RF MEMS holds promise for next-generation capabilities

Creating the perfect design for a 3G smart phone, PDA or other hand-held device hasn't been easy. The functionality required of these next-generation devices is mind-boggling. Yet a new component technology may assist in making a big statement out of a small thing.

Radio frequency microelectromechanical systems, or RF MEMS, provides on/off switching that increases the functionality without the space needed for additional components.

According to Cahners In-Stat Group (www.instat.com), RF MEMS hold considerable market promise. In its report “Market Snapshot: RF MEMS,” the research firm projects that if developmental issues can be overcome and appropriate pricing levels are reached, revenues for RF MEMS switches and relays will grow from more than $1 million in 2001, to nearly $350 million by 2006.

However, even though this market provides tremendous opportunity, In-Stat reported that initial penetration will be limited by price.

“RF MEMS solutions are currently too expensive for all but the highest-end cellular phones and certain developmental issues must still be overcome,” the report stated.

In-Stat also found that RF MEMS have met (and surpassed) the size, power consumption, insertion loss, and isolation challenges of current switch/relay technologies. However, there still remains work to be done in terms of life cycle, reliability, price and packaging. Other RF MEMS devices, such as inductors, capacitors and filters, will be used in conjunction with MEMS switches and relays to improve the quality of wireless devices and the tenability range of their circuits.

MEMSCAP (www.memscap.com), a development provider of MEMS-based wireless electronic systems, has a MEMS Comm Component Library for Agilent Technologies (www.agilent.com) advanced design system platform. The micro-machined RF MEMS devices, the size of a grain of sand, are attached directly on top of an RF chip. According to the company, they offer significant space and time saving by replacing off-chip passive component ICs that must be painstakingly integrated via a printed circuit board.

With the assistance of RF MEMS, one handset will be able to offer as many as five radios — TMDA, CDMA, 3G, Bluetooth and GSM operation — without additional components.

In addition to MEMSCAP, other companies also are working on RF MEMS applications. Analog Devices (www.analogdevices.com), Cronos (www.memsrus.com) and Motorola Semiconductor Products Sector (www.motorola.com/semiconductors) are a few of the many companies currently producing the switch and relay solutions.