Corporate Hall of Fame in the RF industry and how they will be affected by 5G development; Figure 1. Company Hall of Fame in the RF industry Although the mobile industry has completed the love-like carnival at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona last month, high-tech suppliers, system OEMs and mobile operators are facing the problem of not really solving the obstacles of 5G development. . In fact, these development obstacles have only just begun. Figure 2. Comparison of propagation loss between high frequency millimeter wave and low frequency wave The technical problems of 5G development are multifaceted. Among them, smart antennas and RF front ends for 5G millimeter waves (usually expected to operate at 28 GHz, 39 GHz or 60 GHz) can seriously affect the performance of 5G mmWave (millimeter wave) handsets that have not yet appeared. Figure 3, 5G ecosystem After returning from the Mobile World Congress, Claire Troadec, head of radio frequency (RF) electronics business at YoleDéveloppement, told us: "Although many companies such as Qualcomm, Intel, MediaTek and Samsung are using mobile phone prototypes as 5G mmWave (millimeter wave) Demonstration platform, but we do not believe that the current mobile phone will become the preferred application terminal form of 5G mmWave. In contrast, 5G millimeter wave will be more likely to be the choice of fixed data modem on the desktop or desktop, so that Consumers can download or transmit large-scale streaming broadband applications." Figure 4. Qualcomm's 5G millimeter wave prototype why is it like this? In view of the high propagation loss, directionality and sensitivity to blocking of the 5G mmWave (millimeter wave) band, it is notorious and difficult for engineers in the industry to design a 5G mobile phone that always works without losing signal. It's easy. Consumers may be forced to stay on a page or on a picture, and the system will instead look for signals from other bands. Figure 5, 5G is applied in the Korean Winter Olympics Another challenge in deploying 5G millimeter wave radios in mobile handsets is battery life and power consumption. During the Pyongchang 2018 Winter Olympics, Samsung believes it has already demonstrated its own 5G tablet. Although it works well, it is an amazing warning around the cool app at the Mobile World Congress: the battery is dead after 30 minutes. Figure 6. More and more frequency bands need to be supported by smartphones. When asked about this rumor, Yole's Troadec said she believes that "the mobile phone 5G mmWave (millimeter wave) broadcast signal transmission has a high energy consumption problem." She suspects that "most manufacturers' leaders are extensively Focus on this area.†But she added that she found that these technology vendors may offer some remedies for this apparently problematic system-level power consumption problem in 5G New Radio applications. She said that no one is willing to discuss this issue further at the show, and everyone is deliberately avoiding this issue. Figure 7, 28GHz uplink budget The 5G mmWave (millimeter wave) RF (radio frequency) module will bring interference to the emerging 5G market not limited to technological changes. Affected by the suppliers in the supply chain that currently supply 3G and 4G RF components and modules. Figure 8, 28GHz downlink budget table Since 5G mmWave (millimeter wave) may allow suppliers to design RF front-end modules in SoCs using CMOS or SOI technology, the field will open to the RF market for "advanced CMOS designers and manufacturers" currently in the mobile ecosystem architecture. door. In addition to Intel and Qualcomm, candidates who have entered the field include Samsung, Huawei and MediaTek. More frequency bands, more RF front ends (RFFE, RF front ends) The mobile industry has made great strides as technology vendors struggle with complex RF front ends (RFFE) modules that can handle an increasing number of frequency bands. According to the company, as the cellular standard evolved from 3G to 4G, the number of bands that the RF front-end must handle increased from four to 30. Figure 9. The design of the terminal RF front end is more and more complicated. The increase in the number of bands supported in smartphones only adds to the complexity of the RF front end. But as 5G technologies and applications get online, things will get more complicated. Although 5G is theoretically a single standard, it has three main elements: 5G-supported Internet of Things (IoT) applications, 5G in the sub-6 GHz band, and 5G using mmWave (millimeter wave). In terms of RF technology, Thorae observed "this means bringing together technologies that require very dissimilar performance into one device." Figure 10. Smartphone shipments are getting bigger and bigger This means that 5G will follow "different implementation phases, and different 5G versions will be developed in parallel." In other words, there will be no single, unified 5G RF front ends, but "5G IoT, 5G sub-6 GHz and 5GmmWave (millimeter wave) will follow their own development path. And use their respective RF SiP development to create a parallel ecosystem," she said. Figure 11, the main players in the RF front-end industry chain When asked to evaluate the research path of different RF front ends (RFFEs) for each 5G technology, Thorae said she saw the most disruptive innovations with 5G mmWave technology. She expects 5G mmWave (millimeter wave) to be redesigned and new materials. The good news is that 5G mmWave (millimeter wave) can end the current practice of complex front-end modules based on System-in-Package (SiP) technology for 2G, 3G and 4G RF front-end systems. “You can design each building block based on advanced CMOS or SOI technology – including power amplifiers, low noise amplifiers, filters, switches and passive components,†explains Tereuc. This will provide opportunities for many digital chip vendors that have little prior radio expertise to develop SoC front-end modules. Figure 12. Beamforming has important applications in 5G networks. At the same time, for 5G technology in the frequency band below 6 GHz, Thorae believes it will build on incremental innovation. She explained that in this band it is expected that the current RF package architecture modifications will only require minimal changes in the bill of materials (BoM). Since the 5G Internet of Things (IoT) will use frequencies below the 1 GHz band, Thorae believes that there is “rare or almost no innovation†in the semiconductor package of the 5G RF front ends (RF front end) in this band. . Nonetheless, 5G Internet of Things (IoT) specifications and protocols designed to address the transmission of data generated by many Internet of Things (IoT) devices have not yet been defined and standardized. Figure 13. 5G technologies of different flavors are developing in parallel Hall of Fame in today's radio frequency (RF) device or component supply chain Before delving into the detailed radio frequency (RF) solutions in 5G, let's take a closer look at current RF component and module vendors. Typically, radio frequency (RF) front-end modules are comprised of radio frequency (RF) device components such as RF switches, power amplifiers (PAs) / low noise amplifiers (LNAs), RF filters, and antenna devices (tuners and switches). . Figure 14, 5G functional division of the circuit in the user terminal Major vendors in the crowded supply chain of radio frequency (RF) front-end modules include: Sony, Murata (acquisition of Peregrin Semiconductor in late 2014), Skyworks, Qorvo, Infineon, Broadcom / Avago, Cavendish Kinetics, TDK EPCOS, Qualcomm, Hai Si and so on. Figure 15. Typical structure of a smartphone Each company has its own special radio frequency (RF) components that typically require a variety of substrate and process technologies to be deployed. Their process technology options range from RF-SOI and BiCMOS to batch CMOS, GaN and RF MEMS. Figure 16. Beamforming for smartphones Since different types of RF components employ multiple process technologies, today's RF (RF) module integration path selection is in the form of SiP, not SoC. Figure 17, Beamforming technology in 5G network Today, for the bands below 2G, 3G, 4G and 5G 6 GHz (for all bands below 6 GHz), “the only way to meet the stringent radio performance requirements in smartphones is with SiP technology,†Troadec confirmed. Figure 18, the functional layout in the smartphone There is currently no single radio frequency (RF) component supplier with all the best technology. Troadec explained that in RF front-end integration, "each building block requires very specialized technology: the best PA using GaAs technology, the best switch using SOI technology, the best filter using SAW and BAW technology, and the use. The best LNA for SiGe technology, etc." When asked who would provide SiP technology for RF front-end modules, "Troadcom, Murata, Qorvo, Skyworks and TDK/Qualcomm are the only vendors that can offer SiP process technology today." She explained that each product has its own feature requirements, such as high frequency modules, IF modules, low frequency modules and diverse receiver modules, either in PAMiD integrated form (highly integrated custom modules, performance driven but with powerful features so only Limited to Apple, Samsung, Huawei and other players) or FEMOD integrated form (providing a good compromise between performance and cost, and favored by second-tier smartphone manufacturers such as LG and Chinese mobile phone players). Figure 19, 5G system involved in the key technology “We do see that only a few companies can play a role in this high-tech mixed environment,†she concludes. 5G within a few GHz bands: still using the SiP method As the cellular industry moves toward 5G, the same principle (ie, using the SiP integration method) will continue to exist for the GHz-class 5G RF front-end module. Figure 20, possible applications of SiP technology in the 5G era But according to Yole, there will be some changes in the integration of SiP and the inside of the package. Troadec explained that these new initiatives include integrating LNAs and switches on the same die based on the SOI platform, as well as more wafer-level packaging for filters to achieve die size gains (eg, only Broadcom today) In this way, Qorvo is developing this method). In addition, the wafer-level approach will be suitable for packaging power amplifiers (still using wire connections today) to achieve die size gain. 5G mmWave (millimeter wave): from SiP to SoC The 5G mmWave RF front-end module will undoubtedly revolutionize the most complex RF (RF) component/module supply chain. A large number of complex RF (radio frequency) components are manufactured using different process technologies. Instead, what is about to happen is the possibility of implementing mmWave (millimeter wave) front-end modules in SoCs based on advanced CMOS or SOI technology. 5G mmWave (millimeter wave) There are many reasons why RF (Radio Frequency) modules can be designed in SoCs. First, 5G mmWave means moving to the available ultra-bandwidth spectrum area, Teraeec explains. “So we don't need a lot of discrete frequency bands to send information. So the architecture of the RF transceiver can be much simpler.†As a result, this also reduces the limitations on filter technology, she explained. “We don't need high-end filtering in the module.†However, she warned, “We need advanced switching technology (high isolation) that switches between different radio technologies (4G or 5G and 5G millimeter waves below 6 GHz). Degree, high linearity)". She also pointed out that in 4G, "we use carrier aggregation with a 20 MHz signal bandwidth per band and use multiple frequency bands. Therefore, we need advanced high-end filter technology (steep suppression curve) to distinguish Each signal in each band. Today only BAW (FBAR) device technology (MEMS technology) can meet this requirement." Another important factor is that 5G mmWave will use beamforming technology, allowing it to shape the beam to simultaneously send information to multiple users. "This will reduce the power amplifier's power emission limits and requirements. This in turn means that CMOS technology can work." She added: "At mmWave (millimeter wave) frequency, the inductance becomes smaller; therefore, passive components Integration with CMOS / SOI technology is possible." However, Troadec reiterates that for the 5G mmWave (millimeter wave) RF module, one limiting factor seems to be the power consumption of the entire system. “Why do we need to clarify this? Because it has too much impact on the usability of millimeter waves; but so far, no one is willing to tell us technically why this is happening, and what we need to do†solve this problem. New players in the field of RF devices Once the industry turns to CMOS or SOI technology to design 5G mmWave RF front-end modules in SoCs, the current RF front-end devices will be from the seemingly comfortable RF front-end module supplier clubs (eg Broadcom, Murata, Qorvo, Skyworks) , and TDK / Qualcomm) will change. Figure 21, the main players in the 5G ecosystem Troadec pointed out that Intel and Qualcomm have entered the modem and mobile phone transceiver business. They are very promising to master the wireless RF field to provide end-to-end solutions. The goal of these companies is "the complete internal design of the RF industry chain from A to Z," she said. If Broadcom acquired Qualcomm... In the various products and technologies of Broadcom and Qualcomm, the mobile phone market is the market for the complementary services of these two giants. Troadec observed Broadcom in the wireless and Wi-Fi sectors, while Qualcomm in the application processor unit, modem, transceiver, Wi-Fi / BT, plus NXP (NXP) NFC and their The microcontroller (Microcontroller) has a high status. Figure 22. Qualcomm promotes integration changes in the 5G RF supply chain Now Qualcomm has gained a strong technical traction in the 5G mmWave field, while Qualcomm focuses on technology solutions below 6GHz. Trouge said that if it is not blocked by the US president, Broadcom (Broadcom) The merger with Qualcomm "will produce a very high monopoly." She suspects, "That's why we saw Intel become scared and tried to enter the acquisition discussion, even to buy Broadcom ( Broadcom)."
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