Nujira Samples Low Noise Second-Generation Envelope Tracking Chip For Smartphones

Nujira’s Coolteq.L family of ET power modulators for handsets reduces wasted energy from PAs in mobile handsets by more than 50%, cutting heat dissipation and extending battery life. Earlier in September 2012 Nujira raised a further $12 million in its latest funding round, securing the rollout of its Coolteq.L IC technology and supporting the ramp to volume production.



“Our latest Coolteq.L chip meets stringent industry noise requirements, and continues to deliver significant technical advantages over competitive solutions. Critically Nujira’s patented ET architecture is the only configuration that supports 20 MHz bandwidths for LTE now, and is also scalable to support the future bandwidth expansions required for LTE-Advanced,” commented Tim Haynes, CEO of Nujira. “We have been pioneering the use of ET technology for the past decade and we are now at the forefront of supporting the mainstream roll out of ET in mobile handsets.”



Reducing the power consumption of PAs is one of the key challenges facing 3G and 4G smartphone OEMs as demand for higher data rates continues to drive network standards. The improved spectral efficiency of the 4G LTE standard enables higher data bandwidth, but comes at the price of reduced energy efficiency in the RF PA. Further penalties come from an increase in the average RF power transmitted from the handset, and the need to support an increasing number of frequency bands in the phone to support global roaming. This not only impacts on battery life, but also on handset temperature - a growing problem for smartphone designers. Unaddressed, these issues will degrade the user experience and delay the adoption of 4G smartphones.



Nujira announced the first commercial IC in its Coolteq.L product family of ET power supply modulators for mobile handsets, the NCT-L1100, in February 2012 at Mobile World Congress.



Nujira is currently engaged with 16 major smartphone chipset suppliers to embed its ET technology into their reference platforms and expects its Coolteq.L technology to be designed into 4G smartphones in 2013.



Nujira’s patented High Accuracy Tracking architecture combines high efficiency switch mode power supply technology with high bandwidth linear elements, and has been proven from power levels of 0.5W to 10,000W and beyond. The HAT architecture is at the heart of all of Nujira’s products for basestation, digital TV and mobile handset applications.



Nujira also recently announced the filing of its 175th ET-related patent emphasizing the company’s dominance of the ET IP landscape. Since the Company’s formation in 2002, Nujira has developed the most extensive and complete patent portfolio around ET, and was responsible for 30% of all new ET patents published in 2011.