GLOBALFOUNDRIES Crosses Billion-Dollar Design Win Threshold with 8SW RF SOI Technology

Mobile market continues to favor RF SOI, with 8SW proving to be the industry’s leading platform for power-optimized chips

Santa Clara, Calif., February 20, 2019 – GLOBALFOUNDRIES today announced that the company’s mobile-optimized 8SW RF SOI technology platform has delivered more than a billion dollars of client design win revenue since its launch in September 2017. With yields and performance exceeding client expectations, 8SW is enabling designers to develop solutions that offer extremely fast downloads, higher quality connections and reliable data connectivity for today’s 4G/LTE Advanced operating frequencies and future sub-6 GHz 5G mobile and wireless communication applications.

As the industry’s first 300 mm RF SOI foundry solution, 8SW delivers significant performance, integration and area advantages, with best-in-class low-noise amplifier (LNA) and switch performance which all together improve integration solutions in the front-end module (FEM). The optimized RF FEM platform is tailored to accommodate aggressive LTE and sub-6 GHz standards for FEM applications, including 5G IoT, mobile device and wireless communications.

“At Qorvo, we continuously expand upon our industry-leading RF portfolio to support all pre-5G and 5G architectures, as such we require the best available technologies to enable us to deliver top-notch solutions with the broadest range of connectivity in sub-6 GHz and mmWave 5G,” said Todd Gillenwater, Qorvo CTO. “GF’s 8SW technology delivers a mix of performance, integration and area advantages in FEM switches and LNAs, giving us a great platform for our world-class products.”

“As new high-speed standards, including 4G LTE and 5G, continue to grow in complexity, innovation in RF Front End radio design must continue to deliver performance commensurate with growing network, data and application demands,” said Bami Bastani, senior vice president of business units at GF. “GF continuously builds on our extensive RF SOI capabilities that are providing our clients a competitive market advantage with first time design success, optimal performance, and the shortest time to market.”

According to Mobile Experts, the mobile RF front-end market is estimated to reach $22 billion in 2022, with a CAGR of 8.3 percent. With more than 40 billion RF SOI chips shipped thru 2018, GF is uniquely positioned to deliver an expanding RF portfolio for a broad range of high-growth applications such as automotive, 5G connectivity and the Internet of Things (IoT).

“Radio complexity promises to increase for both sub-6 GHz and mmWave, driving tight integration of multiple RF functions,” said Joe Madden, Principal Analyst at Mobile Experts. “The market needs RF solutions with high efficiency and linearity performance, but also using scalable processes on large wafers. GF has established an RF SOI process that will enable longer-term market expansion.”

GF combines legacy RF expertise and the industry's most differentiated RF technology platform spanning advanced and established technology nodes, to help clients develop 5G connectivity solutions for next-generation products.

GF will present its 5G-ready RF solutions with industry experts at MWC Barcelona on February 25 at the NEXTech Labs Theater, in the Fira Gran Via Convention Center, in Barcelona Spain. For more information, go to globalfoundries.com.

About GLOBALFOUNDRIES

GLOBALFOUNDRIES (GF) is a leading full-service foundry delivering truly differentiated semiconductor technologies for a range of high-growth markets. GF provides a unique combination of design, development, and fabrication services, with a range of innovative IP and feature-rich offerings including FinFET, FDX™, RF, and analog/mixed signal. With a manufacturing footprint spanning three continents, GF has the flexibility and agility to meet the dynamic needs of clients across the globe. GF is owned by Mubadala Investment Company. For more information, visit globalfoundries.com.