Teradyne Introduces New UltraWave 12G Wireless Test Solution

Teradyne, Inc. introduced its new UltraWave(TM) test instrument. UltraWave offers wireless customers 12 GHz source and measurement performance, with greater parallel test efficiency to ultimately lower the cost of test. Combined with the UltraFLEX(TM) test platform, UltraWave covers the entire spectrum of current and emerging connectivity and cellular technologies. Teradyne® has received orders from multiple customers for the product with Broadcom the first customer to take delivery of the instrument.

Broadcom Corporation, a leading supplier of RF and microwave semiconductors for wired and wireless communications, selected the UltraFLEX system with the new 12G wireless solution for testing System-on-a-Chip (SOC) devices from Bluetooth® to wireless LAN to cellular devices. "Multiple RF and microwave radios are a standard part of Broadcom's integrated designs. Bluetooth, WLAN, cable and satellite tuners, and cellular radios have become ubiquitous Broadcom IP blocks requiring a new level of ATE integration,” said Kris Hublitz, senior director of test engineering, Broadcom.

Kris added, “The UltraWave RF test instrument fits our needs perfectly. Its wide-ranging capabilities and high port count of generic microwave IOs combined with our standard UltraFLEX configuration is an excellent combination of engineering productivity, performance, multi-site parallelism, and cost of test for Broadcom. We are excited to use the UltraFLEX with UltraWave as a standard Broadcom test platform moving forward."

UltraWave meets the most demanding consumer wireless device test requirements. It offers the widest range of test and measurement capability to cover complex microwave test requirements for RFIC and RF SOC devices, including wireless LAN, Bluetooth, 3G cellular, and new emerging standards like 4G cellular and ultrawideband.

“The feedback we have received from our RF customers is that they highly value the technology advancements we’ve made in wireless test with the UltraWave instrument. UltraWave builds on four generations of Teradyne’s leading microwave test solutions, and leapfrogs competitors in performance, cost of test and time to market,” said Rod Stewart, general manager of Teradyne’s SOC business group. “The combination of our experienced worldwide RF applications team and the new UltraWave instrument will provide our customers a tremendous advantage as they drive for profitable growth in the wireless market.”

“Two trends are framing the explosive wireless market,” said Kyle Klatka, product manager for Teradyne’s Wireless Business Unit. “First, rapidly increasing demand for world phones and handsets that support many wireless interfaces is multiplying the number of RF ports on a single chip. Second, manufacturers are combining multiple core functions into a single chip and creating more highly integrated devices to save space and drive down price. UltraWave can handle both trends, as manufacturers look to handle not only new wireless protocols, but also to quickly achieve multisite test to lower their cost of test.”