Broadcom 5G Wi-Fi Reference Design Includes TriQuint Technology

As mobile devices increase their capabilities, they are creating and consuming digital content at a very fast rate, and increasingly this data is being transmitted wirelessly. This is straining the 802.11a/b/g/n networks, resulting in poor performance across the board. The 5G Wi-Fi standard is seen as the next generation technology capable of dealing with the large amounts of data being consumed today. This network is three times faster and six times more power efficient than 802.11 networks.

TriQuint Semiconductor, an RF solutions supplier, announced the TriConnect 5 GHz WLAN front-end modules and premium LTE / Wi-Fi coexistence filters are going to be used by the 5G Wi-Fi reference design from Broadcom Corporation, a provider of semiconductor solutions for wired and wireless communications.

The Broadcom design will be used for the next generation of consumer devices by taking advantage of the integrated combo chips with dual band 5G Wi-Fi system with Bluetooth, FM radio and software on a single, compact silicon die. The 5G IEEE 802.11ac technology will give smartphones, tablets, and other consumer devices a faster throughput and extended battery life with a longer operating range.

The Broadcom chip offers:

• Dual-band (2.4 and 5 GHz) IEEE 802.11ac draft 3 x 3 compliant MAC/PHY/Radio complete SoC
• Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) technology doubles spectral efficiency
• Fully integrated dual-band radio transceiver supports 3 x 3 antennas for date rates up to 1.3 Gbps
• Embedded hardware acceleration enables increased system performance and significant reduction in host-CPU utilization in access point configurations
• Airtime fairness for most efficient use of channel time in dense mixed speed client environments
• Integrated FASTPATH UAP software provides complete turnkey 11ac solution

"We are proud to be strategically aligned with Broadcom, a well-recognized innovator in wireless communications. Broadcom and TriQuint are leaders in delivering 802.11ac-based products. We’re enabling gigabit Wi-Fi speeds and solving Wi-Fi / LTE coexistence problems to provide a superior consumer experience," said Tim Dunn, vice president of Mobile Devices.

This is a growing market with expected shipments of more than 100 million by the end of 2013 projected to increase with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 430 percent by 2017 – based on data from Mobile Experts and ABI Research.

The development of a next generation Wi-Fi technology is critical as multi-screen services in the home, hotspots, and the Internet of Everything (IoE) all vie for the same space to communicate.

With 5G, the Wi-Fi network will improve download speeds by almost doubling the current 802.11n rate of 600 Mbps to Gigabit speeds. This means the Wi-Fi router will be just as effective in watching HD streaming content, downloading large files, and staying online even if everyone in the household is using the Wi-Fi. The range improvement with 5G will also eliminate deadzones in the home by providing total coverage.