TriQuint Commercializes Millimeter Wave Market With New Foundry Processes

HILLSBORO, Ore.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--TriQuint Semiconductor, Inc. (NASDAQ:TQNT), a leading RF front-end product manufacturer and foundry services provider, today introduced two new 150mm high volume Gallium Arsenide (GaAs) processes for cost-effectively building millimeter wave (mmWave) applications, TQP25 and TQP15. These new Pseudomorphic High Electron Mobility Transistor (pHEMT) processes utilize optical lithography technology to substantially reduce cost when compared to traditional E-beam based solutions. TQP15 and TQP25 join the previously announced and fully released TQP13 process, expanding TriQuint's commercial foundry pHEMT offerings to service the entire range of mmW frequencies. TQP25 is currently available in limited release and TQP15 will be in limited release at the end of Q408.

TQP25 enables the design of high throw count switches such as those used in rapidly growing 3G WCDMA mobile handset market. High throw count switches enable access to multiple frequency bands from a single antenna, reducing the overall RF front-end footprint. TQP25 is also ideal for Ku-band power amplifier designs and as an enhancement/depletion (E/D) process, it allows levels of integration not typically available in this frequency range.

TQP15 is targeted at the emergent Ka-band segment and is ideal for the VSAT, satellite communications, and point-to-point radio markets. Developed from the same base technology as TQP13 and TQP25, TQP15 is set to become a disruptive technology in the Ka-band space continuing TriQuint's technology leadership position in the foundry market.

"TriQuint is the industry's leading Gallium Arsenide foundry services provider and continues to expand its process portfolio," observes Asif Anwar, Program Director of the GaAs Service at Strategy Analytics. "TriQuint's new 0.15µm and 0.25 µm processes will help the VSAT industry address future trends that include implementation of Ka band-based broadband services, which we see as a growth area, as well as target other commercial millimeter-wave markets with cost effective solutions."

"The cost efficiencies enabled by utilizing optical lithography in place of more traditional E-beam offers a broader range of customers the ability to develop millimeter wave applications. This disruptive price point will help bring mmW applications into the commercial market space," said Mike Peters, Director of Marketing for Commercial Foundry at TriQuint. "These new low-cost optical options continue to cement our position as the dominant technology leader in our industry. Customers can be confident that TriQuint offers the highest performance and quality process technologies with the broadest range of support."

Process Summary and Specifications

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

This TriQuint Semiconductor, Inc. (NASDAQ: TQNT) press release contains forward-looking statements made pursuant to the Safe Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Readers are cautioned that forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. The cautionary statements made in this press release should be read as being applicable to all related statements wherever they appear. Statements containing such words as ‘commercializes', ‘ideal', ‘disruptive technologies', ‘technology leadership', ‘leader', ‘dominant', or similar terms are considered to contain uncertainty and are forward-looking statements. A number of factors affect TriQuint's operating results and could cause its actual future results to differ materially from any results indicated in this press release or in any other forward-looking statements made by, or on behalf of, TriQuint including, but not limited to: those associated with the unpredictability and volatility of customer acceptance of and demand for our products and technologies, the ability of our production facilities and those of our vendors to meet demand, the ability of our production facilities and those of our vendors to produce products with yields sufficient to maintain profitability, as well as the other "Risk Factors" set forth in TriQuint's most recent 10-Q report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. This and other reports can be found on the SEC web site, www.sec.gov. A reader of this release should understand that these and other risks could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations expressed / implied in forward-looking statements.

FACTS ABOUT TRIQUINT

Founded in 1985, we "Connect the Digital World to the Global Network"™ by supplying high-performance RF modules, components and foundry services to the world's leading communications companies. Specifically, TriQuint supplies products to four out of the top five cellular handset manufacturers, and is a leading gallium arsenide (GaAs) supplier to major defense and space contractors. TriQuint creates standard and custom products using advanced processes that include gallium arsenide, surface acoustic wave (SAW) and bulk acoustic wave (BAW) technologies to serve diverse markets including wireless handsets, base stations, broadband communications and military. TriQuint is also lead researcher in a 3-year DARPA program to develop advanced gallium nitride (GaN) amplifiers. TriQuint, as named by Strategy Analytics in August 2008, is the number-three worldwide leader in GaAs devices and the world's largest commercial GaAs foundry. TriQuint has ISO9001 certified manufacturing facilities in Oregon, Texas, and Florida and a production plant in Costa Rica; design centers are located in North America and Germany. Visit TriQuint at www.triquint.com/rf to register for our newsletters.

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