ATLANTA, GASkyworks Solutions, Inc. and Ember are partnering to develop the industry's first portfolio of ZigBee front-end modules (FEMs) targeting applications like smart meters in energy management, home-area networks (HANs), and industrial automation. ZigBee is a wireless-networking standard that solves the unique needs of remote monitoring, control, and sensor-network applications.
The modules' receive paths integrate baluns in order to provide differential ports to Ember's EM250 and EM260 transceivers. The SKY65337 is a FEM that is footprint-compatible with the SKY65336. The LNA can be removed for applications that require lower cost. The transmit path delivers 20 dBm of high-efficiency output power. In addition, balanced input and outputs ports have been provided to connect to the EM250 and EM260. West Technology Research Solutions (WTRS) is forecasting the ZigBee/IEEE 802.15.4 market to grow at an annual rate of over 117 percent. It is predicted to increase from approximately 8.4 million units shipped in 2007 to as many as 516 million in 2012.