Skyworks Solutions, Inc. and Ember announced that they are partnering to develop the industry¡¯s first portfolio of ZigBee front-end modules (FEM) targeting applications such as smart meters in energy management, home area networks (HAN), and industrial automation. ZigBee is a wireless network standard that solves the unique needs of remote monitoring and control, and sensor-network applications.

West Technology Research Solutions (WTRS) is forecasting the ZigBee/IEEE 802.15.4 market to grow at an annual rate of more than 117 percent ©¤ from approximately 8.4 million units shipped in 2007 to as many as 516 million in 2012.

Ember¡¯s EM250 system-on-chip (SoC) along with the EmberZNet PRO networking stack is the industry¡¯s only true SoC platform supporting the ZigBee PRO Feature Set. The EM250 integrates an IEEE 802.15.4 radio, a 16-bit microprocessor, flash, random access memory (RAM) and peripherals delivering excellent performance at a low system cost.

Ember¡¯s EM260 is the industry¡¯s first ZigBee network co-processor that combines a 2.4 gigahertz (GHz) IEEE 802.15.4 compliant radio transceiver with a flash-based microprocessor running the EmberZNet PRO ZigBee stack. The EM260 delivers unparalleled flexibility allowing developers to easily add ZigBee networking to their preferred application microprocessor via a fast SPI/UART interface.

The EM250 and EM260 chips are tightly integrated with EmberZNet PRO ¨C Ember¡¯s ¡°ZigBee Golden Unit¡± platform ¨C and are optimized for designs requiring long battery life, low external component count, and a reliable, proven, industry-standard networking solution. Innovative on-chip debugging combined with Ember¡¯s InSight tools provide developers with the most advanced views into their application and network available in the industry.

The SKY65336 is a high efficiency 8 x 8 millimeter (mm) multi-chip module (MCM) FEM for ZigBee and other 2.4 GHz industrial, scientific and medical (ISM) band applications. The FEM is comprised of a selectable transmit and receive (Tx/Rx) path. The Tx path incorporates a harmonic filter and high efficiency PA which delivers 20 dBm at the module¡¯s output port. The Rx path includes a low noise amplifier (LNA) which boasts a total Rx path noise figure of 1.9 dB, including switch loss. Both Tx and Rx paths integrate baluns to provide differential ports to Ember¡¯s EM250 and EM260 transceivers.

The SKY65337 is a FEM that is footprint compatible with the SKY65336, with the LNA removed for applications, which require lower cost. The Tx path delivers 20 dBm of high efficiency output power, while balanced input and outputs ports have been provided to connect to the EM250 and EM260.

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