TriQuint Announces New GaAs HBT Foundry Process
TQHBT3 process offers foundry customers improved DC and RF performance with increased ruggedness for next generation power amplifier products
Hillsboro, OR -- TriQuint Semiconductor today announced the introduction of its high-volume TQHBT3 InGaP heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT) process fabricated in their 150mm Oregon wafer manufacturing facility. This process, the next generation evolution of TriQuint's mature, high-volume TQHBT process, enables designers of RF amplifiers for cellphone, WLAN, WiMax, and broadband power applications to achieve increased gain, power level, and efficiency for a given device size due to higher transistor performance.
"The TQHBT3 process offers our foundry customers improved performance for several key parameters important for their power amplifier applications" said Rob Christ, TriQuint's Foundry Marketing Director. "TQHBT3 features higher beta, more gain per stage, improved power added efficiency, and world class ruggedness."
The TQHBT3 process is an extension of TriQuint's current InGaP HBT process, which has been in high-volume production for over 3 years. TriQuint Process Engineers listened to customer inputs and optimized the transistors in many ways including improved thermal uniformity, higher efficiency in linear and saturated modes, and smaller transistor footprint without sacrificing parasitic or isolation parameters. TQHBT3 also features TriQuint's proven, highly flexible three layer metal system with over 6 microns of gold thickness. Die size for a given power level or function can be reduced leading to lower part cost and printed circuit board area utilized. TQHBT3 features 2-micron and 3-micron emitter width transistors.
"For high-power and high-ruggedness applications, like GSM and CDMA power amplifiers where 2-micron emitter processes are not optimal," added Christ, "TQHBT3 also has 3-micron emitter transistors with RF power performance equal to or better than the best 2-micron foundry processes." For higher frequency and digital applications, TQHBT3 also offers 2-micron emitter transistors available on the same wafer.
Source: TriQuint Semiconductor