13) a low power pipelined SAR (successive-approximation register) ADC ) in 28 nm digital CMOS with record resolution, speed and power performance. The novel ADC targets wireless receivers for next-generation software defined radio, including wireless standards such as LTE-advanced and the emerging generation of Wi-Fi (IEEE802.11ac). In a software defined radio, the ADC needs high speed, high resolution and high power efficiency in a dynamic solution, supporting high, as well as low bandwidth standards. The pipelined SAR ADC developed by imec and Renesas Electronics achieves an excellent peak SNDR (signal to noise distortion ratio) of 70.7 dB at a speed as high as 200 MS/s while consuming only 2.3 mW at 0.9 V supply voltage. Moreover, the implementation in 28 nm digital CMOS not only adds to its area and power efficiency, but also supports digitalization of the radio. ■ Imec, www.imec.be Software AWR and ANSYS Partner to Bring HFSS into Microwave Office for Circuit Designers AWR Corporation and ANSYS, Inc. announced that they have integrated ANSYS HFSS into AWR’s Microwave Office high frequency circuit design software. This integration unites the industry standard for fullwave electromagnetic (EM) field simulation and NI AWR Design Environment/Microwave Office to quickly and accurately simulate microwave circuits. With this design flow, Microwave Office users can readily access HFSS for analysis of EM fields and coupling of 3D structures like passive components, bumps, bond wires, and pins which are essential to successfully designing and realizing microwave circuits like monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMICs), denselypopulated RF circuit boards and multifunction modules. The link between the two software tools is leveraged from AWR’s innovative EM Socket open standard interface, which enables AWR users to access a broad range of electromagnetic (EM) tools from within the Microwave Office design environment. The EM Socket architecture also allows AWR Microwave Office users to essentially simulate EM structures with a single mouse click using either AWR’s AXIEM 3D planar method of moments solver or Analyst 3D finite element method EM software. In addition to enabling ANSYS HFSS 3D EM simulation capabilities from within the NI/AWR Design Environment, the connection allows the resulting 3D layered format exported from the EM Socket interface to connect to the ANSYS multiphysics portfolio. That suite includes ANSYS SIwave for signal/power integrity analysis and ANSYS Icepak for thermal characterization. ■ AWR www.awrcorp.com ■ ANSYS www.ansys.com CST Automates EM and Multiphysics Simulation Workflows AR Names Universal Elektronik New Distributor For Austria AR Europe has appointed Universal Elektronik Import GmbH its official distributor for Austria.UEI represents world-leading manufacturers of equipment for EMI measurement, performance and power analysis, CE testing, and ESD protection. ■ Universal Elektronik Import www.uei-vienna.com ■ AR Europe www.ar-europe.ie. Since 2012, CST has offered the ability to link together multiple simulation and post-processing tasks using the SAM framework in its EM simulation software, CST STUDIO SUITE. The 2014 release of CST STUDIO SUITE builds on this with features that automate the creation of SAM projects for common design tasks, such as antenna placement, emissions analysis and thermal detuning. Multiphysics workflows, which combine fullwave EM simulation with thermal simulation, can now be created using the wizard from the schematic view in CST STUDIO SUITE. This means that all the solvers are set up and connected, and the entire simulation started with a single click. For simulations with temperature dependent materials, SAM allows simulations to be iterated until convergence is achieved. Mechanical simulations can be easily added to the workflow, allowing expansion and detuning effects to be calculated. All solvers are integrated in the same parametric 3D modelling GUI, making parameter studies and optimisation runs including EM-thermal couplings possible. Field source coupling workflows can also be automated. These allow different components to be simulated with different solver types, with the fields calculated in one simulation used as the excitation in the next. These are useful for multiscale simulations, such as EMC in complex systems, installed performance of antennas on electrically large platforms, and small antennas with large reflectors. ■ CST AG info@cst.com www.cst.com 46 hf-praxis 8/2014
RF & Wireless Wireless New 2.5 Gbps Backhaul Wireless Range AMG has announced a new addition to its existing ‘Skywave’ family of Digital IP transmission systems. The flexible Skywave II Backhaul is especially adapted for transmitting video and telemetry in the 7 - 38 GHz and 80 GHz licensed bands and is ideal for connecting remote LANs in distant buildings up to 140 km at speeds of up to 2.5 Gbps. Compact and rugged, this range is designed with long distance wireless transmission in mind. The Backhaul range is fully compatible with the entire Skywave II 5 GHz product portfolio, offering a totally flexible and virtually limitless wireless solution in terms of scalability and future-proofing. Typical applications include relocation of Control Room facilities without the need to install cabled infrastructure, and transmission of large numbers of high-resolution IP cameras in complex wide-areas, even country-wide, CCTV and security system deployments. ■ AMG Group www.amgsystems.com Waveguide Antennas Operating from 50 GHz to 70 GHz Pasternack Enterprises, Inc. released a new family of high frequency, WR-15 waveguide antennas, which are perfectly designed for high-bandwidth applications including point-to-point links, GigE wireless LAN, millimeter radiometry, uncompressed HD video, FMCW radar, millimeter scintillometry, campus networks, and multi-gigabit wireless communications. Offered in this release are four high gain WR-15 horn antennas operating between 50 GHz and 70 GHz and are available in 20 dBi, 24 dBi, 34 dBi and 42 dBi gain models. Pasternack’s WR-15 waveguide horn antennas pairs seamlessly with the recently added 60 GHz transmit/receive development system (PEM003-KIT) which enables companies to experiment and develop applications in the globally-unlicensed 60 GHz frequency band. Using two of Pasternack’s WR-15 beam antennas rated to 42 dBi gain (PE9881-42), a user is able to transmit and receive a 60 GHz signal at a distance of one kilometer (km), making these antennas an ideal solution for high frequency point-to-point backhaul. Also available in this new release is Pasternack’s new omni-directional millimeter wave antenna (PE-W15A001), a vertically polarized WR-15 waveguide connected antenna using a standard UG387/U flange that operates between 58 GHz and 63 GHz. This omni-directional millimeter wave antenna has a 30 degree vertical beam width and a 360 degree horizontal gain variation, making it ideal for short range wireless communications, indoor networks, high frequency applications and 60 GHz development systems. The millimeter wave omni-directional antenna is constructed with a durable brass waveguide input and lightweight aluminum body. ■ Pasternack Enterprises, Inc. www.pasternack. News Agilent Technologies and Cascade Microtech Announce Alliance to Streamline Wafer-Level Measurements Agilent Technologies Inc. and Cascade Microtech, Inc. announced a strategic alliance to provide fully configured and validated RF measurement solutions that streamline wafer-level semiconductor measurements while delivering guaranteed configuration, installation and support. Specifying and configuring a waferlevel RF measurement system can be challenging and time-consuming, often requiring equipment to be sourced from multiple suppliers and then configured and verified on-site by the customer. As a result, the time to first measurement can be long. With waferlevel measurement solutions (WMS) from Agilent and Cascade Microtech, semiconductor customers now have the equipment they need to perform accurate and repeatable DC and RF measurements, device characterization and modeling, all while realizing significant time savings to first measurement. The new wafer-level measurement solutions combine Cascade Microtech’s wafer probe stations, probes and calibration tools with Agilent’s test instrumentation and measurement and analysis software. Each solution configuration is pre-validated to ensure it meets customers’ specific application needs, then validated again - based on previously agreed-upon acceptance criteria - after installation by Cascade Microtech solutions experts. Guaranteed configuration means that any parts missing from the configured solution will be provided by either Agilent or Cascade Microtech, free of charge. Agilent and Cascade Microtech have also collaborated to deliver unique workflow solutions software based on Agilent’s WaferPro-XP measurement software. Together with Cascade Microtech’s Velox probe station software, customers can now develop complete wafer test suites for a variety of measurement needs (e.g., S-parameters, DC-IV/CV, noise figure, Flicker noise, and gain compression). This combination of software provides a coherent environment for test development. ■ Cascade Microtech, Inc www.cascademicrotech.com ■ Agilent Technologies Inc. www.agilent.com hf-praxis 8/2014 47
