ANADIGICS today announced introduction of two new power amplifiers (PAs) designed for use in femtocells, picocells and in-home customer premises equipment (CPE). 

Such applications are rapidly growing in popularity among service providers as an effective way to expand wireless network coverage. Femtocells solve the problem of weak wireless broadband signals in homes and offices by allowing mobile devices to connect to their carrier's network through a high-speed Internet backhaul link. ANADIGICS claims that Femtocells based on ANADIGICS power amplifier modules provide an enhanced and robust wireless user experience.

"Femtocells are a fundamentally new approach to mobile network architecture, and offer an attractive option for upgrading the existing network infrastructure as well as deploying the latest 4G technologies," said Joe Cozzarelli, Senior Director, Broadband RF Product Line, ANADIGICS. "We've drawn on our extensive experience in the design and development of power amplifiers for both mobile handsets and broadband cable infrastructure to balance the appropriate level of integration, performance and reliability in a cost-effective way. Our design approach provides the flexibility to support multiple standards with one device, making the job of the femtocell designer easier".

ANADIGICS' new highly efficient, highly linear AWB7127 and AWB7123 PAs support complex modulation schemes, such as those used in WCDMA, HSDPA and LTE air interfaces, by providing margin to the adjacent channel power (ACPR) requirements at rated output power. Operating in the most popular 3G frequency bands, the AWB7123 supports UMTS band 2 in North America and the AWB7127 supports band 1 in Europe, Asia and parts of South America. These highly integrated PA modules have been designed for easy incorporation into virtually any small-cell base station platform. The high performance designs are standards-flexible, and support products developed for networks in which an evolution to LTE will occur.

As femtocell technology continues to mature, the market is expected to grow dramatically in the coming years. According to the industry organization Femto Forum, the market will expand to approximately 49 million femtocell access points by 2014 with 114 million users worldwide accessing mobile networks via femtocells. These devices -- small base stations that sit in a home or office -- use the customer's own broadband connection to shuttle data and voice traffic between a mobile device and its network. The presence of a femtocell in a building can also improve coverage as cellular signals often have difficulty penetrating dense structures. Leading industry suppliers such as Qualcomm are increasing their focus on femtocells, with plans for reference designs announced already this year.