Peregrine 50-Ohm RF Switch Targets High-Precision Broadband Applications

Peregrine Semiconductor Corporation has announced availability of the RoHScompliant
PE42551 50-Ohm RF Switch for high-performance broadband RF applications such as
automated test equipment (ATE), related test and measurement applications, and cellular infrastructure.

Manufactured on Peregrine’s HaRP™-enhanced UltraCMOS™ technology, the Single-Pole, Double-Throw
(SPDT) device operates from 9 kHz to 6.0 GHz and delivers high performance specifications not typically
found in standard competitive devices. The device is quick to reach a fully settled state due to a proprietary design that enables the reduction of the phase and insertion loss drift that occurs after a switching event.

The resulting benefits are reduced test time, increased throughput, and reduced cost.
The PE42551 is the third device in Peregrine’s UltraCMOS RF Switch family designed for the demanding
rigors of high-precision RF applications. “This new device complements our PE42552 high-end ATE
switch with high linearity up to 6 GHz, high isolation and ease-of-use, at a price point ideal for costsensitive applications,” said Mark Schrepferman, marketing director for Peregrine’s High Performance Solutions business unit.

The PE42551 features very fast switching time of 7 µs (50% CTRL to 0.1 dB final value) which allows
systems to respond faster while maintaining linearity over frequency, voltage and power. A typical GaAsbased switch has a well-known gate lag in settling time which is not usually defined in its operational specification. This lag, which develops a phase and insertion loss drift, is insignificant on the UltraCMOSbased PE42551.