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At next week’s GSMA Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, RF front-end product manufacturer and foundry services provider TriQuint Semiconductor Inc of Hillsboro, OR, USA is launching the first two members of its Hadron II power amplifier (PA) module family; the TQM7M5012 and TQM7M5005.

The second-generation EDGE PAs were designed using TriQuint’s CuFlip copper bump technology, improving RF performance while reducing current consumption to provide longer device battery life. Debuting with a 5x5mm footprint, the module are 50% smaller than the previous generation, providing handset makers with additional board space to add other rich features.

The new products build on TriQuint’s first-generation Hadron PA module family, which are found in mobile devices including Samsung’s BlackJack, LG’s Shine and Chocolate 3G, Palm’s Treo and HTC’s Advantage. TriQuint says that its EDGE PA module shipments for 3G phones grew 178% in 2007 as the firm gained market share, and as WCDMA networks grew to provide 70% of the world’s commercially launched 3G services, according to a 15 January update from the Global mobile Suppliers Association (GSA) which stated that most WCDMA-HSPA networks combine with EDGE for service continuity.

“With WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity, FM radios, MP3 players, cameras, and other rich features appearing in more and more 3G phones, design time increases and board space is at a premium,” says Tim Dunn, VP for Handsets. “Our CuFlip copper bump technology enables us to shrink the module footprint to 5mm x 5mm while extracting heat from the PA more efficiently and reducing current. The result is improvement in size, performance, cost, and reliability.”

Available in EDGE-Polar and EDGE-Linear versions, TriQuint says that both products have been optimized to deliver best-in-class current consumption in the critical GMSK mode, which significantly improves handset battery life. The TQM7M5012 for EDGE-Polar is aligned with Qualcomm’s newest 3G multimode transceivers. Compared to the previous generation, TQM7M5012 offers lower Rx band noise power level to help eliminate external components in the radio. The TQM7M5005 is designed to work with some of the world’s leading 2.5G and 3G transceivers that require a linear power amplifier. TriQuint has developed RF radio application and evaluation boards for both modules, enabling phone makers to shorten handset development time.

“Our silicon partner cooperation enables seamless alignment of the Hadron II PA module family with the transceiver chips, offering a streamlined process for radio design and assembly,” says Paul Cooper, strategic marketing manager for Handsets.

TriQuint is sampling the TQM7M5005 and the TQM7M5012 to lead customers, and production is planned for first-half 2008.

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Search: TriQuint Power amplifier module 3G WEDGE

Visit: www.triquint.com/rf