COMUNICADO DE ATMEL CORPORATION

Atmel Targets High-Volume WLAN/ Wi-Fi Market with Introduction of 802.11b/g and 802.11a SiGe Power Amplifiers

Extremely Cost-effective Compared to GaAs/InGaP Solutions

HEILBRONN (GERMANY), 26 (PRNewswire)

Atmel Corporation (Nasdaq: ATML) announced today the availability of two new WLAN Power Amplifiers (PAs) for the high-volume WLAN/ Wi-Fi market. The 2.4-GHz PA T7031 is designed for the IEEE 802.11b and g standards, whereas the ATR3515, covering the entire 5-GHz range from 4.9 up to 5.9 GHz, complies with 802.11a. Both PAs are manufactured in Atmel's advanced Silicon Germanium (SiGe) technology. By using this standard silicon process instead of GaAs or InGaP technology, a cost advantage of 50 % can be achieved, which offers chip set vendors the next level of cost/performance needed to meet continuing cost-reduction requirements for products in the WLAN market. The PAs are especially optimized for battery-powered portable applications like PDAs, smart phones and notebook computers. Further applications include WLAN client cards for PCs and access points.

Extended battery life, a key issue for portable devices, can be achieved through the biasing control function and the power-down mode, eliminating the need for an external supply switch. Both PAs integrate a power detector with a dynamic range of 20 dB, allowing the system to adjust the output power level exactly to the level needed at a specific moment for full performance at the lowest possible current consumption level.

The T7031 provides a linear power output of +21 dBm under 11 Mbit/s CCK conditions and 3.5% Error Vector Magnitude (EVM) at an output power of +15 .5 dBm under 54 Mbit/s OFDM conditions. The T7031 has a typical current consumption of 82 mA in 802.11g and 130 mA in 802.11b mode.

The ATR3515 delivers a linear power output of +19 dBm while achieving an EVM of 3% operating in the 802.11a mode at 54 Mbit/s. The ATR3515 has a typical current consumption of 240 mA in 802.11a mode.

The PAs include a fully on-chip input and interstage matching. For output matching only few low cost external components are needed. Both devices operate over a 2.7 V to 3.6 V supply voltage range, which is ideally suited for battery-driven applications.

Samples of the WLAN PAs ATR3515 and T7031 in extra-small low-cost QFN16 packages (measuring only 4 mm x 4 mm) are available now. Atmel also provides fully assembled evaluation boards that help to reduce design-in time. Pricing starts at US$1.10 for the ATR3515 and at US$0.80 for T7031 (both at 100 k each).

Footnote 802.11x = IEEE standard

CCK = Complementary Code Keying

EVM = Error Vector Magnitude

GaAs = Gallium Arsenide

IEEE = Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers

InGaP = Indium Gallium Phosphite

MAC = Media Access Controllers

OFDM = Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing

PA = Power Amplifier

PDA = Personal Digital Assistant

RSSI = Receiver Signal Strength Indicator

SiGe = Silicon Germanium

WLAN = Wireless Local Area Network

About Atmel

Founded in 1984, Atmel Corporation is headquartered in San Jose, California with manufacturing facilities in North America and Europe. Atmel designs, manufactures and markets worldwide, advanced logic, mixed-signal, nonvolatile memory and RF semiconductors. Atmel is also a leading provider of system-level integration semiconductor solutions using CMOS, BiCMOS, SiGe, and high-voltage BCDMOS process technologies.

NOTE: Atmel and combinations thereof are the registered trademarks of Atmel Corporation or its subsidiaries. Wi-Fi is a registered trademark of Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance, Inc. IEEE is a registered trademark of The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. Corporation New York. Other terms and product names may be the trademarks of others.

Information

Atmel's WLAN PA product information may be retrieved at: http://www.atmel.com/dyn/resources/prod_... (ATR3515) http://www.atmel.com/dyn/resources/prod_... (T7031)

For more information on Atmel's overall WLAN product portfolio, please visit http://www.atmel.com/products/WLAN/

Atmel's SiGe power technology is also available as foundry service, see: http://www.atmel.com/products/SiGeBipola...

Press Contacts

Dr. Susanne van Clewe, Marcom Manager Communications and Automotive Products, tel +49 7131 67 2081, e-mail susanne.van-clewe@hno.atmel.com; Clive Over, Director of Press Relations - USA and Asia, tel +1 408 451 2855, e-mail cliveover@atmel.com; Veronique Sablereau, Corporate Communications Manager - Europe, tel + 33 1 30 60 70 68, e-mail veronique.sablereau@atmel.com

Source: Atmel Corporation

Contact: Dr. Susanne van Clewe, Marcom Manager Communications and Automotive Products, tel +49 7131 67 2081, e-mail susanne.van-clewe@hno.atmel.com; Clive Over, Director of Press Relations - USA and Asia, tel +1 408 451 2855, e-mail cliveover@atmel.com; Veronique Sablereau, Corporate Communications Manager - Europe, tel +33 1 30 60 70 68, e-mail veronique.sablereau@atmel.com, all of Atmel Corporation.

Web site: http://www.atmel.com

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