Texas Instruments new 4-GHz quadrature modulator delivers superior multi-carrier performance for wireless service providers

    DALLAS, Aug. 21 /EMWNews/ -- Extending its portfolio of high

performance radio frequency (RF) solutions, Texas Instruments Incorporated

(TI) (NYSE: TXN) today announced a high-linearity, ultra-low noise

quadrature (IQ) modulator that delivers RF output transmission up to 4-GHz,

allowing service providers to easily support multiple wireless

communications standards on a single RF transceiver card. TI's TRF370317 IQ

modulator is a direct launch RF transmitter device that offers basestation

equipment manufacturers improved linearity and higher output power, which

can improve overall transmitter performance, while reducing power

consumption and operating expenditures for service providers. For more

information, go to http://www.ti.com/TRF370317.



    Texas Instruments' TRF370317 is a high-performance IQ modulator that

meets the stringent requirements of GSM, CDMA2000, TD-SCDMA, W-CDMA, and

WiMAX, as well as emerging next-generation wireless standards such as LTE

and multi-carrier GSM. The TRF370317 enables conversion from baseband or

intermediate frequency directly to RF frequencies, thereby reducing bill of

material (BOM) costs and board space.



    "The improved linearity performance of the TRF370317 IQ modulator

allows manufacturers to deploy pico, micro or macro basestations, targeting

a variety of wireless air interfaces for multi-carrier applications," said

David Briggs, general manager of TI's RF and digital radio products. "The

state-of-the-art linearity performance of the TRF370317 modulator is

consistent across a broad frequency range so that it can be used across

multiple customer platforms targeting various communications standards. The

TRF370317 is an ideal solution for basestation manufacturers looking to

reduce the capital and operating expenditures of their service provider

customers while meeting all transmission performance requirements."



    Texas Instruments' TRF370317 has an ultra-low noise floor of .163

dBm/Hz and features an industry-leading output third order intercept point

(OIP3) of 26.5 dBm, which significantly improves the adjacent channel power

ratio in cellular basestation transmitter designs. The TRF370317 offers up

to 4.5 dB better OIP3 than its nearest competitor. The device is capable of

accepting input signals that range from zero (DC) to 350 MHz and generating

a modulated RF output from 400 MHz up to 4-GHz. This broad range of input

and output frequencies offers designers utmost flexibility and support for

a wide range of communications standards.



    Texas Instruments' TRF370317 quadrature modulator can easily interface

with a variety of digital-to-analog converter (DAC) devices, allowing for

flexibility in RF transmitter design. When coupled with TI's DAC5688, a

16-bit, 800-MSPS dual interpolating DAC, the TRF370317 provides a highly

linear, compact solution for multi-carrier implementations. The low-noise

DAC5688 further simplifies implementation by integrating phase, gain and DC

offset adjustments for performance optimization. RF transmitters designed

using this direct launch architecture save space, power, BOM components and

cost when compared to superheterodyne transmitter implementations.



    Texas Instruments' 4-GHz TRF3703 family now includes the TRF370317 as

well as previous members, the TRF370315 and the TRF370333. Operating from a

single 5-volt supply, the TRF370317 modulator is capable of driving a

single-ended 50-ohm load without any external matching components. Output

compression of 12 dBm, unadjusted carrier leakage of -40 dBm (at 2-GHz) and

unadjusted sideband suppression of -50 dBc (at 2-GHz) all serve to keep

signal quality high and simplify transmitter design.



    Texas Instruments is the only semiconductor provider to offer a

complete analog signal chain for 2G/3G and Beyond3G air interfaces. The

TRF370317 modulator adds to TI's high-performance analog product line

targeted at wireless infrastructure applications including: high

performance RF, data converters, clock distribution and amplifier

solutions. TI's TMS320TCI6484 digital signal processor (DSP) is a 65-nm,

single-core 1-GHz DSP that delivers improved data throughput and reduces

latency for Beyond3G cellular infrastructure applications. For more

information on TI's complete line of wireless infrastructure DSP and analog

solutions, please visit http://www.ti.com/wi.



    Availability and Pricing



    The TRF370317 quadrature modulator is available now in full production

and is priced at $5.35 per 1K units. A complete evaluation module, the

TRF3703-17EVM and data sheet are available at http://www.ti.com/TRF370317.

    About Texas Instruments



    Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN) helps customers solve problems and

develop new electronics that make the world smarter, healthier, safer,

greener and more fun. A global semiconductor company, TI innovates through

manufacturing, design and sales operations in more than 25 countries. For

more information, go to http://www.ti.com.



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