Freescale Establishes New Standard for RF Power LDMOS Transistors for Broadcast TV Transmitters

The new MRFE6VP8600H delivers best-in-class output, efficiency, and reliability across the entire UHF band.

September 20, 2011, Seoul, Korea – Freescale Semiconductor (NYSE: FSL, www.freescale.com ) announced a UHF broadcast TV application RF power LDMOS transistor that combines industry-leading output and efficiency with reliability superior to any competing device.

The MRFE6VP8600H, the latest addition to Freescale's RF Power LDMOS transistor family, delivers 39% higher output than the previous generation and is designed to provide maximum performance across various major digital transmission standards, including ATSC, DVB-T, and ISDB-T. The MRFE6VP8600H offers groundbreaking advantages to TV transmitter manufacturers and broadcasters. For example, this transistor provides excellent efficiency (typically 30% at 860 MHz, or up to 45% when used in a Doherty configuration) at a linear output of 125 W (instantaneous power of over 600 W) across the full broadcast band.

The range of the UHF frequency band is 470 MHz to 860 MHz, and it is used by broadcasters to transmit over-the-air TV signals. Most current digital TV stations use the UHF band.

"The new MRFE6VP8600H reinforces Freescale's ongoing commitment to providing the exceptional performance and efficiency necessary for customer success, even as the industry faces extremely stringent market conditions," said Ritu Favre, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Freescale's RF Business Unit. "This new product is also a solution that highlights Freescale's iconic approach of achieving performance and efficiency improvements through a system-level intelligent design process that leverages a deep understanding of the network market."

The high RF output and excellent efficiency of the MRFE6VP8600H reduce the total number of transistors and combiners required to produce a given output, thereby simplifying transmitter design and increasing reliability compared to previous generation semiconductor systems. Transmitters based on the MRFE6VP8600H can reduce power consumption by up to 15% compared to previous generation products, enabling significant reductions in operating costs.

The MRFE6VP8600H is the most reliable RF power LDMOS transistor in its class. When operating at maximum rated RF output, this device does not degrade in performance even under impedance mismatch (VSWR) of 65:1 or greater, or when twice the rated input is applied. The robustness of this transistor provides even greater reliability under adverse conditions, such as antenna freezing, transmission line failure, or operator error, especially when peak signals generated by pre-distortion systems are applied.

In addition, the MRFE6VP8600H can withstand high PAR (peak-to-average ratio) in digital transmission schemes using high-order modulation techniques such as DVB-T (8k OFDM) and out-of-band reflective load caused by highly selective channel filters. The robustness of the powerful MRFE6VP8600H also allows for the simplification of the transmitter protection circuit.

The main specifications of the MRFE6VP8600H are as follows.
• Average RF output of 125W at 860MHz (DVB-T [8k OFDM] signal), 19.3dB gain, 30% efficiency
• 600W instantaneous RF output
• Can be designed with Class AB, Doherty, or drain modulation amplifier architectures, so specific devices optimized for each architecture are not required.
• Built-in ESD (Electrostatic Discharge) protection provides immunity against stray voltage encountered during assembly
• The negative gate-source voltage range is extended to -6V to +10V, improving performance when operating as the peak stage of a Doherty amplifier.
• Supplied in Freescale NI-1230 bolt-down ceramic air cavity package (MRFE6VP8600H) or NI-1230S solderable ceramic air cavity package (MRFE6VP8600HS).

Price and supply situation
The MRFE6VP8600H/HS is currently in mass production. Broadband reference designs and other support tools are available to designers. For information on how to obtain samples and pricing, please contact Freescale Semiconductor, the Freescale Korea sales office (02-3440-7200), or an authorized Freescale distributor. Further details on the MRFE6VP8600H can be found at www.freescale.com/RFbroadcast , and details on RF power LDMOS solutions can be found at www.freescale.com/RFpower .