Fujitsu to sample mobile WiMAX chipsets

SUNNYVALE, USA: Fujitsu Microelectronics America Inc. (FMA) has announced a new mobile WiMAX chipset optimized for small, embedded modules targeting mobile WiMAX devices such as smart phones and PDAs. Samples will be delivered to major module manufacturers starting in August 2008.

The chipset includes a baseband IC, the MB86K22; an RF IC, the MB86K52; and a power management IC, the MB39C316. The three devices are essential elements for competitive WiMAX modules. The chipset was designed so that the size of the WiMAX module will be 12x12mm. The idle current, which has a direct impact on battery life, will not exceed 0.5mA, helping the development of attractive mobile WiMAX terminals.

The next-generation mobile WiMAX technology will be deployed in the United States, Europe, and Taiwan this year, and in Japan next year. The initial service will be through PC-based mobile broadband access, with simultaneous development of handsets, smart phones, PDAs, portable games and navigation systems.

With this chipset, module vendors can offer competitive mobile WiMAX products in a small form factor. The chipset's mature software stacks have been proven in the previous generation product, and the power management schemes have been optimized at the system level. These factors enable mobile WiMAX terminal manufacturers to focus on designing attractive user interfaces and service-oriented applications.

"This highly integrated WiMAX chipset features the low power and small form factor essential to the development of attractive mobile WiMAX terminal products," said Makoto Awaga, general manager of the mobile solution business group of Fujitsu Microelectronics Ltd in Japan. "Fujitsu has assumed a global leadership position in moving WiMAX into deployment, and we are now ready to work with module vendors to meet market requirements."

The MB86K22 is a fully integrated baseband IC built using the Fujitsu 65nm advanced CMOS low-leakage process technology. The operating power of the MB86K22 has been reduced by 36 percent from the previous generation. Power-gating technology shuts down the power supply in the unused blocks inside the device, so that the entire mobile WiMAX module consumes only 0.5mA, extending battery life.

The MB86K52 is an RF IC built using CMOS process technology, which supports 2.3GHz, 2.5GHz, and 3.5GHz, almost all the frequencies set by WiMAX Forum. This offers mobile WiMAX terminal manufacturers the ability to introduce global WiMAX devices. The MB86K52 also supports MIMO and beamforming technology, which are essential for mobile WiMAX Wave 2.

The MB39C316 power management IC eliminates all the complex and time-consuming power management requirements by accommodating one cell battery. This design minimizes the peripheral components outside of the module. The MB39C316 controls and manages the module's power schemes at the system level, achieving the lowest power consumption at each operation.