Magnetic sensor family completes qualification

TowerJazz, Crocus’ strategic manufacturing partner, qualified the sensor products on its 130nm CMOS process. TowerJazz will fabricate the CTSX product family and offer the new highly-advanced developed sensors to its customers. Crocus developed the CTSX magnetic sensors to respond to market demand for high sensitivity and low-cost solutions in multiple applications.

“The magnetic sensor market is expected to surpass USD 2 billion by 2015. Crocus’ introduction of the CTSX magnetic sensor product family targeting a wide range of market segments is a further example of the strength and far-reaching capabilities of our MLU technology that spans security, embedded memory applications and now sensors,” said LJ. Ristic, VP and general manager of the Sensor Business Unit at Crocus Technology. “No other MRAM technology can address multiple markets the way the Crocus’ MLU technology does.”

The CTSX product family offers several important advantages; including proprietary differential programming, high sensitivity, high linearity, excellent frequency response and low power. These are key drivers for enabling high performance and low cost solutions. The CTSX product family is suitable for switching, current sensing, position sensing, as well as rotation and speed sensing; addressing the needs of multiple market segments. These markets cover consumer, industrial and process control, energy and transportation segments. In addition, the CTSX magnetic sensor family provides highly reliable performance over a wide temperature range up to 250 degrees Celsius, unmatched by competing products. This makes them a frontrunner for automotive applications.

“TowerJazz’s qualification of Crocus’ new CMOS based magnetic sensors will enable us to offer highly-advanced and competitive embedded-solutions to multiple customers in various markets, such as consumer electronics, industrial and automotive among others,” said Zmira Shternfeld-Lavie, VP of TOPS Business Unit and R&D Process Engineering. “We are excited about bringing this technology to volume production this year and pioneering multiple embedded magnetic sensors solutions for the foundry market place.” The CTSX magnetic sensor product family includes multiple architectures, which are based on Crocus’ Magnetic Logic Unit(TM) (MLU), a disruptive CMOS-based rugged magnetic technology. This enables Crocus’ magnetic sensors to exhibit several orders of magnitude of higher sensitivity. Benefits to customers come in the form of low power, a robust design and high temperature performance.