RF Application Trends in the Next Decade
By Gregory L. Waters, Skyworks Solutions, Inc.

In the last two decades, the wireless industry has undergone tremendous change. Today more people use a mobile phone as their primary communication vehicle than a traditional landline. At last count, there are now over three billion wireless subscribers worldwide compared to just 10 million in 1990. Around the globe, Wi-Fi® connectivity has become the ubiquitous local data connection. Strong consumer demand for online, always-on social networking services such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and others, is reinventing how we connect with other people, how we view portable computing, and how we market products and services. The next decade will deliver far more change and innovation in wireless communications than what we have already experienced thus far. This article summarizes a few of the trends that are setting the stage for the next decade and explains how these megatrends are affecting the makers of wireless devices.

First, the way wireless connections are being made is changing. Wireless services are becoming much more affordable globally, and communication devices are integrating multiple radios to allow for more seamless roaming. Cellular and WiFi are becoming universal connectors, allowing people to be connected anytime, anywhere. Smartphones now include from four to eight different cellular bands, with RF content representing the most rapidly growing content in smartphones today.

In addition, we are seeing embedded RF devices in places no one would have imagined just a few years ago. RF devices are being placed in vending machines, children’s backpacks, banking terminals, utility metering, home thermostats, and numerous other applications (see Figure 1). RF devices and connectivity will expand exponentially this decade, and will become the primary way that people connect with each other: our first megatrend.

Second, as the importance and need for always-on-connectivity increases, consumer devices such as smartphones and tablets must be able to easily connect to multiple and varied RF standards and frequencies. This creates additional technical challenges as these different RF standards tend to interfere with each other when placed in close proximity. Cost and size become increasingly important, and battery life can be challenged when running high data-rate applications. It’s easy for most of us to underestimate the importance of high bandwidth wireless data. To put it in perspective, traditional digital voice communications require only about 64Kb/s of bandwidth, while low-quality streaming video requires only 384Kb/s. Real-time video, on the other hand, requires at least 1.5Mb/s, and is quickly driving wireless services to a much higher network capability and quality of service.

This represents the second megatrend in RF: that wireless data and video will dominate network traffic. This is a deceptively important change for the entire wireless food chain, since it impacts everything from network capacity to applications processors to RF design. For RF device manufacturers, it will require new and different technology to provide improved battery life.

High data rates in wireless networks place fundamentally increased demands on battery life, since RF power will be determined by a ratio of peak to average power required:

• Average power determines coverage
• Peak power increases with standard: 3G➞ 3.5G➞ 4G (modulation complexity)
• More symbols per second dictate power

To provide solutions that meet the demands of both higher performance and lower power RF, leading device manufacturers will need to develop and integrate new algorithms, RF circuit designs, and combine these with advanced interconnect technologies. Both Silicon (Si) and gallium arsenide (GaAs) technologies will be required for optimal solutions.

While the industry debate of Si versus GaAs technology selection has been an entertaining one in recent years, the best solutions will leverage the relative strengths of each and combine them in innovative ways: our third megatrend. Figure 2 illustrates some high level advantages to each technology.

In summary, the next generation of wireless devices and applications are likely to deliver more innovation than we have seen in the industry to date. Wireless is the new universal connector, and RF network traffic has already shifted from voice traffic to being dominated by video and data.

These trends favor continued growth of the RF industry at rates well above the wireless industry overall. New technical approaches will be required to support high data throughput across multiple applications and devices. In addition to the traditional functionality of amplification, switching, and filtering RF signals, the next generation of RF devices will leverage much more sophisticated signal processing functionality, such as pre-distortion, sophisticated power control schemes, and even envelope tracking techniques.

This combination of wireless ubiquity coupled with increased RF complexity is in turn creating a new economic model for leading RF companies. Research and development investments required to make these necessary advances have and will continue to increase significantly. Companies possessing several core capabilities such as integrating multiple bands and air interfaces, leveraging the advantages of both Si and GaAs and advanced interconnects will grow and thrive (see Figure 3). In essence, these trends favor companies with broad technologies and experience.

Consumers will continue to benefit from the pervasiveness of RF as it spreads to a multitude of new applications and changes the way we live. Companies who are able to deliver more complex and highly integrated solutions will be part of one of the largest and fastest growing technology markets.

About the Author
Gregory L. Waters, 49, is executive vice president and general manager of front-end solutions for Skyworks Solutions, Inc. He joined the company in April 2003. Prior to joining Skyworks, he served as senior vice president of strategy and business development at Agere Systems, and previously held positions there as vice president of the Wireless Communications business, and vice president of the Broadband Communications business. Prior to this, he held a variety of senior management positions within Texas Instruments, including director of Network Access Products and director of North American sales.

Waters received a bachelor’s in electrical engineering from the University of Vermont and a master’s in computer science from Northeastern University.

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SKYWORKS SOLUTIONS, INC.
www.skyworksinc.com
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