Features

Delivers unprecedented flexibility Lime Microsystems has launched a Universal Wireless Communications Toolkit that will allow developers to create wireless protocols of almost any complexity. The Toolkit comprises Lime"s configurable transceiver board linked to an Altera FPGA design kit via a purpose-built high speed mezzanine connection (HSMC) interface board.

Diodes Incorporated has announced its first products to be housed in the ultra-miniature X3-DFN0603-2 package.  The company’s first 6.0V Zener and switching diodes to be provided in the 0.6mm x 0.3mm x 0.3mm format take 70% less PCB space than DFN1006-2 packaged alternatives and have an off-board height 40% lower.

Solid State Supplies is stocking a new Class 12 quad-band GSM/GPRS module from Quectel Wireless Solutions.  The M80 module offers up to 85.6kbps uplink and downlink speeds, operating at 850, 900, 1800, and 1900 MHz frequency bands.

eoSemi has disclosed details of its new silicon oscillator technology, and announced that it has commenced shipping pre-commercial versions of its first product. The company is working with a small group of key strategic customers and partners.

Toshiba Corporation is set to launch a new line of high performance SDXC and SDHC memory cards under a new brand name, EXCERIA, that will bring to market SD memory cards offering what are expect to be the highest performance levels available.

USB solutions specialist Future Technology Devices International Limited (FTDI) has announced the introduction of its new multi-function application board (shield). By combining the Vinco development platform, with targeted application support, such as MP3 audio codec, Ethernet-to-USB bridge and real-time clock (RTC), engineers will now be able to speed up product development.

Texas Instruments (TI) and iRobot, a leading company in robotic technology-based solutions, have announced a partnership to develop robotic technologies using TI’s smart multicore OMAP platform. The relationship stems from the companies’ shared aim to create intelligent and practical robots. The two companies are looking to leverage iRobot’s long history in advancing the field of robotics and TI’s strength in applications processors and related technologies.

Soitec (Euronext), a leading company in generating and manufacturing revolutionary semiconductor materials for the electronics and energy industries, has announced that ST-Ericsson has selected planar fully depleted silicon on insulator (FD-SOI) technology for use in future mobile platforms. Soitec’s innovative substrates ─ with an extremely thin top layer which predefines critical characteristics of the transistor ─ will provide the foundation upon which fully depleted transistors are built.

Microsemi Corporation has expanded its synchronous Ethernet (SynchE) product portfolio with the single-chip, ZL30150 line card device for mobile multimedia and packet-based carrier Ethernet applications. The ZL30150 features two integrated digital phase lock loops (DPLLs) that can lock on to up to four inputs for applications that require independent transmit and receive timing paths.

New research suggests that by 2014 media tablets will become the world’s fourth-largest application for semiconductors, up from 35th in 2010, rising in just four short years from obscurity to a level rivalling the position of powerhouse chip markets like mobile handsets and PCs, according to IHS iSuppli. Sales of semiconductors for use in media tablets are expected to skyrocket to $18.2 billion in 2014, up from $2.6 billion in 2010, the year that Apple kicked off the market with the introduction of the iPad.