Analog Devices Unveils 3G Transceiver for Femtocell Base Stations

The complete design consumes 30 percent less power and delivers 50 percent better EVM (error vector magnitude) than competing devices while improving data rates and system fidelity in multi-band 3G femtocell base stations. The ADF4602-1 3G transceiver is ideally suited to high-performance 3G femtocells providing cellular FMC (fixed mobile converged) services. With a receive sensitivity of better than –113 dBm, the front end includes three high-performance single-ended LNAs (low-noise amplifiers), allowing the device to support tri-band applications. The receiver is based on a direct conversion architecture, which is an ideal solution for highly integrated W-CDMA (wideband code division multiple access) receivers and reduces the BOM (bill of materials) by fully integrating all interstage filtering. The single-ended input structure eases interface design constraints and reduces the matching components required for small footprint single-ended duplexers.

The transmitter uses an innovative direct conversion modulator that achieves high modulation accuracy with exceptionally low noise, eliminating the need for external transmit SAW (surface acoustic wave) filters. Operating on a 3.3-V supply, the ADF4602-1 transceiver typically consumes 50 mA in receive mode and 50 mA to 100 mA in transmit mode.