Peregrine Semiconductor has introduced its next-generation, UltraCMOS PE4312 Digital Step Attenuator. Successor to the popular PE4302 – which boasts more than 35 million units shipped since its introduction – the new PE4312 enables flexible, wide dynamic-range network-infrastructure designs that require highly accurate and efficient amplitude control. This DSA upgrade is ideally suited for wireless-infrastructure devices, broadband consumer and infrastructure equipment, land mobile radios (LMRs), test-and-measurement equipment and military RF applications.
Based on customer requests, the UltraCMOS PE4312 features an extended temperature range that enable RF engineers to simplify thermal design, wider power-supply range to enable flexible power-supply routing, 1.8 V-compatible control voltage levels to enable lower-power designs and higher ESD ratings to ease manufacturing flow.
UltraCMOS PE4312 Sets New Performance Bar for DSAs
The PE4312 operates from 1 MHz to 4 GHz with a very low insertion loss of 2.1 dB with a power-supply level between 2.3 V and 5.5 V. It can operate at a temperature range between -40 and 105 degrees Celsius and supports both 1.8 V and 3 V control logic. The PE4312 offers several improvements over PE4302 in attenuation accuracy ±(0.15 + 2% of attenuation setting), linearity (IIP3 of 59 dBm) and switching speed (500 ns). It also features a novel architecture to provide safe attenuation-state-transition behavior, which prevents positive power spikes that occur during attenuation-state changes when RF input power is applied. This feature simplifies the digital-interface design, improves signal quality and prevents damage to power amplifier sub-assemblies.
DSAs Improve Performance of Devices in Many Markets
The DSAs are in multiband, RF-infrastructure applications and deliver power control in distributed antenna systems; gain control for optical repeaters in wireless-infrastructure devices; signal conditioning in broadband equipment; and amplitude conditioning in test-and-measurement equipment and LMRs. They are also used in military RF applications.
Key Specifications -
- Frequency Range: 1 MHz to 4 GHz
- Attenuation: 31.5 dB with 0.5 dB steps
- Power: High linearity with 59 dBm IIP3
- Supply Voltage: 1.8 to 5.5 V
- Package: RoHS compliant, 20-lead QFN, and it measures 4 x 4 mm
- Pricing and Availability: Samples and volume-production parts are available now and priced at $1.52 each in 10K-quantity orders. Evaluation kit boards are $150.
View complete specification for this product and download the datasheet.
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