Executive Summary : | Fifth generation (5G) cellular mobile networks will supply a solution to an ever-increasing demand for higher data rates in mobile devices. All 5G RF front-ends (RFFE) products used in zero intermediate frequency (IF) receiver or in a superheterodyne receiver will be driven by cost, power efficiency, and available space within the unit. They will need to be small, highly efficient, and able to be manufactured in large quantities to meet fast-growing global demand. To commercialize affordable custom parts for application like Internet-of-Things (IoT) devices in particular, RF front-ends will need to be designed with a minimum number of components, and moreover manufacturing volumes will have to increase dramatically. In the current environment, most IoT devices are being built with low-cost parts originally developed for high-volume mobile phone production.
The current state-of-the-art 5G RFFE architecture contains filters, switches, phase shifters and amplifiers after the antenna. The multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) antennas have been widely studied over wide band MIMO antenna in the limited space. Therefore, miniaturization has become the trend of wireless communication; the size of the antenna must be small enough to be integrated with other components. Next single-pole-multi-thru (SPnT) switches are connected between antennas to main RF path in RFFE. High-power switch family can handle very high transmitting signal levels of up to 38 dBm, while at the same time exhibiting low losses to conserve battery power. Switches should demonstrate low loss characteristics with high linearity for uplink carrier aggregation. One of the critical pain points of the RFFE is filtering. Unlike the power amplifier, where a single device can be used for multiple frequency bands and technologies, at the present time a single filter is required for each individual frequency band. Needless to say, RFFE performance is very crucial. Maximizing PA efficiency on the uplink, and receiver sensitivity on the downlink, will require optimization of the entire RF chain. As complexity increases, it will be crucial to understand the RF chain and any interactions between elements. Hence, intermodulation distortion (IMD) of a filter plays a very crucial role in 5G. In addition, Isolation, loss, and power handling requirements of a filter continue to create new challenges. The goal of this proposal is to design, fabricate and tested four primary front-end passive components (antennas, phase shifters, SPnT switches, and filters) at microwave and millimeter wave frequencies for Indian 5G applications or standards. |