Lime Microsystems and picoChip announce frequency-agnostic reference platform for 3G and 4G femtocells

GUILDFORD & BATH, ENGLAND: Lime Microsystems and picoChip are collaborating to develop a reference platform for 3G and 4G femtocells. The highly frequency-agile platform will operate in all frequency bands of interest, including existing and emerging bands.

It will be based on Lime's multi-band multi-standard RF transceiver IC, the LMS6002, alongside picoChip's picoXcell™ baseband solutions for femtocells.

This jointly-developed platform will enable femtocell designs based on 3G or 4G standards (WCDMA/HSPA, CDMA2000, LTE, and WiMAX). Its configurable nature will accelerate adoption of emerging standards and enable femtocell deployment using less common cellular frequencies – for instance at 700MHz or 1.5GHz.

"picoChip is a key player in the femtocell arena and we are delighted to be working with them to help accelerate the rollout of femtocell technology," states Philippe Roux, VP Business Development of Lime Microsystems. "The reference platform will enable our mutual customers to accelerate development cycles for femtocell products and will support easier migration from 3G to 4G technology."

“picoChip is committed to supporting carriers and OEMs with the widest possible variety of femtocell solutions,” said Rupert Baines, VP of Marketing at picoChip. “Lime offers an RF transceiver solution that can operate in any frequency band, allowing it to address femtocell applications which cannot be served by other solutions.”

Lime Microsystems’ LMS6002 is a multi-band multi-standard RF transceiver IC designed for femtocells and small cell basestations. The highly frequency agile transceiver operates at user-selectable frequencies between 375MHz and 4GHz and is suitable for WCDMA/HSPA, CDMA2000, WiMAX, and LTE standards.

The transceiver can be digitally configured to operate in the full range of frequency bands, with 16 user-selectable bandwidths up to 28MHz. This removes the need for individual transceiver chips for each of the different bands, and allows a small cell base station to be reconfigured rapidly and simply.

The resulting reduction in bill of materials minimises costs and inventory for OEMs. Lime’s single-chip device also offers footprint and cost advantages over discrete solutions.