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Whitepaper –  The History of Silicon-on-Sapphire

Learning Outcomes

Silicon-on-Sapphire (SOS) is a pioneering semiconductor technology that laid the foundation for modern silicon-on-insulator (SOI) innovations. With its unique insulating properties and compatibility with CMOS processes, SOS has evolved from a niche military application to a commercially viable solution for RF communications. 

Whether you’re exploring semiconductor history or evaluating advanced RF design strategies, this guide offers a clear overview of SOS’s journey and its modern relevance. 

What you’ll learn inside: 
✔️ How SOS technology originated and evolved from aerospace and military research 
✔️ Why sapphire’s crystal structure enables silicon growth and high-performance electronics 
✔️ The challenges SOS faced in early commercialization and how they were overcome 
✔️ The breakthrough of ultra-thin SOS films and the SPER process 
✔️ How Peregrine Semiconductor commercialized SOS for RF applications 
✔️ The advantages of UltraCMOS™ technology in modern RF design 
✔️ Why SOS is ideal for wireless communications and how it compares to bulk silicon and III-V materials 

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  • Best-in-class RF performance
  • Optimal form factors with high levels of integration
  • Proven track record in top-tier smartphones
  • Active member of 3GPP and other industry affiliations
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Power Management

  • 5G antenna-integrated module (AiM) co-designed with Murata
  • High-efficiency 26 GHz, 28 GHz and 39 GHz beamforming front ends supporting bands n257, n258, n261 and n260
  • Advanced, highly integrated package and antenna technology
  • Modular AiM approach for building scalable antenna arrays
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Markets

  • Best-in-class RF performance
  • Optimal form factors with high levels of integration
  • Proven track record in top-tier smartphones
  • Active member of 3GPP and other industry affiliations

  • RF Switches All

    Industry-leading linearity and RF performance
    HaRP™ technology enhancement reduces gate lag and insertion loss drift
    Monolithic CMOS solution that integrates RF, analog and digital
    Best-in-class ESD and reliability

  • High Linearity RF Switches

    Industry-leading linearity and RF performance
    HaRP™ technology enhancement reduces gate lag and insertion loss drift
    Monolithic CMOS solution that integrates RF, analog and digital
    Best-in-class ESD and reliability

  • High Isolation RF Switches

    Industry-leading isolation and RF performance
    HaRP™ technology enhancement reduces gate lag and insertion loss drift
    Monolithic CMOS solution that integrates RF, analog and digital
    Best-in-class ESD and reliability

  • Low Insertion Loss RF Switches

    Industry-leading insertion loss and RF performance
    HaRP™ technology enhancement reduces gate lag and insertion loss drift
    Monolithic CMOS solution that integrates RF, analog and digital
    Best-in-class ESD and reliability

  • Antenna Tuning Switches

    Industry-leading RF power handling and ruggedness
    Best-in-class harmonic and linearity
    Small form factor with robust ESD and reliability

  • 75Ω Wired Broadband Switches

    Unmatched linearity performance for DOCSIS 3.1
    HaRP™ technology enhancement reduces gate lag and insertion loss drift
    Monolithic CMOS solution that integrates RF, analog and digital
    Best-in-class ESD ratings and reliability

  • Broadband RF Switches

    Wideband support with a frequency range from 0 Hz to 67 GHz
    Industry-leading insertion loss, isolation, linearity and settling time
    HaRP™ technology enhancement reduces gate lag and insertion loss drift
    Best-in-class ESD and reliability

  • High Power Switches

    Industry-leading power handling and RF performance
    HaRP™ technology enhancement reduces gate lag and insertion loss drift
    Monolithic CMOS solution that integrates RF, analog and digital
    Best-in-class ESD and reliability

  • Automotive Switches

    AEC-Q100 Grade 2-certified supporting temperatures up to +105°C
    HaRP™ technology enhancement reduces gate lag and insertion loss drift
    Monolithic CMOS solution that integrates RF, analog and digital
    Best-in-class ESD and reliability

  • Extended Temperature RF Switches

    Wide temperature range support from -55°C to +125°C
    HaRP™ technology enhancement reduces gate lag and insertion loss drift
    Monolithic CMOS solution that integrates RF, analog and digital
    Best-in-class ESD and reliability

  • 75Ω Wired Broadband RF Digital Step Attenuators

    High linearity, fast switching time with wide bandwidth
    Best-in-class attenuation error with fine attenuation steps
    Monolithic CMOS solution that integrates RF, analog and digital
    Excellent ESD protection and reliability

  • Glitchless RF Digital Step Attenuators

    High linearity, fast switching time with wide bandwidth
    Best-in-class attenuation error with fine attenuation steps
    Monolithic CMOS solution that integrates RF, analog and digital
    Excellent ESD protection and reliability

  • General-purpose RF Digital Step Attenuators

    High linearity, fast switching time with wide bandwidth
    Best-in-class attenuation error with fine attenuation steps
    Monolithic CMOS solution that integrates RF, analog and digital
    Excellent ESD protection and reliability

  • 2.4 GHz IoT FEMs

    Industry-leading monolithic Wi-Fi RF front-end solutions
    High linearity performance for Wi-Fi 6 and W-Fi 6E
    Compact form factors integrating high-performance RF, analog and digital
    Best-in-class ESD and reliability

  • Phase Shifters

    Ideal solutions for optimizing transmission phase angle
    Low root-mean-square (RMS) phase and amplitude error with fine phase resolution
    Digital control interface with parallel and serial programming options
    Best-in-class ESD and reliability

  • Monolithic Phase & Amplitude Controllers (MPACs)

    Reliable phase and amplitude control for next-generation communications
    Monolithic CMOS solution that integrates RF, analog and digital
    Integrated solution for Doherty power amplifier optimization (MPAC–Doherty)

  • Digital Tunable Capacitors (DTCs)

    Small form factor with high Q
    Monolithically integrated impedance tuning solution
    Wide-band tuning coverage, minimum mismatch losses, high linearity and fast switching speed
    Best-in-class ESD and reliability

  • Power Limiters

    Highly integrated solutions, smaller and more reliable than PIN-diode solutions
    Adjustable threshold control for maximum design flexibility
    High power handling and linearity required for wide-dynamic-range designs
    Fast response and recovery times for instantaneous protection and rapid return

  • Prescalers

    Exceptional performance with high-frequency support up to 13.5 GHz
    Low phase noise performance and low power consumption solutions
    Bare-die solutions for a wide variety of compact high-performance applications
    Best-in-class ESD and reliability

  • Mixers

    Broadband quad MOSFET array cores for high performance
    Industry-leading linearity, isolation and low conversion loss
    Available in MSOP, DFN and QFN packages
    Best-in-class ESD and reliability

  • Switch LNA

    Integrates dual-channel LNA with bypass function & high-power switch
    20W average RF input power
    Low noise figure of 0.9 dB
    +105°C operating temperature

  • Charge Pump Capacitor Divider

    Unique, patented architecture to enable higher overall system, power conversion efficiency
    Fully integrated solutions from 15W to 160W
    Virtually lossless (up to 99% peak) conversion and soft-switching topology
    Parallel operation to higher power levels
    Available through our parent company Murata

  • 2-Stage Buck Regulators

    Family of DC-DC buck voltage regulators ICs and modules for telecoms, datacoms, server and storage applications
    Compact solution size offering best-in-class efficiencies for low profile applications (<1.2mm)
    Fully programmable via I2C and with accurate on-board telemetry
    Available through our parent company Murata

  • 2-Stage Boost Regulators - LED Backlight Drivers

    Ultra-high efficiency (up to 96%) LED boosts for LCD displays
    Product family includes products for 1-cell, 2-cell, and 3-cell inputs such as tablets, notebooks and 2-in-1 convertibles
    Enables very low profile (<0.7 mm) solutions and halves power-conversion losses compared to leading alternatives
    Up to 15-bit resolution via I²C or PWM control
    High accuracy with tight matching at low LED current

  • Multi-level Converters

    Industry-first 4-level and 3-level conversion for fixed input voltages (USB_PD)
    Configurable as charge pump divide-by-3 and divide-by-2 for variable input voltages (USB_PPS)
    Wide range input voltage 4.5V to 18V compatible with USB and wireless charging Qi sources
    Reverse boost capability
    High-accuracy current and voltage telemetry
    Best-in-class efficiency for low-profile applications (<1 mm)
    Targets fast-charging battery applications

Power Management

  • Unique, patented architecture to enable higher overall system, power conversion efficiency
  • Fully integrated solutions from 15W to 160W
  • Virtually lossless (up to 99% peak) conversion and soft-switching topology
  • Parallel operation to higher power levels
  • Available through our parent company Murata
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Integrated products

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RF Mixers & Limiters

  • Exceptional performance with high-frequency support
  • Highly integrated, reliable solutions in a small form factor
  • Variety of packaging options for maximum design flexibility
  • Best-in-class ESD and reliability
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Front End Modules

  • Industry-leading monolithic Wi-Fi RF front-end solutions
  • High linearity performance for Wi-Fi 6 and W-Fi 6E
  • Compact form factors integrating high-performance RF, analog and digital
  • Best-in-class ESD and reliability
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RF Phase & Amplitude Control

  • Reliable phase and amplitude control for next-generation communications
  • Monolithic CMOS solution that integrates RF, analog and digital
  • Digital control interface with parallel and serial programming options
  • Best-in-class ESD and reliability
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RF Attenuators

  • High linearity, fast switching time with wide bandwidth
  • Best-in-class attenuation error with fine attenuation steps
  • Monolithic CMOS solution that integrates RF, analog and digital
  • Excellent ESD protection and reliability
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RF Switches

  • Industry-leading RF performance
  • HaRP™ technology enhancement
  • Monolithic CMOS solution that integrates RF, analog and digital
  • Best-in-class ESD and reliability
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