Microwave Engineering Europe - November 2007 - (Page 4)

4 NEWS By JP Joosting, Microwave Engineering Europe IN BRIEF Hittite and Northrop Grumman enter into strategic agreement Hittite Microwave Corporation has announced that it has entered into a strategic agreement with Northrop Grumman to license Northrop Grumman’s Velocium line of MMIC products and related intellectual property. Under the agreement, Northrop Grumman’s Space Technology sector will license to Hittite a speciﬁed list of standard products and associated technology. Hittite will assume the related customer contracts and will become the worldwide supplier for the Velocium products. This agreement expands Hittite’s high frequency product line and enhances its supply chain. The license includes commercial products that operate at frequencies through 86 GHz. Hittite will use Northrop Grumman as a foundry supplier for GaAs wafers used in the licensed products.. www.hittite.com Digi-Key and Crystek forge worldwide distribution pact Digi-Key Corporation and Crystek Corporation, a provider of frequency products, have announced that the companies have entered into a global distribution agreement. Crystek specializes in ultra low noise, high frequency and tight stability products with a frequency range of up to 6 GHz. The company’s portfolio of frequency products includes quartz crystals, clock oscillators, TCXOs, OCXOs, VCXOs, VCOs, and more. Applications include digital radio equipment, ﬁxed wireless access, satellite communications systems, base stations, personal communications systems, portable radios, and test instruments. Crystek products stocked by Digi-Key are featured in its print and online catalogs and are available for purchase directly from Digi-Key. This new distribution agreement will enable Digi-Key to fulﬁll both the prototype/design and production quantity needs of its diverse customer base. “We are very pleased to add Crystek Corporation to our line card,” said Mark Larson, Digi-Key president and COO. “Expanding our frequency offering with products from Crystek’s extensive portfolio of quality frequency products is in perfect keeping with Digi-Key’s commitment to offer our customers the industry’s broadest selection of electronic components.” www.digikey.com www.crystek.com TriQuint named largest compound semiconductor foundry TriQuint Semiconductor has recently been named the world’s largest Gallium Arsenide (GaAs) foundry in a report issued by Strategy Analytics. According to the report, TriQuint market segment share for the year ending 2006 was estimated at 40 percent, nearly double that of its nearest competitor. The Strategy Analytics report summarizing 2006 states that “TriQuint is the largest supplier of GaAs foundry services and has a wide range of processes that can cater to both high volume and high value services.” Glen Riley, VP of Commercial Foundry for TriQuint, explained that “TriQuint’s broad selection of GaAs foundry technologies are not only cost effective in volume production, but also offer a lower design cost than silicon, making them an ideal technology choice for both established semiconductor companies and cash strapped start-ups. A $30,000 GaAs mask set (tooling) is a lot easier on company budgets than a $1 million plus sub-micron silicon mask set.” www.tgs.com Andrew & Nokia Siemens Networks revamp ﬁlter relationship Andrew Corporation and Nokia Siemens Networks have agreed to revise their long-standing relationship in custom ﬁlter production. The agreement provides more design and manufacturing control to Nokia Siemens Networks, supported by Andrew’s R&D expertise. Under the agreement, Nokia Siemens Networks acquired the rights to all Andrew IP related to Nokia Siemens Networks’ ﬁlter products for wireless networks. In addition, certain Andrew personnel in Italy will continue to provide engineering and technical work exclusively for the Nokia Siemens Networks products under an engineering services arrangement. In terms of contract manufacturing partners, Nokia Siemens Networks assumes responsibility for the production of its own ﬁlter products currently done at an Andrew facility in Shenzhen, China, and by contract manufacturers in Eastern Europe. www.andrew.com Ubidyne, Kathrein sign digital antenna contract Digital Mobile Radio startup Ubidyne has signed a joint development agreement with antenna manufacturer Kathrein-Werke KG to develop and market digitally controlled antennas for mobile networks. Ubidyne, a former Siemens spin-off based in Ulm, Germany, and Tempe, Arizona, is in the process of bringing to market digital embedded micro-radios that offer several advantages for mobile network operators, the company claims. The company’s technology leverages the CPRI (Common Public Radio Interface) and OBSAI (Open Base Station Architecture Initiative) standards for mobile base stations, CPRI and OBSAI allow for the separation of the base station’s baseband portion and its RF portion, and allow the RF portion can be integrated into the antenna, as well as enable digital control of the antenna characteristics. Ubidyne, founded in 2005 by two former Siemens engineers, claims to have implemented the world’s ﬁrst pure digital radio system, based on its own breed of ASICs. Both companies expect to begin ﬁeld trials with mobile operators and network infrastructure OEMs within the ﬁrst half of 2008. www.ubidyne.com Microwave Engineering Europe ● November 2007 ● www.mwee.com 004_MWEE.indd 4 26/10/07 11:04:36 http://www.digikey.com http://www.crystek.com http://www.hittite.com http://www.tgs.com http://www.ubidyne.com http://www.andrew.com http://www.mwee.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Microwave Engineering Europe - November 2007

Microwave Engineering Europe - November 2007 Contents News Comment Metamaterials: Metamaterials Tackle Communications Wavelengths Microwave Components — EM tools: Microwave Component Design Easier With New EM and EDA Tools Cover Feature: RF Testing for OFDMA in LTE Base-Stations Startup Eyes Battery-Free Wireless Sensor Nets High-speed ADC Technology Paves the Way for Software Defined Radios Planning a WiMAX network: Maximising the ROI by Using Advanced Optimisation Tools Transporting Video Over Wireless Networks Ultrawideband Under the Gun Specifying the Proper SAW Filter Products Product Feature: RF Test Solution Supports Emerging 4x4 MIMO as Well as Multiple Commercial Standards Calendar

Microwave Engineering Europe - November 2007

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