RF Micro Devices says it has received its first volume production orders for its PowerSmart power platforms to be used in a new smartphone due for March.
The platform is designed for multimode, multi-band cellular front end circuits.
It incorporates configurable power control which allows designs to cover all cellular communications modulation schemes, including 2G, 3G and 4G, up to LTE 64QAM.
Integrated with the power amplifier (PA) are switching and signal conditioning functions for the cellular radio front end.
RF Micro Devices has been shipping for six months its RF720x WCDMA/HSPA+ power amplifiers (PAs) to smartphone and 3G manufacturers in Korea and China.
The PAs operate across all major 3G frequency bands (1-6, 8-11, 33, 34). A feature is the PA’s high mid-power to high-power switch point which improves data throughput in mid-power data modes up to 19dBm.
“This is especially critical to manufacturers of next-generation 3G/4G smart phones, as they seek greater reductions in output power in data-only operation,” said the supplier.
RFMD said it expects to start volume shipments of PowerSmart in the current quarter, with sequential growth anticipated in the June, 2011, quarter.