If you have a cell phone capable of receiving MediaFLO TV on channel 55, chances are it has a small, flexible whip antenna attached to it, but a new second-generation antenna chip product from Siano Mobile Silicon has been designed to replace it.
The SMS8022 antenna covers 470 to 870 MHz and is only 35mm x 5mm x 1mm in size. Siano said the chip offers improved performance of more than 3 dB with respect to its predecessor, the SMS8021. The Siano Web site didn’t list a data sheet for the SMS8022, but the SMS8021 has a minimum gain of -5 dBi. Note that any small antenna will have much less efficiency than a full sized dipole or even an isotropic radiator. The SMS8021 data sheet doesn’t explain how the chip works, but the features list indicates it has only 4 soldering pins, is passive (doesn’t require power) and is omnidirectional. It allows linear reception of signals up to 33 dBm.
“The launch of the world’s smallest UHF antenna chip for MDTV in 2007 created a lot of excitement in the industry, and the product was successfully adopted by a number of reputable device makers worldwide,” said Alon Ironi, Siano CEO. “The new, higher-performance SMS8022 further cements Siano’s leadership in the industry, offering both the highest performance receiver chip as well as the highest performance antenna chip.”
The SMS8022 and its predecessor, the SMS8021, were developed in collaboration with Vishay “based on Vishay’s technological breakthrough in advanced materials engineering, combined with innovative system design by Siano,” Ironi said.
