RF Micro Devices Inc. unveiled a highly-integrated front end module (FEM) for Smart Energy/Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) applications at the 2013 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. RFMD’s single-chip RFFM6403 FEM delivers industry-leading performance, reduces customer design time and speeds customer time-to-market in Smart Energy/AMI applications operating in the 405 to 475 MHz frequency range, as well as for portable battery powered equipment and general 433/470 MHz ISM band systems.
The feature-rich RFFM6403 integrates a transmit high power path with a +30.5 dBm PA and Tx harmonic output filtering, a transmit bypass thru path with Tx harmonic output filtering, and a receive path with a low noise amplifier (LNA) with bypass mode. The FEM also features a low insertion loss/high isolation SP3T switch and separate Rx/Tx 50Ω ports, simplifying matching and providing input and output signals for both the Tx and Rx paths.
The RFFM6403 is designed for AMI systems operating with high efficiency requirements and a minimum output power of 30 dBm. In the receive path, the Rx chain provides 16 dB of typical gain with only 5 mA of current and an excellent noise figure of 1.7 dB. The high level of integration and industry-leading form factor (6 x 6 x 1 mm) minimize product footprint at the customer device while reducing external component count and associated assembly costs.
