Baseband processor for wireless fibre applications

Increasing demand for gigabit IP data to the home is driving demand for fixed wireless broadband access. In addition, in high data density areas, gigabit IP data connectivity is required for metro Wi-Fi and LTE deployments. The 60GHz band is well suited for these applications due to the large bandwidth available and the propagation characteristics of the band that allow high spectrum reuse, both of which are essential for next generation wireless network architectures. The chipsets offer the industry’s first complete solution in the 60GHz frequency band, leveraging SiBEAM technology for increased data throughput and network reliability.

Lattice’s chipsets also support beam steering technology on phased array antennas. Devices that implement beam steering require only rough alignment and can be installed quickly without specialised skills. A link can then be established between that node and other nodes in the network without manual intervention, and maintained even under changing environmental conditions or network reorganisation. This significantly reduces installation and maintenance costs.

“Our connected world is now ‘wireless first’,” said Khurram Sheikh, Chief Strategy and Technology Officer at Lattice Semiconductor. “Data demand on wireless networks exceeds the ability of existing infrastructure to keep pace with user demand. With the availability of our SB6541 baseband processor, combined with our RF transceivers, OEMs and service providers can now build infrastructure hardware that leverages the advantages of the 60GHz frequency band to deliver network throughput capacities of up to 2Gbps.”

When used in combination with the Lattice Sil6342 RF transceiver, the SB6541 supports Internet Protocol (IP) data rates of up to 2Gbps, with a typical throughput of 1Gbps at a range of up to 300m. The device integrates with the RF transceiver via high speed analogue I/O and a digital control interface. The SB6541 processor can be easily integrated into any system design through a PCIe interface.

Lattice wireless backhaul solutions, along with other 60GHz technologies, will be demonstrated in Lattice’s executive meeting room in Hall 2, 2EMR.M11 at Mobile World Congress 2016 – Barcelona, Spain from 22nd-25th February 2016.