Maths Predicts Earthquakes: Digikey - Co.Uk

Maths predicts
earthquakes
RESEARCH SHOWS WE CAN CONTROL THE DIRECTION AND SPEED OF ELASTIC WAVES
READ AN ENGINEER IN WONDERLAND BLOG PAGE 6
Silicon oscillator matches quartz in mobiles
UK FIRM HOPES TO PERSUADE PHONE MAKERS TO SWITCH TO SILICON OSCILLATORS PAGE 12
Changing shape of military connectors
INTEGRATED MODULES ARE CHANGING THE WAY CONNECTOR SYSTEMS ARE USED PAGE 20
21-27 March 2012 | No. 2500 | ElectronicsWeekly.com
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BLOG WATCH
CamSemi blog for PSU designers
Intel plans TV service
Intel is reported to be developing its
own set-top box for the US market
which it will use to offer a pay-IPTV
service to viewers. The company is
said to be talking to content providers
and intends to offer the service by the
end of the year.
www.intel.com
Xilinx, Micron in RLDRAM 3 link
Xilinx and Micron Technology have
demonstrated an FPGA interfac-
ing with RLDRAM 3 memory, an
emerging memory standard for
high-end networking applications
such as packet buffering and inspec-
tion, linked lists, and lookup tables.
RLDRAM 3 memory enables 40G
and 100G networking systems that
require higher speed, higher density,
lower power and lower latency.
www.xilinx.com
Digi-Key stocks Ramtron F-RAM
Digi-Key is to sell Ramtrons non-
volatile ferroelectric random access
memory (F-RAM) products. F-RAM
is designed to combine the non-
volatile benefits of PROM with the
faster access speeds of RAM in a
single device.
www.digikey.com/worldwide
OLED lighting development kit
Farnell element14 has introduced an
organic light emitting diode (OLED)
development kit from supplier Verba-
tim. It will be used to evaluate OLED
lighting design parameters such as
tunable colour (RGB) light, viewing
angles, colour reproduction and con-
trast levels.
http://uk.farnell.com
Free LED lighting technology day
A free technology day for LED light-
ing and design is being held by
Fortronic UK at the Williams F1 Con-
ference centre near Oxford on March
27th. Companies presenting include
Renesas, Universal Science, Integrat-
ed System Technologies, Bridgelux.
CREE and Texas Instruments.
www.fortronicuk.com
GaN power chip market drivers
Design of power supplies, PV invert-
ers and industrial motor drives will
drive the market for gallium nitride
(GaN) power semiconductors from
almost zero in 2011 to over $1bn in
2021, according to a new report from
IMS Research. Like Silicon Carbide
(SiC), GaN is a wide bandgap mate-
rial but at potentially lower cost.
http://imsresearch.com
Codeplay takes OpenCL to Japan
Codeplay Software, the Edinburgh-
based specialist in compiler optimi-
sation for graphics and multi-core
processing, has teamed with Tokyo-
based Fixstars to provide software
development services for the Open-
CL parallel computing framework
for multi-core processors. Codeplay,
which works with Qualcomm, has
optimised C/C++ compiler technol-
ogy used in GPUs.
www.codeplay.com
Avnet Memec signs NFC deal
Avnet Memec has signed a pan-
European distribution agreement
with Adeunis RF which brings
modules for near field communica-
tions for the distributor. Interesting
markets will be RFID and contactless
payment markets.
www.adeunis-rf.com
China to grow chip research skills
China is looking to grow its semicon-
ductor research skills. Local foundry
SMIC and chip firm Brite Semicon-
ductor have joined with Zheijiang
University in a programme to devel-
op a more qualified semiconductor
industry workforce.
www.smic.com
Boundary scan for ARM
Goepel electronic has joined the
ARM ecosystem of low power
processor-based products and
services. The boundary scan
test system suppliers emulation
technology VarioTAP supports a
range of ARM cores.
www.arm.com/community
ECOsine
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news
FPGA-based design kit for multiple
protocols to free up wireless design
ElectronicsWeekly.com 4 | EW 21-27 MARCH 2012
Android device benchmarks
MOBILE
WIRELESS
B
elgium research centre Imec
has introduced a via-middle
through-Si-via approach to
3D stacking.
This is a new technique which
uses a silicon etch process to reveal
TSV [through-silicon via] contacts
In the technique, copper-filled TSV
contacts are buried in the wafer dur-
ing front-side processing.
Once the wafer is finished, it is
thinned from the back, revealing the
flush ends of the TSV contact.
Great care has to be taken not to
damage the devices during this initial
thinning to 50m and a key step is
L
ime Microsystems has devel-
oped what it calls a universal
wireless communications
toolkit which it claims al-
lows developers to create wireless
protocols of different complexities.
The toolkit comprises Limes con-
figurable transceiver board linked to
an Altera FPGA design kit via a high
speed mezzanine connection
(HSMC) interface board.
We believe, this will lead to the
development of novel wireless net-
works at fraction of the cost and time
to market, said Ebrahim Bushehri
CEO of Lime.
The intention is to support the de-
velopment of wireless applications
ranging from consumer and enter-
prise broadband equipment through
to bespoke white space, military and
GNU Radio applications.
Leveraging Limes universal wire-
less communications toolkit along
with our family of tailored 28nm
FPGAs allows designers to rapidly
create communications systems opti-
mised for their specific require-
ments, said Mike Fitton, senior ar-
chitect in Alteras communications
business unit.
Limes LMS6002D is a fully inte-
grated multi-band, multi-standard
single-chip RF transceiver for 3GPP
(WCDMA/HSPA and LTE), 3GPP2
(CDMA2000) and WiMAX applica-
tions.
It can be digitally configured to op-
erate in 16 user-selectable band-
widths up to 28MHz.
In addition to small cell base sta-
tions, Limes customers are using the
IC to create machine to machine
(M2M), GNU radio and white space
radio applications.
The Lime HSMC interface and
transceiver boards are available via
Lime Microsystems with FPGA de-
sign kits available from Altera.
www.limemicro.com
www.altera.com
SEMICONDUCTORS
Imec shows what is possible with silicon vias
bonding the device wafer to a carrier
wafer prior to thinning, by using a
temporary adhesive.
A wet or dry etch now removes
sufficient silicon to make the bottom
ends of the vias stick up out of the
back surface (see photos).
The process ends with a Si3N4
backside passivation layer that blocks
copper diffusion into the thin Si
wafer, and with the liner layers on
the TSV being selectively opened
using a maskless, self-aligned dry
etch-process.
According to Imec, the process has
been demonstrated in a 300mm
diameter wafer with active high-k/
metal gate CMOS circuits.
Imec
www.imec.be
A
standardised, industry-ap-
proved method of evaluating
Android-enabled devices is
available for download on Android
Market, now part of Google Play, and
soon at the Amazon Appstore for An-
droid, writes Richard Wilson.
Dubbed AndEBench, the perform-
ance benchmark from EEMBC (Em-
bedded Microprocessor Benchmark
Consortium) will comprise of per-
formance tests for mobile devices,
but its initial focus is on the CPU and
Dalvik interpreter performance.
Other Android benchmarks avail-
able on the market are mom-and-
pop benchmarks in which the moti-
vation of the benchmark developer is
unknown and results can vary signif-
icantly, said Markus Levy, EEMBCs
president.
AndEBench 1.0 compares the An-
droid platforms native and Java per-
formance. This will give users a
quantified measure of the Java inter-
preters efficiency on a given plat-
form and help them understand what
performance gains are feasible.
EEMBC
www.eembc.org
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news
ARM changes make 32-bit
look and feel like 8-bit
It is around 20% flash access power
improvement, depending on the
customer implementation
MICROPROCESSORS
Clever maths
can predict
earthquakes
AN ENGINEER IN WONDERLAND
A
RM has made two changes
to its Cortex-M0 32-bit mi-
croprocessor to make it
more attractive for 8-bit and
16-bit designs.
It has simplified the design and
given it an injection of speed in the
Cortex-M0+ version.
Both the M0 and M0+ share the
same instruction set. The aim with
the M0+ is to be much more compati-
ble with 8-bit and 16-bit processors,
ARM project manager Thomas Enser-
gueix told Electronics Weekly.
One of the changes is that big-
banging, beloved of 8-bit program-
mers, is now possible as the output
state of IO pins can be changed in
one cycle.
However, the biggest change is
within the pipeline: where the three-
stage M0 design has been swapped
for a two-stage design.
We did not start with the M0 RTL,
we started purely with the instruc-
tion set and a clean sheet of paper,
said Ensergueix.
It partially decodes the instruc-
tion in the first stage and finishes de-
coding it in second stage. Final de-
code is cheaper, so you can execute
in the second stage as well,
explained Geoff Lees, v-p of micro-
controllers at Freescale.
Freescale has already licensed the
core and has been testing first silicon
for a month.
Compared with the M0, based on
simulations the power consumption
of the M0+ is down 30% to 42A/
MHz and efficiency per cycle is up
10% to a CoreMark/MHz of 1.77 (M0
is 1.62). ARM is claiming an overall
processing/W increase of up to 50%.
The core size stays the same, at
12,000 gates minimum, as the flip-
flops and gates saves in the pipeline
have been used to add more clock-
gating to the core, and add a debug
trace scheme which temporarily allo-
cates part of the on-die RAM to store
branches.
I
nvisibility cloaks keep getting into
the news.
And normally it means that some-
one has made an array of little reso-
nant structures that have a negative
refractive index at microwave fre-
quencies.
This is clever, it shows the theory
works, and points the way to nega-
tive refractive index optical materials
in the future.
It turns out that the same maths
predict a way to protect buildings
from certain earthquakes.
According to the University of
Manchester: By cloaking compo-
nents of structures with pressurised
rubber, powerful waves such as those
produced by an earthquake would
not see the building they would
simply pass around the structure and
thus prevent serious damage or de-
struction, or important components
within it could theoretically be
cloaked.
Dr William Parnell, a Manchester
mathematician, has written a paper
on the subject in the Proceedings of
the Royal Society.
Dr Parnell was looking at elastic
waves rather than light waves.
The real problem with elastic
waves is that it is normally impossi-
ble to use naturally available materi-
als as cloaks, he says.
We showed theoretically that pre-
stressing naturally rubber leads to a
cloaking effect from a specific type of
elastic wave.
He adds: This research has shown
that we really do have the potential
to control the direction and speed of
elastic waves.
This has important implications
for electronics. We want to guide
such waves in many contexts, espe-
cially in nano-applications such as in
electronics for example, says Dr Par-
nell.
It seems not all the clever folk
waste their time in finance.
www.electronicsweekly.com/blogs/
engineer-in-wonderland
They have replaced a lot of things
that we would have to have added
around the core, like debug, trace,
memory protection, said Freescales
Lees.
The interface to on-die flash has
also been modified to save power,
with ARM estimating 100A/MHz
total to supply memory and system.
It is around 20% flash access
power improvement, depending on
the customer implementation, said
ARMs Ensergueix.
Claimed code density metric is
4.896kbyte for CodeMark code.
The M0 will retain its three stage
pipeline, making the M0+ attractive in
clean-sheet designs unless the custom-
er is particularly wedded to the M0.
Freescale will introduce M0+ in a
microcontroller family called KL0x.
A huge part of Freescales business
is with 8-bit core microcontrollers.
To encourage migration from these,
16- to 48-pin KL0x microcontrollers
will come in packages compatible
with the last three ranges of Free-
scales 8-bit S08 controller family.
There are tools, app notes, and a
whole bunch of infrastructure that
helps designers move from the S08,
said Lees.
Source-level C can be re-compiled,
except peripheral handling.
For this, Freescales Processor
Expert tool can create code templates
for peripherals.
If you have a timer and want a
tick of a certain period. Processor
Expert can produce the code, said
Lees. I think this is the core that we
needed to convert the rest of the 8-
and 16-bit customers.
Alpha customers should see Frees-
cale M0x microcontroller silicon in
April, with general sampling sched-
uled for the end of Q2, and full vol-
ume by the end of September.
There will also be chips for specif-
ic applications such as metering,
sub-GHz wireless, and 2.4GHz wire-
less.
Applications are expected in motor
control, power conversion, instru-
ments, medical, white goods and
smart lighting.
ARM
www.arm.com
A
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news
More sound from mobile phone
speakers without melting them
Block diagram of Class D amp sub-system
TI to design
robots
DSP
UK looks set to get LTE services this year
thanks to French and German operators
WIRELESS
ANALOGUE
S
T-Ericsson has found a
way to get more sound
from phone loudspeakers
without melting them.
These speakers tend to be tiny in
this case 11x15mm.
It turns out that as power is in-
creased, overheating and over-excur-
sion occurs first at the resonant fre-
quency of the loudspeaker.
If the phones audio processor can
put a notch in the frequency spec-
trum presented to the speaker, more
power can be fed in.
The sound alteration is very
small, said ST-Ericsson.
However, this resonant frequency
changes with temperature, so the
firm monitors the speakers current
waveform through a 1bit ADC, and
feeds the digitised current waveform
back into the audio processor.
The processor analyses the cur-
rent spectrum to locate the reso-
nance, then shifts the notch appro-
priately. Doing this allows the
speaker to be driven from a 2.5W
audio amplifier.
The scheme has been implement-
ed on a Class-D audio amplifier chip
dubbed AV2001.
This includes the 1bit ADC, a
bridge of mosfets to drive the speak-
er, and a spread-spectrum PWM, but
off-loads spectrum analysis and fil-
tering to a DSP else where in the
phone.
Rated output is achieved with
1%THD into 8 with 104dB(A) dy-
namic range.
Adding a boost converted to gener-
ate a gate drive for high-side n-mos-
fets in the bridge, halved power tran-
sistor real estate compared with
using less space efficient p-mosfets.
The Class-D amplifier design was
presented at ISSCC 2012
ST-Ericsson
www.stericsson.com
T
exas Instruments has formed a
partnership with robotic-tech-
nology firm iRobot to develop
robotic technologies based on its
multicore OMAP silicon platform.
The companies said the intention
is to create intelligent and practical
robots capable of enhancing peoples
lives.
iRobot has 20 years experience in
robotic technology, especially remote
presence and automated home main-
tenance systems. It has sold more
than 7.5 million home robots.
TI will now address robot design
with its applications processors. The
company believes that applying mul-
ti-core processor technology will
make important power savings in
robot design.
www.ti.com
T
he UK may get LTE this year,
bringing us into line with other
developed countries, thanks to
a ruling by Ofcom that the mobile op-
erator Everything Everywhere (the
joint France Telecom Deutsche Tel-
ekom network) can use its existing
2G spectrum to launch 4G services,
writes David Manners.
Everything Everywhere would use
its 1800MHz spectrum license to pro-
vide the 4G service.
This would put Everything Every-
where ahead of the other operators in
launching 4G services, and could
happen before the proposed spec-
trum auction of the 800MHz and
2.6GHz bands for 4G services which
has been held up because of squab-
bling among the existing mobile op-
erators, but which is still expected
before the end of this year.
The mobile phone operator Eve-
rything Everywhere has submitted an
application to Ofcom to use its exist-
ing spectrum to deliver 4G services,
said Ofcom,
Allowing Everything Everywhere
to re-use its spectrum in this way is
likely to bring material benefits to
consumers, including faster mobile
broadband speeds and depending
on how Everything Everywhere uses
the spectrum potentially wider
mobile broadband coverage in rural
areas, said Ofcom
Ofcom has decided that to use this
spectrum in this way would not dis-
tort competition in the mobile mar-
ket.
Vodafone, as might be expected, is
unhappy, complaining that: The
regulator is now considering giving
the largest player in the market
permission to use its existing
spectrum for 4G services before the
rules for the auction have even been
concluded, or it has divested
spectrum, as required by the
European Commission.
We seriously doubt that consum-
ers best interests will be served by
giving one company a significant
head start before any of its competi-
tors have a clear path to 4G, said Vo-
dafone.
However, Ofcoms move could
give consumers 4G services this year
whereas, under the previous sched-
ule, they wouldnt get 4G services
until 2013 or 2014.
everythingeverywhere.com
www.vodafone.co.uk
Where innovative products are
just the beginning.
www.rs-components.com/molex
Molex is known for technical
innovation. In the last ve years,
we have secured 2,000 patents
and contributed to numerous
global standards. From highspeed
to sealed solutions, to
microminiature and power
interconnects, the expertise
gained in the development of our
broad range of products gives us
a unique advantage in the pursuit
of future solutions.
But Molex innovation goes far
beyond products. Our efcient
one company approach gives
you seamless service, support
and distribution, anywhere
in the world.
This drive to nd new ways to
meet customers challenges is
what Molex is all about.
www.rs-components.com/molex
FIND IT. DESIGN IT. BUY IT.
news
ARM-based design kit puts
Android on the network
Radio power
may be non-
standard
POWER EMBEDDED
E
mbedded Artists has intro-
duced an Android Open
Accessory Application
(AOAA) development kit
which offers industrial networking
options for the mobile operating
system.
With two ARM Cortex-M series
microcontrollers from NXP, the Em-
bedded Artists AOAA kit includes
Ethernet, CAN and IEEE 802.15.4 in-
terfaces as well as a remote CAN
node, which means it can be used for
home, building and industrial auto-
mation applications.
By taking advantage of one of the
many connectivity options, the An-
droid accessory is no longer simply an
isolated system. Instead, it can serve
as a gateway to a networked system
for use in a wide range of very power-
ful applications, said Maria Hall,
managing director, Embedded Artists.
The on-chip full-speed USB trans-
ceiver of the LPC1769, a 120MHz
Cortex-M3 based microcontroller,
provides the interface to the Android
mobile device.
The LPC1769 also supports USB
device mode, which looks forwards
to the time when Android devices
will typically support USB host
mode in the future.
Other features of the LPC1769 in-
clude 512kbyte flash and 64kbyte on-
chip SRAM; Ethernet MAC; a CAN
2.0B controller; an 8-channel, 12-bit
ADC; a 10-bit DAC; digital connec-
tions including UART/SPI /I2C, as
choice of timers and pulse width
modulators (PWMs).
The LPC11C24 microcontroller,
based on the Cortex-M0 processor,
provides remote CAN node capabili-
ties to the AOAA kit and is connect-
ed to the LPC1769 via an on-board
CAN network. The MCU can be used
to develop industrial control applica-
tions using CAN, by taking advantage
of control functionality for tempera-
ture, light and other sensors, which
are built directly on the AOAA kit.
The Sweden-based embedded de-
I
ntegrated Device Technology
claims its proprietary wireless
power protocol can be better than
the Qi standard.
The chip firm has introduced a sin-
gle-chip wireless power transmitter
and single-chip receiver chipset
which will support the Qi standard
as well as proprietary formats.
The IDTP9030 and IDTP9020 com-
prise a wireless power transmitter
and receiver designed to meet the
Wireless Power Consortium (WPC)
Qi standard, which ensures interop-
erability with any other device meet-
ing the WPC Qi standard.
Both transmitter and receiver are
capable of multi-mode operation,
supporting both the Qi standard as
well as proprietary formats. There is
protocol detection for dynamic
switching between Qi and proprie-
tary modes.
Our proprietary multi-mode capa-
bility offers benefits beyond the lim-
its of the Qi standard by enhancing
foreign object detection for improved
safety and increasing output power
for faster charging time, said Arman
Naghavi, v-p and general manager of
the analog and power division at IDT.
In Qi mode, the IDTP9020 wireless
power receiver, delivers up to 5W to
the system. Wireless charging sys-
tems use inductive coupling over a
short distances, and are typically im-
plemented as a pad on which suita-
bly-enabled portable products are
placed.
It is thought that wireless phone
chargers have the potential to match
the best wired chargers and achieve
zero (<5mW) standby power.
www.idt.com
velopment kit firm specialises in
NXP based boards,
For example, Embedded Artists has
jointly developed with NXP, a target
board for the chip firms LPCXpresso
development toolchain for its ARM-
based LPC microcontrollers and in-
cludes a free Eclipse-based IDE.
www.embeddedartists.com
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Lutyens Close
Chineham Court
Basingstoke
RG24 8AG, UK
analysis
Foundry model
looks busted:
will Apple fab?
Is the foundry model finally busted and will Apple ever fab
its own chips? asks David Manners
T
he problems at the 28nm
semiconductor process
node, replicating the prob-
lems at 40nm, go to show
that the semiconductor industry
needs a new model.
It seems only Intel and Samsung,
out of all the non-DRAM integrated
device manufacturers (IDMs), made
the right call on manufacturing.
Everyone else is at the mercy of
foundries which may deliver proc-
esses in a timely fashion, or may not.
But sure as eggs are eggs everyone
else has little control over the timing
of their process transitions.
I have learnt that Intel first started
to market 32nm product in February
2010.
Assuming 28nm is the same proc-
ess as Intels 32nm, that means the
rest of the industry is still struggling
to get onto the same technology with
the time-lag growing for every month
that 28nm is unobtainable from a
foundry.
After 40nm and 28nm, will the
problems get easier at 20nm?
So much for all that nonsense
about advanced digital CMOS
becoming a widely available com-
modity which didnt add value.
Well Intel didnt fall for that non-
sense and now enjoys this huge proc-
ess lead. Perhaps 32nm was easier for
them as they moved to high-k proc-
ess technology a node earlier.
The next generation, 20nm planar
at the foundries/22nm finfet at Intel,
may extend that lead, depending on
when Intel moves into for-the-market
production on it. July seems to be the
current expected date.
So it seems AMD sold its fabs at
the very moment process engineering
became so difficult that it is now a
key competitive differentiator.
While it seems that fabless chip
supplier Qualcomm has no hope of
going up against Intel unless it starts
fabbing its own chips. It has held
such discussions internally for many
years.
Moreover, with $100bn cash, sev-
eral years of process R&D behind it,
strained relations with Samsung and,
now, impeded access to 28nm, will
Apple bite the bullet and start to fab?
It seems a logical step in its increas-
ing verticalisation.
Apple could go it alone, but Qual-
comm would probably have to enter
a consortium of companies. The ob-
vious partners would, of course, be
Xilinx, Altera, Nvidia and, of course,
AMD.
But arent AMD contracted to Glo-
balfoundries?
No, not actually, they recently paid
the foundry $420m to get out of their
contractual relationships.
Well, I wonder why.
www.electronicsweekly.com/
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wireless
All-silicon oscillator matches quartz
in phones and saves a lot of space
Steve Bush talks to a UK chip firm aiming to persuade phone makers to switch from quartz to all-silicon oscillators
ElectronicsWeekly.com
A
ll-silicon oscillators can bet-
ter 100ppm over tempera-
ture, at microamp con-
sumption levels, according
to Cheshire-based eoSemi.
The firm was speaking at the
launch of its first product, a
1.5x1.5mm 32kHz timing reference
chip for phones, already delivered as
engineering samples and due for
commercial production in Q3.
Manufactured using a standard
CMOS process, it draws 8A and de-
livers accuracy down to 30ppm.
This combination of specifica-
tions, along with an operating tem-
perature range of -40 to 85C, means
that the timing reference will comply
with the system design requirements
of major 3G handset manufacturers,
claimed the firm.
Many chip makers have tried to
produce silicon frequency references
and failed, or have produced devices
with excessive current consumption.
If you are trying to access
accuracy, the last thing you would
pick is silicon, said eoSemi CEO Ian
Macbeth.
However, an all-silicon oscillator
that can equal quartz in both accura-
phone SoCs, so no change in base-
band chip is required, claims eoSemi.
Trying to deal with the big mobile
phone makers when you are a small
young company based in Congleton
was never going to be easy.
But phone makers are interested in
the product, and they want it, accord-
ing to Macbeth.
One phone company told us it
has had a silicon oscillator require-
ment specification for seven years,
and ours was the first than met it: A
consumption and under 100ppm
error over temperature, he said.
The oscillator is being made at
TSMC on 0.18m CMOS.
Although they will not deal with
small companies, the phone firms
trust TSMC, and so the mobile
phone guys have pushed it back onto
their tier-one suppliers, said
Macbeth.
The result is that SMC will make
the chips and more than one tier-
one chip maker will badge the
eoSemi 32kHz reference as its own
and supply it into the phone
industry.
According to Macbeth: You will
start seeing it appearing in phones in
Q2 next year.
eoSemi will also supply the same
chip with its own branding.
After manufacture, calibration
codes are blown into non-volatile
memory. This only has to be done
once.
At power-up, the codes are shifted
from NVM to SRAM for operation
and the NVM is shut down to save
power. Some corrections are done
continuously (black), and others are
done periodically (red).
This period is currently around 4s
but, said Macbeth, could be actively
varied from 0.25 to 30s to save power
should future SoCs be able to provide
temperature data from elsewhere
within the phone to warn of incom-
ing temperature gradients.
While the compensation tech-
niques are covered in the companys
patents, details of the one-time facto-
ry calibration technique remain
under wraps.
Without the calibration algorithm,
it will not deliver the performance,
said Macbeth. O

eoSemi
www.eosemi.com
12 | EW 21-27 MARCH 2012
cy and power would have many ad-
vantages not least of which is that it
would save a lot of space.
Dubbed ATOC (accurate timing os-
cillator circuit), eoSemis technology
is all about error compensation rather
than squeezing every last error out of
the oscillator itself.
We have a technique for tuning
oscillators, it could be any oscillator:
RC or LC, said Macbeth. All the
smarts are in the compensation, not
the oscillator itself.
In the 32kHz case, it is a simple RC
oscillator with all its inherent
inaccuracy corrected for
temperature and stress in the chip,
including hysteresis in both cases
(see diagram above).
If you dont attend to stress, you
dont have a solution, said Macbeth.
An added advantage of his solu-
tion, said Macbeth, is that it does not
have quartz parabolic temperature
coefficient (see diagram), so the ther-
mistor needed in phones for digital
32kHz compensation can be deleted
from the BOM along with the crystal
and its two capacitors.
The chip is designed to drive the
existing crystal connection pin of
ppm error plotted against temperature. eoSemi claims its 32kHz reference sits within
the blue zone.
can come up in any order and allows
different start-up techniques, includ-
ing working without an auxiliary
VEE2 supply, instead getting power
through the JFET.
A low-side driver in a buck con-
verter can get its supply current from
the high-side supply, or in a more ad-
vanced system such as a 3-phase
bridge, one supply can be used to
power all drivers, said Infineon.
This kind of operation was until
now only possible for a normally-off
switch, but with this design a nor-
mally-on JFET can be used safely in
the same way.
According to Infineon, with a well-
driven SiC JFET, 99% efficiency is at-
tainable when converting 200V to
150V at 5A. And 400V can be con-
verted to 200V at 5A at 98.5%.
Details were revealed at ISSCC
2012 last month in San Francisco. O
Inneon Technologies
www.inneon.com
power
PMOS simplifies isolated driver chip
Are depletion-mode JFETs the perfect power switching device? asks Steve Bush
Block diagram of the driver and external components.
A
s silicon carbide technology
develops, depletion-mode
(normally-on) JFETs in-
creasingly appear to be the
optimum power switching device.
As these need both positive and
negative gate drive voltages, design-
ers are turning to cascode switching
using a cheap low-voltage n-channel
silicon mosfet under the JFET to con-
trol it, so more conventional mosfet
drive techniques can be employed.
With its solution, Infineon Tech-
nologies uses a p-mosfet, and drives
both its gate and the gate of the JFET.
Instead of an NMOS [cascode
mosfet], a PMOS is used which
makes the system simpler because
the two transistors have a common
source connection [VCC2] that ena-
bles the use for a single supply for the
gate drivers, said the firm.
VCC2 is the positive supply of the
output chip (0V), and VEE2 is nomi-
nally -25V.
In the driver, Vreg (-19V) is actually
the substrate connection, unusually
biased between the chips rails.
There are start-up and power fail
scenarios where VEE2 might be high-
er than VREG, said Infineon. Hence
it has been decided to deliberately
operate devices below the substrate.
The complex scheme means rails
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interview
Europe needs financial stability
Dr. Ted Tewksbury, president and CEO at Integrated Device Technology talks to Electronics Weekly about
the Europe and 4G/LTE, analogue and digital design teams and moving from fab-lite to fabless
ElectronicsWeekly.com
What does Europe need to do to
ensure it retains a leading position
in the global market?
The world increasingly depends on
the mobile internet to connect its
populations and this is driving an
explosion of wireless data between
the cloud and consumer mobile
devices such as smartphones and
tablets. All of this data traffic needs
the fatter pipes and greater band-
width provided by 4G/LTE wireless
infrastructure.
As home of several of the worlds
most innovative telecom compa-
nies, Europe is instrumental in de-
veloping and rolling out this tech-
nology. By enabling greater data
speeds and capacities, 4G/LTE pro-
vides the foundation for the growth
of numerous other applications,
such as cloud computing, mobility
and social networking.
In order to realise this potential
and maintain its leadership, it is
imperative that Europes political
leaders and central banking system
collaborate to solve the sovereign
debt crisis that has cast the Euro-zone
into turmoil and uncertainty.
Without stability in the banking
and financial systems, Europes busi-
nesses and manufacturers will not
have the confidence to make new
investments in these technologies
and consumer demand will continue
to deteriorate.
A strong Eurozone economy and
continued technology innovation are
the keys to extending Europes lead-
ership throughout the 21st century.
You have changed the business
from being a digital IC supplier to
being a mixed-signal company.
Pairing analogue and digital
engineers can be a difficult task,
so what practices have you
employed to create effective
design teams?
Every mixed-signal project team in-
cludes three key functions in addi-
tion to analogue and digital designers
a system architect, a product defin-
er and a program manager. These
may or may not be the same individ-
ual, depending on the complexity of
the project.
The system architect has a deep
understanding of the customers ap-
plication and can make the right
trade-offs between analogue, digital
and software. The product definer
specifies block-level features and per-
formance parameters.
The programme manager is fluent
in the languages and techniques of
both analogue and digital designers,
and manages schedules, deliverables
and interfaces. These individuals are
the glue that holds the team together,
translating between analogue and
digital dialects.
M Weekly project meetings include
all of the above functions to drive
execution, address technical issues
and facilitate collaboration.
M We have instituted formal and in-
formal technical forums in which
analogue and digital engineers can
share ideas, tools, techniques and
best practices, and educate each
other in their respective domains.
M Variable pay is tied to the success
of the overall project. Everyone
succeeds or fails together.
In 2009, the company started the
move from fab-lite to fabless. What
benefits have you seen from the
move, and do you see this trend
continuing?
We made the move from fab-lite to
fabless for four reasons.
First, our system solutions strategy
required a variety of process technol-
ogies fine-line CMOS, SiGe and
BCDMOS that would have been
prohibitive to develop in-house.
Second, foundry economies of
scale enabled us to achieve lower
wafer costs.
Third, we were able to focus our
limited research and development
(R&D) on what we do best product
innovation and leave wafer manu-
facturing to the industry experts.
Fourth, outsourcing wafer fabrica-
tion emancipated us from quarterly
swings in fab utilisation, which im-
pacted our financials.
Im a firm believer in using the
lowest-cost technology that can get
the job done in any particular appli-
cation.
The fabless model removes the
constraint of having to keep our fab
filled and enables us to make the
right technology decisions for the
business. O
Integrated Device Technology
www.idt.com
14 | EW 21-27 MARCH 2012
IC7 Industries Ltd, woodslde Poad, Lastlelgh, Hampshlre, SO50 4LT, UK
e salesQlgt-lndustrles.com t +44 (0) 23 806l 08l8 f +44 (0) 23 806l 0828
CU5TOH
CONTOL ANL
5OLUTlON5
www.igt-industries.com
Cenrrel rhe Iurure
|GT oners 25 years experlence ln
the deslgn, prototype and
volume manufacture of Human
Machlne |nterface (HM|) solutlons.
Luropean deslgn and
manufacture
Deslgn or bulld to prlnt
Technology leadershlp ln
swltchlng and backllghtlng
|n-house CAD capablllty
Pully assembled and tested
unlts
Peslstlve and capacltlve
touchscreen technology
Loglstlcs and supply chaln
management
lor further lnformotlon, /eose co// us on +44 (0} 23 80! 08!8,
emol/ so/es{lgt-lnJustrles.com or vlslt our webslte.
Richard Wilson
keeps up with news
and views from the
electronics supply
chain
> Farnell element14 goes
exclusive with OLED design kit
Farnell element14 carried out what
it called an exclusive launch of
Verbatims Velve organic light emitting
diode (OLED) development kit on its
stand at this years Arc Show held in
London last month.
> Future adds Qualcomm and
EnOcean in RF push
Future Electronics has created a
specialist sales division to focus on its
RF chips and modules.
> EBV adds more ARM Cortex
cores to buyers guide
EBV Elektronik recently released a
product guide for the ARM Cortex
microcontroller and processors it
carries on its linecard.
> Avnet recognised for 30% line
growth in 2011
Molex has named Avnet Electronics
Marketing as its global distributor of
the year for 2011. The distributor
grew POS revenue by more than
30% from the previous year.
electronicsweekly.com/distributionworld
> UK electronics share
index, March 2012:
+2.4%
Back in February the
Electro Ramblings blog took a
snapshot of industry market capitali-
sation, for our Electronics Weekly
Index (see The market capitalisation of
the UK electronics industry)...
So, how stands the Index for March
2012?
Well, a snapshot on 5 March saw
market capitalisation recorded as
862.4bn, a 2.4% increase on Feb, so
the first monthly measuring of the
index sees a positive result!
The first month was easy, measur-
ing March against February, but from
now on, should we measure each
month against its immediate prede-
cessor, or against the original base
level (always February 2012s total)?
Given that the index is not
weighted it seems more honest to
have a rolling month-on-month
comparison.
What are your thoughts? Leave a
comment at:
electronicsweekly.com/electroramblings
the week online
Highlights from
Raspberry Pi shipping end of
March
electronicsweekly.com/news
AMD dumps
SOI
electronicsweekly.com/research
Hurrah for
Raspberry Pi
electronicsweekly.com/mannerisms
Ed draws up the
black list
electronicsweekly.com/mannerisms
Self-balancing unicycle the
one true way
electronicsweekly.com/gadget-freak
Qualcomm, Intel miss the
boat on tablet apps ...
BMWs 170hp
electric car
Infinite N
o
of wireless channels
possible in a fixed bandwidth
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
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> EW Salary Survey 2012
> Smartbird technology bearer
> Robot sailboat Pinta
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design
Two-pronged approach to chip test
For testing complex chip designs it makes sense to combine the two most common test methodologies - logic built-in
self-test (LBIST) and automatic test pattern generation (ATPG), writes Amer Guettaf
W
ith the larger, more
complex ICs at ad-
vanced nodes, testing
your design is more im-
portant than ever and it makes sense
to find techniques within the existing
IC test toolbox. To address the ever-
increasing pressure to reduce the cost
of manufacturing test, efficiently use
test equipment, and increase yield,
one approach is to combine the two
most common test methodologies.
A hybrid solution of logic built-in
self-test (LBIST) and automatic test
pattern generation (ATPG) compres-
sion optimises defect coverage vs test
time, reduces test pattern volume and
test pattern generation time, and pro-
vides key optimisations between par-
allel and serial test applications.
LBIST technology inserts embed-
ded logic into the design, for a fully
integrated and automated test solu-
tion that can be used at any test step
or level of integration with a simple
interface. LBIST reduces test time be-
cause shift is not limited by external
data; patterns are generated on-chip
and results are compressed into a
simple signature.
ATPG offers high pattern efficiency
due to use of deterministic patterns,
low-power support, high stuck-at
coverage, and support for various
fault models. Using embedded test
compression speeds up test, allows
more patterns to target other fault
models, and reduces the test interface
to just a few pins.
When designing for test engineers
feel compelled to exclusively adopt
one methodology over the other.
However, the two methods are com-
plementary and can result in the
shortest test-time and very high test
coverage. For example, shift speed of
at-speed deterministic ATPG is limit-
ed by the shift path length and the
Test pattern congurations
Figure 1: Structure of the LBISTATPG hybrid test.
Figure 2: Top-level integration, each core has
dedicated scan I/Os.
speed of the pad I/O used. At-speed
LBIST can significantly increase the
speed of the shift clock. ATPG also
makes up for the low-power limita-
tion of LBIST by enabling low-power
shift, which will lower the switching
activity during test by controlling the
data shifted into the chains.
In terms of chip size, a hybrid
LBIST-ATPG test structure has mini-
mal area impact because the most
common logic of these two test meth-
odologies merges. The only logic that
is not merged at this time is the
PRPG/MISR used for LBIST and the
EDT logic used for deterministic
ATPG. Figure 1 is an illustration of
hybrid test methodology structure.
The hybrid test methodology is
based on the concept of core isola-
tion, which allows having two over-
lapping modes - external and inter-
nal. In external mode, only the block
interface/peripheral registers are con-
nected to dedicated chains. The re-
maining registers, which are the core
registers of the block, are not part of
these external chains.
The internal mode includes all
scannable registers of the blocks in-
side multiple chains, including the
peripheral registers. To fully isolate
the block from external logic, the
input interface registers are kept in
shift-only mode so they do not cap-
ture unknown values from the upper
level.
Each core employing this hybrid
test methodology flow has a 1500
IEEE interface also referred to as
WTAP (wrapper test access port).
This interface connects to the top-
level TAP once the core is integrated
in a chip. You choose the core mode
by loading the WTAP with the appro-
priate operation code.
Multiple core BISTs can be started
in parallel. If all cores have dedicated
ATPG scan I/Os on the chip level it is
possible to run all of them in parallel
too. When the cores are integrated in
the top level, a tool reads the patterns
previously generated at the core level
and retargets them from the top level
without requiring any new fault-sim-
ulation or DRC check. This process is
referred to as pattern reuse. O
Amer Guettaf is a senior field application
engineer at Mentor Graphics.
Mentor Graphics
www.mentor.com
viewpoint
Traceability tightens up the
electronics supply chain
Better bass
tones for
phones
AUDIO
MILITARY
FLEXIBLE DISPLAYS
Flexible LCD display maker
brings plastic to market
T
he supply chain is being
tightened for component
suppliers in military and
aerospace markets, writes
Debbie Rowland, sales manager at
Charcroft Electronics
The growth of contract
manufacturing within the defence
and aerospace industries means that
OEMs of all sizes are stipulating
rigorous control over component
traceability.
The paper trail that defines the
traceability of components starts
with the original component
manufacturer and ends as the
product rolls off the contract
electronic manufacturers
production line.
Along the way, the trail can pass
through franchised or authorised
distributors, independent brokers,
grey market suppliers and even the
excess inventory of other OEMs.
While OEMs are not imposing a
limit to the number of links in the
supply chain, they are demanding
that each link be identifiable and
traceable.
Simply supplying a copy of the
original component manufacturers
paperwork is not enough to
guarantee that the products are
genuine and that they have been
stored and handled correctly
throughout their lifetime.
Component manufacturers do not
automatically include a certificate of
conformity when components are
shipped. If the certificate is not
ordered at the time of purchase, then
the distributor and contract
electronic manufacturer can find that
it is virtually impossible to recover
the audit trail.
Component manufacturers are
often unable or unwilling to issue a
certificate of conformity for
components which have already left
their premises.
Asking for a back-issue of a
certificate effectively means asking
the component manufacturer to
guarantee a component which has
left their area of control and
responsibility.
Repeat this scenario for every
company within the supply chain
and the complexity of providing full
traceability becomes apparent.
Rigorous ordering systems, a solid
understanding of the specialist
procurement procedures for hi-rel
parts and good relationships between
supply chain partners are also
useful.
These make it less likely for errors
to occur and make it easier to resolve
anomalies in the paper trail which
must accompany every component
throughout its journey along the
supply chain.
Charcroft Electronics
www.charcroft.com
A
udio firm Knowles has intro-
duced a phone loudspeaker
claimed to have improved
bass response. Loudspeakers in
phones can be built like conventional
sealed loudspeakers a drive unit
backed by a sealed volume of air. The
bigger the air volume, the more the
driver can overcome the sealed air
spring effect.
Dubbed NBass, Knowles design
approach to making the rear volume
bigger virtually, without increasing it
physically, is to fill the sealed cavity
or cavities with beads of a specially-
developed material similar to a
sponge, which adsorbs the air in the
speaker box. In this way, it virtually
increases the available back volume
for the loudspeaker. In addition, the
material is non-conductive and has
no negative influence on antenna
performance, said the firm.
O
hio-based flexible LCD maker
Kent Displays is installing a
second roll-to-roll produc-
tion line, tripling its capacity, writes
Steve Bush.
For almost two decades, the firm
has stood behind cholesteric LCD
technology, which offers reflective
bistable operation and, unlike most
LCD types, tolerance of cell thickness
allowing plastic construction.
However, it does not match the
contrast of the E Ink electrophoretic
displays used in e-readers, and is
sensitive to pressure on the screen.
Turning this last attribute into an
advantage, the firm introduced sim-
ple writing slates where the pressure
of the stylus changes the state (col-
our) of the LCD allowing lines to be
drawn.
Initial models of the product,
called Boogie Board eWriter, had no
save function and where therefore lit-
tle more than portable white boards.
This changed with the Boogie
Board Rip last year, which allows
handwriting and sketches to be
saved, and sent via a USB port.
You can write and draw on Boogie
Board Rip, then store and transmit
the content. A cholesteric LCD is the
key technology.
Following the installation of our
first roll-to-roll line, Kent Displays
experienced a remarkably quick tran-
sition from a company focused pri-
marily on research and development
to a consumer products company,
said Kent Displays chief financial of-
ficer, Joel Domino.
Our original line, the first of its
kind in the world, streamlined pro-
duction of Boogie Board eWriters. We
recently shipped the one millionth
Boogie Board eWriter since the origi-
nal model launched in 2010.
Boogie Boards are sold through
Kent subsidiary Improv Electronics.
Kent Displays
www.kentdisplays.com
PROCESS SYSTEMS
ELECTRONICS
MANUFACTURING
SERVICES
wps.co.uk
01424 722222
nickj@wps.co.uk
High Speed/Accuracy Surface
Mount (4 lines)
Automated Through Hole
Assembly (including LEDs)
Fully Automated Conformal
Coating (2 lines)
Aqueous PCB Cleaning
Resin Encapsulation
Electro-Mechanical Assembly
Automated Optical Inspection
(AOI)
ATE/Full Electronic Testing
Facilities
Environmental Testing Facilities
Boundary Scan
Design For Manufacture
IPC Certified Staff
military/aerospace
Military design
gains from models
Mark Walker discusses the evolution of the DO-178
standard and the emergence of model-based design
Figure 2:
A
modern commercial air-
craft relies on many mil-
lions of lines of embedded
source code to fly. Funda-
mental systems depend on software
to function. In developing this high
integrity software, rigorous design,
inspection and test procedures must
be used: the development process
for high integrity software. The FAA
and RCTA developed the DO-178
standard to define the objectives that
high-integrity software development
processes must meet.
When DO-178 was introduced al-
most 30 years ago the avionics indus-
try was undergoing a major shift from
analogue to digital systems. Today,
the standard required by the FAA
and EASA is DO-178B (Software
Considerations in Airborne Systems
and Equipment Certification). It pro-
vides guidelines for the production of
aerospace systems, and specifies 66
software development process objec-
tives across various stages in the de-
velopment lifecycle.
When the B revision of the stand-
ard was developed in 1992, the nor-
mal development approach was to
create specification and design docu-
ments and then write code from the
design by hand. The documents and
source code would be reviewed and
the source and object code tested.
Over the past 20 years, tool ad-
vances have enabled engineers to
specify the software behaviour in an
executable form, such as a model,
wich can be reviewed, analysed and
simulated. This helps engineers de-
termine whether their design is cor-
rect before committing effort to im-
plementation, review and test in
software. Additionally the software
source code can be directly generated
from the model, as opposed to hand-
writing the code.
Finally, the model can support
testing and review by acting as a defi-
nition for expected software function.
This overall approach, model-based
design, emerged after the publication
of DO-178B.
The DO-178 committee has re-
sponded to this and other advances
by updating the standard and in Jan-
uary 2012, DO-178C and new accom-
panying supplements were pub-
lished. These create a framework that
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military/aerospace
reflects the capabilities of modern
software tools.
DO-178 requires an applicant to
demonstrate that appropriate stages
of design development, inspection
and verification have been met. A
project defines the process up-front,
in a planning document Plan for
the Software Aspects of Certification
(PASC) which will be agreed with
the authorities in advance.
Figure 1 (right) shows a typical
process for a project using model-
based design. Each of the boxes in the
diagram represents a stage in the de-
velopment process. Stages might be
completed in succession or worked
on simultaneously, but once com-
plete, they must be signed off in se-
quence since a downstream stage de-
pends on definitions from the
previous one.
The solid arrows between process
boxes represent the design work,
such as modelling or coding. The
dotted arrows represent the processes
used to show that a stage has been
developed correctly, in other words
the verification activities.
Projects using model-based design
can also benefit by maximising auto-
mation in the verification process. It
is possible to automate many of these
stages. Wherever a tool replaces a
manual verification process, such as
an inspection, DO-178 requires the
project to assess the impact of the
tool use in the software life cycle and
then qualify the tool at an appropri-
ate level. Increasingly, tool suppliers
offer qualification kits to assist and
the DO-330 supplement provides
guidance on how projects should
carry out qualification.
The introduction of the Formal
Methods Supplement (DO-333) rep-
resents a significant evolution be-
tween the B and C revisions of DO-
178. Formal methods complement
established verification techniques
and can be applied from the highest
levels of requirement definition to
the most specific aspects of
implementation.
For example, consider the reverse
thrust capability of a jet engine: it is
used when landing to rapidly slow
down the aircraft, but to be safe the
software must not allow the thrust re-
verser to engage in the air. If you want
to make sure something cant hap-
pen, testing every possible input
combination is one way to do it, but
as noted in DO-178, the number of
test cases you need to cover will grow
unreasonably large very quickly for
all but the simplest of routines.
By contrast, formal methods tools
can apply solvers to examine all pos-
sible inputs: where a combination ex-
ists that violates the property speci-
fied a test case will be generated
showing how it can happen, or the
tool will tell you the property is valid.
Software used in high-integrity
aerospace environments has always
had to go through a rigorous develop-
ment process. DO-178C clarifies how
techniques, such as model-based de-
sign and formal methods, can be ap-
plied in this process. O
Mark Walker is a senior engineer at
MathWorks
MathWorks
www.MathWorks.co.uk
Figure 1: DO-178 workflow
TTI, Inc., the global distributor of passive,
interconnect, relay & switch and discrete
components, has announced that its new
European connector assembly facility can
deliver a range of different services including:
QPL-approved assembly of Amphenol and
Souriau MIL-DTL-38999 connectors. Series
III, Series I and SJT Aluminium shells with
plating options: Electroless Nickel, Olive Drab
Cadmium, Green Zinc Cobalt and the new
Black Zinc Nickel which complies with RoHS
directives;
TTI also now stocks Composite and Stainless
38999 connector shells;
Amphenol Socapex PT Series/451 MIL-
DTL-26482 Series 1 connector assembly;
TTI has a wide selection of Backshells from
Glenair and Connector Accessories such as
adapters, heatshrink boots, and mouldings from TE
Connectivity.
As detailed in a new microsite, http://www.ttieurope.
com/connector-assembly, the company offers fast
delivery on low volume and prototype order quantities,
and is also able to satisfy scheduled volume business.
TTIs European facility near Munich, Germany
recently certified to EN9100 manufacturing status
mirrors its well-established US facility, which performs
over 30,000 circular connectors assembly operations
per day with a defect rate of less then 25ppm.
By investing in modern tooling TTI has been
able to reduce assembly time, and operators
have been trained by personnel from Amphenol
Socapex and Souriau as well as TTIs own
experienced North American team so quality is
guaranteed to be of the highest level.
TTIs broad and deep stocking policy
enables the company to offer numerous shell
types and layouts for MIL-DTL-38999s and
MIL-DTL-26482 connectors providing over
800,000 different circular connectors. TTI
also offers all required connector accessories
including backshells/adapters, boots, contacts,
terminals, and heat shrink tubing.
TTIs microsite, http://www.ttieurope.com/
connector-assembly, details full capabilities
and product offerings and has a comprehensive
part number search engine to help designers find the
parts they need and access on-line data-sheets. The
company also has a specialist, dedicated mil/aero
team, including an office in Basildon, UK, which offers
design-in support to all hi-rel market sectors.
Fast, reliable, approved European connector assembly service
ADVERTISEMENT
military/aerospace
Integrated modules are changing
the shape of military connectors
Integrated modules are changing the way connector systems are being used in military and aerospace systems
designs, writes Roberta Rebora
F
or manufacturers of inter-
connection products, meet-
ing design requirements in
aerospace and defence mar-
kets can be one of the most demand-
ing technology areas to contend with.
One of the critical challenges a
connector company has to face is the
development of products that are not
only suitable for todays platforms,
but which can also interface with fu-
ture technology currently being de-
signed by aerospace and defence cus-
tomers. The ability to solve this
problem should increase the return
on engineering investment made by
connector manufacturers, provide a
longer product lifecycle and decrease
the risk of obsolescence for the cus-
tomer.
These objectives, of course, have to
be achieved while meeting the array
of requirements specific to these mar-
kets namely the highest levels of
built-in reliability, the ability to in-
corporate ever-growing data rates
with dense packaging options and
light-weight products that must with-
stand the most rugged environments.
To meet the prerequisites of com-
mercial aviation with customers like
Airbus, Boeing and Dassault, inter-
connect solutions need to provide
full system integration with engine
control systems, radar facilities,
power distribution networks, in-
flight entertainment, wing and en-
gine ice protection mechanisms as
well as landing gear and braking con-
trol systems.
In this context, weight, space and
cost are core considerations when de-
signing avionic boxes but additional
new technology drivers such as high
signal speed, modular PCBs and in-
creased power requirements are also
changing the approach to traditional
LRU rack and panel design.
There is a growing need for the use
of EMI shielded and ruggedised PCBs
that are slotted into avionic racks. Av-
ionic card technology has progressed
considerably with the trends in min-
iaturisation and ruggedisation of
electronics.
Avionic boxes that were produced
over 10 years ago, for example, fea-
tured up to 16 card files whereas now
only six to eight are used, a reduction
of 50% in cards and space. Box com-
plexity is also increasing and, by
using modular programmable cards,
two boxes can now be consolidated
into one.
The solution is to move towards re-
placement of more traditional LRU
casings with ruggedised shielded cas-
settes or modular programmable
cards, thus saving valuable space, re-
ducing weight and minimising cost.
However, these cassettes still need
EMI/RFI protection and possibly
transient protection depending on
where they are situated within the
aircraft. One approach is to have an
integrated interconnect design which
involves machining the connector
and the EMI shielded cassette box lid
together as one piece and integrating
the filter and suppression compo-
nents.
Every major platform and specific
avionics LRU (line replaceable unit)
has different input/output require-
ments, such as signal, power, high-
speed differential transmission pairs,
optical and RF. This wide variation,
both in quantity and types, explains
why most connector companies tend
to have a high-mix low-volume man-
ufacturing policy, because it can be
difficult to cater for each designs spe-
cific requirements.
One approach is to use modular in-
serts that cater for present and future
requirements such as; high density
PCB signal inserts to and even below
a 1mm pitch combined with imped-
ance matching for high speed differ-
ential transmission lines, co-ax con-
tact inserts up to 20GHz, twin-ax and
quadrax contacts up to 3.5Gbit/s and
power contacts up to 1000A.
Evolution in PCB circuit design
and manufacturing has seen a move
from the more traditional through-
hole solder and press-fit termination
technology to surface mount and
spring probe technology. Modularity
in the design phase can be critical to
designing PCB connectors that not
only have the ability to have multiple
contacts fitted but also offer a choice
of termination style.
The modularity in PCB connector
design means tooling up a design is
undertaken only once and, with the
possibility of modular injection-
mould tooling, it allows custom vari-
ants to be produced with little or no
additional tooling investment. O
Roberta Rebora is marketing manager at
Hypertac Europe
Hypertac Europe
www.Hypertac.com
Rebora: weight and cost are important
Debbie Rowland
Passives specialist, mountain bike racer
& Charcroft sales manager
After 19 years at Charcroft, there
is not much that Debbie does
not know about passives. Every
working day, she helps customers
to solve passive procurement and
design challenges, such as nding
alternatives to obsolete components; identifying a part
number from a product description or NATO number;
or simply helping to source parts which are hard to nd
or on extended lead-times.
When she is not simplifying passive procurement and
design for Charcroft customers, Debbie races a mountain
bike across the Brecon beacons.
To see how Debbies specialist knowledge could help to
make passive procurement and design easier for you,
call her on 01591 612231, or email her on
debbie.rowland@charcroft.com
Charcroft puts your
passives, emech & interconnect in safe hands
embedded
Audio streaming development board has ARM Cortex-M4 microcontroller
PRODUCT
FOCUS
An audio streaming development board from Future
Electronics features an ARM Cortex-M4 microcontroller with
audio file decompression software, DACs, a codec, and
digital and analogue microphones.
The distributor has created a PC-based graphical user
interface which connects to the board via USB, and it claims
developers can start recording and playing back audio files
in minutes. The board also provides a hardware environment
in which to develop code and evaluate the performance of
ARM Cortex-M4 application software.
We believe the ARM Cortex-M4 is going to be a massive
hit with our industrial and embedded customers, and this
board is a brilliant starting point for anyone thinking of
developing on a Kinetis micro, said Colin Weaving, technical
director of Future Electronics.
The Audio Streamer Micro-Blox kit is built around the
MK60N512VMD100 microcontroller from Freescale. With
the free MQX real-time operating system and a free USB
stack pre-loaded on the microcontroller, the board provides
a highly capable general platform for ARM Cortex-M4
development work. For system-level prototyping, it can be
interfaced to the distributors LongBow Future-Blox
motherboard.
The boards software uses the ARM DSP CMSIS library,
which has been optimised for the DSP co-processor available
on the ARM Cortex-M4 core, which can be used for motor
control. Audio file decoding software embedded in the
microcontroller can handle MP3, FLAC, WAV and Ogg Vorbis
file types. FLAC, a lossless file format, is becoming popular in
hi-fi equipment. Ogg Vorbis is an open-source, royalty-free file
format that achieves tighter compression than MP3.
The microcontroller also runs other software for decoding
files such as ALAC, WMA, AIFF and AAC. An Ethernet
connection for file downloading is provided via Micrels
KSZ8031RNL transceiver.
Audio playback of the decoded files is via one of two
Wolfson Microelectronics DACs. The Audio Streamer
Micro-Blox board is available free to qualifying customers of
Future Electronics.
www.my-boardclub.com
1.5V-36V on-off automatic push-
button controller
Linear Technology has introduced
a pushbutton on-off controller that
manages 1.5V to 36V system power
via a pushbutton interface or the
presence of a supply.
The device differs from other
pushbutton controllers in that it
automatically turns on a system
when power is applied from a
primary or secondary supply, such as
a wall adapter or car battery.
When powered up, the LTC2955
can power down a system via
pushbutton and optionally can use
interrupt logic to request a system
power-down in menu-driven
applications (soft shutdown), or
automatically power-down a system
if the supply is removed.
No code is required to configure
the device, said the supplier.
The pushbutton input handles
wide voltage swings of up to 36V
and ESD strikes up to 25kV, and is
designed to operate in noisy
environments.
A mode select pin enables users to
select automatic turn-on and turn-off
combinations, and battery run time is
maximized thanks to a low 1.2A
quiescent current.
It is available in both positive
(LTC2955-1) and negative
(LTC2955-2) enable polarities, and in
a 10-pin 3mm x 2mm DFN or eight-
lead ThinSOT package.
www.linear.com/pushbutton
Distributor introduces N4L test
equipment to the UK
Caltest Instruments has been
appointed as the exclusive UK
distributor for test and measurement
instruments from Newtons4th (N4L).
The suppliers products include
power analysers, selective level
meters and frequency response
Low dropout voltage regulators
equipped to detect shorted loads
ON Semiconductor has two low
dropout (LDO) voltage regulators that
feature an output diagnostic pin CSO
that can be used to detect open and
shorted loads.
Using a resistor connected to the
CSO provides an adjustable output
current level between 10mA and
350mA with 10% accuracy.
Tying the ADJ pin to ground
configures the NCV47700 and
NCV47701 to be a current limited
high-side switch.
High peak input voltage tolerance
and reverse input voltage protection,
as well as overcurrent and
overtemperature protection functions
are all included to safeguard against
analysers that can be
used with a range of
impedance analysis
interfaces.
From entry-level
product PPA1500 to the
high-end PPA5500, all
N4L power analysers are
designed for high speed
sampling and no gap
between measurement
windows.
Accuracy is specified
at 0.02% for basic VA readings and
bandwidth up to 2MHz.
Instruments also feature
application specific modes that make
them ideally suited for tasks like low
standby power test (no gaps between
measurement windows).
The torque and speed inputs of the
PPA5500 model also allow the testing
of electrical to mechanical efficiency
in motor drives.
The PPA1500 range is available as
single, dual or three phase models,
whilst two PPA5500 models can be
connected to create a measurement
system with up to six phases.
Dual control software can be used to
link any combination of PPA 1500 and
PPA 5500 instruments to maximise
lexibility of available configurations.
www.caltest.co.uk
Caltest to distribute Newtons4th
Electronics Weekly. Quadrant House, The Quadrant, Sutton, Surrey SM2 5AS www.electronicsweekly.com
Editorial 020-8652 8642: Fax: 020-8652 8979 electronics.weekly@rbi.co.uk Publishing director David Wilson, david.wilson@rbi.co.uk 020 7611 1285 Editor Richard Wilson richard.
wilson@rbi.co.uk 020 8652 3650 Components editor David Manners david.manners@rbi.co.uk 020 8652 3643 Technology editor Steve Bush steve.bush@rbi.co.uk 020 8652 3640 Web
editor Alun Williams alun.williams@rbi.co.uk 020 8652 8313 Production editor Sue Proud sue.proud@rbi.co.uk 020 8652 4689 Editorial secretary Alison Noble alison.noble@rbi.co.uk 020
8652 8642 Circulation Customer service advisor 01444 475611 Subscriptions One year UK 102, Europe 133. Rest of the world 165 USA 140 and Canada 152. Please
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Reed Business Information Limited. A member of BPA. Electronics Weekly is a trademark of Reed Business Information Limited.
ADVERTISING: Display Group sales manager Lee De La Rue Browne lee.delaruebrowne@rbi.co.uk 020 8652 3262 Account managers Teo Tansiri teo.tansiri@rbi.co.uk 020 8652 8209: Julie West julie.west@rbi.co.uk 020 8652 3112
Classied Sales executive Paul Roberts 020 8652 8410 paul.roberts@rbi.co.uk Recruitment recruitment.services@rbi.co.uk 020 8652 3400 Direct copy line Pre-press co-ordinator Dan Long daniel.long@rbi.co.uk 020 8652 3127
ttid.co.uk - for all your instrument needs
As UK distributors for Ametek Programmable
Power we offer DC power supplies and AC
power sources to beyond 300 killowatts.
products
Blade boasts two 1.8GHz eight-core Intel processors
the effects of the harsh operating
conditions such as in automotive
applications.
Adjustable output voltage versions
of the devices are available; these
cover the 5 volt (V) to 20 V range,
with 6% accuracy for the
NCV47700 and 3% accuracy for
the NCV47701.
Both regulators have a junction
operating temperature range of -40 to
+150C.
The NCV47700 is offered in a
SOIC8 package and the NCV47701
is offered in SOIC8 package.
www.onsemi.com

Small step-down/step-up
converter supports 3A
Murata has added to its LXDC series
of small-size DC-DC converters the
LXDC55B step-down and LXDC44A
step-up models.
The LXDC55B measures
5.7x5.0x2.1mm and can support
output currents up to
3.0A.
Input voltage is within
the range 2.7 to 5.5Vdc
across the series and
single output models
provide the nominal
output of 1.2Vdc, 1.8Vdc,
2.5Vdc, 3.0Vdc or
3.3Vdc.
Operating as an output
boost converter, the
LXDC44A measuring
4x4x2mm can deliver up
to 0.7A output at 5Vdc
from an input of 2.7Vdc
to 4.5Vdc.
Constructed on a
ferrite substrate with an embedded
inductor, multi-layer construction
and integrating the power IC and I/O
capacitors the design is intended to
offer good EMI suppression and
reduced harmonic noise
characteristics.
www.murata.eu
Debug tools for DSP/micro-
processor-based systems
JTAG Technologies has introduced
a series of debug tools for DSP and
microprocessor based systems.
The intention is to target
microprocessors and DSPs with
deficient or even non-existent JTAG
(IEEE Std. 1149.1) boundary-scan test
registers.
The debug routines dubbed
JTAGLive CoreCommander can be
used to activate the on-chip debug
(OCD) modes of a range of popular
cores to affect kernel-centric testing.
The routines can be used for
diagnosing faults on dead-kernel
boards in either design debug or
repair, since no on-board code is
required to set memory reads and
writes.
Boundary-scan deficient parts can
also be better utilised during
production test, as CoreCommander-
driven functions increase fault
coverage.
Since CoreCommander is Python-
based it complements perfectly the
JTAGLive Script product, allowing
access to mixed-signal parts such as
ADCs and DACs and also
synchronised testing to full
boundary-scan devices, said the
company.
Interactive mode allows the user to
select a supported device within a
design and manually select register
access commands or full memory
reads and memory writes from the
interactive window and via a
supported controller to the target
design. Sequences of
commands can be
exported from the
interactive window and
replayed as part of a
Python script.
Python-embedded
mode uses a similar
structure to that featured
in the JTAGLive Script
product, allowing
CoreCommander
functions to be
embedded into Python
code to create re-usable
test modules for specific
tests.
www.jtaglive.com
Adlink Technology is offering the aTCA-6200,
AdvancedTCA (ATCA) processor blade, which
has two 1.8GHz eight-core Intel Xeon
processors E5-2648L and the Intel C604
chipset.
There is DDR3-1600 memory up to 128Gbyte
and a PICMG mid-size AMC bay.
On-card connectivity includes dual
10GBASE-KX4 fabric interfaces, dual GbE base
interfaces, dual front panel GbE egress ports,
CFast socket and quad SAS channels.
The mid-size AMC bay supports AMC.1 PCI
Express and advanced switching, AMC.2
Gigabit Ethernet and AMC.3 SATA/SAS storage
expansion.
I/O features of the aTCA-6200 include base
interface channels, fabric interface channels
and front/rear egress ports.
Front panel I/O includes two RJ-45 GbE
ports, three USB 2.0 ports, an RJ-45 to DB-9
standard serial port and a DB-15 connector for
analogue graphics output.
www.adlinktech.com/AdvancedTCA/
3A step-down/step-up DC-DC converters
24 EW21-27 MARCH 2012 ElectronicsWeekly.com
ARENA TO ADVERTISE CALL 020 8652 8410
www.beta-layout.com
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21-27 MARCH 2012 EW 25
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Were JAM and were specialists in recruiting for Electronics and Semiconductor roles. We like to really get to know our candidates so
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A reliable straightforward service, the high calibre of
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Ian, Development Manager, North West

Cant fault, we get a far better calibre of candidates from JAM
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JAM and so going forward they re our rst choice recruitment
agency and we will continue to work with JAM. (March 2012)
Paul, Team Leader, East Midlands
JAMs consultant had an excellent technical background, he knew
the company very well and knew exactly what they were looking
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0845 050 5522
info@jamrecruitment.co.uk
www.jamrecruitment.co.uk
Field Applications Engineers (x3) for Microchip
To help realise our ambitious growth plans for our highly successful semiconductor business, we are expanding our Microchip semiconductor support team. We currently have three vacancies in locations across the UK mainland
for Field Applications Engineers. In these field based roles, you will visit our customers to promote and offer support and guidance in the evaluation, selection and design-in of products from this world class manufacturer.
The successful candidate will demonstrate the ability to:
O Identify and support customers new design project needs through in-depth, hands-on technical expertise
O Liaise with and support our field sales team whilst managing your own design project tracker
O Identify new customers and develop design-in opportunities, taking ownership of the activity and participating in reviews
O Work closely with customers engineering teams to provide creative and innovative design solutions
O Align product offers to their appropriate target industrial markets
O Maintain an active supplier relationship, attend exhibitions & conferences and undertake training sessions
In return we offer:
O Highly attractive salary, car scheme and benefits package
O Comprehensive training and development programs in the UK, Europe and the United States
O Exciting prospects for personal growth and career progression in a vibrant and dynamic work environment

Candidates should ideally be qualified to HNC/Degree level in Electronic Engineering, with a proven track record in electronics hardware and software design. You may already be working in a similar role, however we are equally
interested in applications from design engineers currently working at the bench who are looking for their next career step in electronics. To apply, please send your CV by email to recruitment@anglia.com or by post to the
address below. However, should you require further information about this position then call Michelene Hircock on 07775 513027.
www.anglia.com Sandall Rd, Wisbech, Cambs, PE13 2PS
The UKs leading independent authorised distributor of electronic components
26 EW21-27 MARCH 2012 ElectronicsWeekly.com
Microchip has a position for a District Sales Manager for the North of England
If you are an experienced Sales Management professional with a history of achievement in the Semiconductor Industry and are looking to join a
market leading and highly successful semiconductor manufacturer, please contact us without delay!
We are also interested in hearing from individuals keen to pursue a pure field sales role.
The Company
Microchip Technology Inc. is a leading provider of microcontroller and analog semiconductors, providing low-risk product development,
lower total system cost and faster time to market for thousands of diverse customer applications worldwide. The company has a turnover of
over $1.4 billion and employs over 7500. For more information, visit the Microchip website at www.microchip.com.
Location
Applicants should ideally reside in the North of England
Job Summaries/Key Attributes
The ideal candidates will:
Be a highly motivated and results focussed individual.
Be fully conversant with the UK market for semiconductors.
Have significant experience of relevant industry selling and/or Marketing experience.
Ideally have some man management experience (for the DSM position).
Microchip is an equal opportunity employer, and successful candidates for the DSM role can expect:
A competitive salary package, including quarterly Company performance related bonus schemes, a company car or generous car allowance, a new
hire share grant plus an on-going performance related share programme, discounted Microchip share purchase scheme, private medical insurance,
21 days paid holiday per year and a contributory Pension Scheme.
To apply
Please send your CV and letter of application to europe.humanresources@microchip.com
or apply via our website at www.microchip.com/careers
No Agencies
H.R. Microchip Ltd, Microchip House, 720 Wharfedale Road, IQ Winnersh, Wokingham, Berkshire, UK, RG41 5TP
District Sales Manager North of England
www.microchip.com
The Microchip name and logo are registered trademarks of Microchip Technology Incorporated in the USA and other countries. 2012 Microchip Technology Inc. All rights reserved. REC141UK/02.12
ULTIMATEDESTINATION
Careers that inspire
OPPORTUNITIES IN PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT
Were driven by big ideas. Creativity, inspiration and engineering excellence shine through
in every aspect of our new vehicles raising our standards yet further, and fuelling our
growth in over 170 countries worldwide.
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product mix. And to stay there, we need all kinds of engineers to help us further push
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Our ceaseless search for great ideas is taking us in some fascinating new directions. If you
want to explore where your thinking could take you, visit www.jaguarlandrovercareers.com
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ElectronicsWeekly.com/jobs
21-27 MARCH 2012 EW 27
technical
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European Recruitment Ltd (ERL) are industry leaders in the Wireless, Handsets,
Chipsets and Networks Software & Hardware Engineering, ICT and Oil & Gas
sectors. Our expertise lies in finding all levels of candidates so the client has a
complete solution to their needs. Our consultants specialises in finding technical
experts from junior level up to senior managers.
Example clients: Intel Mobile, Qualcomm, NVIDIA, Renesas Mobile, Anritsu,
Anite, R&S, CSR, PA Consulting and many more.
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Vector The Technology Specialists.We are all Engineers & Scientists,
so we understand you and your needs and we get it right!
Whether you are job hunting or recruiting staff, talk to the experts!
JAM provides Permanent, Contract and Recruitment Process Outsourcing
soluons to some of the UKs most successful organisaons.
Your Recruitment Partner in
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Were passionate about our clients, our services and our people; our
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To see our latest opportunies visit www.jamrecruitment.co.uk or to talk
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Email: recruitment.services@rbi.co.uk UK Tel: +44 (0)20 8652 3400
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