Integrated Front-End Modules （FEM）

Published:2011/9/13 1:33:00 Author:Phyllis From:SeekIC

With the booming of for portable wireless data communication applications, the challenge of designing multiple high-efficiency, low-noise RF channels in as small a space started to emerge. A key to this challenge is to find out integrated RF modules that can provide superior coexistence faster speed and efficiency than discrete components.

Wireless is becoming the preferred method in all kinds of data communications. Except Wi-Fi, there are also many other wireless data link such Bluetooth, ZigBee, WiMAX and LTE. These network technologies are employed in applications like smart power grid and traffic management.

This growing dependence on wireless data communications requires designers to provide devices that provide extremely high receive channels and quality transmit. Receive channels must be efficient to avoid signal loss and must eliminate as much noise as possible in order to maximize data rates while dealing with very low received signal strengths. Transmit channels must meet strict power, spectral, and linearity standards, providing sharp bandwidth filtering while avoiding amplifier distortions and the reflections caused by impedance mismatches.

Besides challenges in designing, there are also pressures from the burden of channel coexistence as systems need at least two wireless links which corresponding to different standards respectively. These wireless links that coexist in the same design typically operate on narrowly-spaced frequency bands using co-located or even shared antennas.

Integrated front-end modules (FEM) can provide independent transmit and receive paths with in-line filters and amplifiers along with signal switch for sharing antenna connections for RF coexistence. Utilizing an integrated module rather than pursuing a discrete-component design can reduce the design effort and costs while creating highly precise and efficient RF subsystems.

There are a number of characters about integrated FEMs. First, the modules provide a fully-designed and optimized configuration of layout and components. Second, they bundle everything into a compact, shielded enclosure. All of the critical design and layout tasks are already done, with no tuning or tweaking necessary.

The integrated FEMs are fully assembled, optimized, and tested. The single FEM replaces numerous discrete components in the production bill of materials (BOM), reducing the cost of BOM management and inventory handling.

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