Globalfoundries to make MEMS for timing startup

LONDON – Sand 9 Inc. (Cambridge, Mass.), a startup company offering timing components based on microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), has announced that Globalfoundries will be a partner for high volume manufacturing of its products.

Sand 9 provides MEMS timing components as alternative to quartz crystal based timing solutions. Sand 9 MEMS can be more easily integrated with other ICs for integration in mobile and consumer applications, Sand 9 asserts.

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Sand 9's timing products use piezoelectric actuation of a resonator alongside a low phase-noise oscillator to enable a low-jitter product. The ability to integrate, combined with immunity to noise and shock and the ability to withstand lead-free reflow solder temperatures address certain weakness in quartz crystal performance. Applications for the company's lead product, the TCMO, include GPS, LTE, 3G and WiFi communications.

"For Sand 9, we have established a very cost-effective and novel MEMS process technology platform integrated with polysilicon through silicon vias for wafer level packaging," said Raj Kumar, senior vice president with Globalfoundries in Singapore, who has been bringing up a MEMS foundry capability there based on 200-mm wafer processing.

"Partnering with Globalfoundries allows Sand 9 to meet heightened market demand for the highest-volume mobile applications, including handsets, tablets and other consumer electronics," said Vince Graziani, CEO of Sand 9, in a statement. "Our collaboration will ensure a stable, reliable supply chain for all of our customers in mobile as well as in wireline communications infrastructure, cellular base station, and test and measurement markets."

In September Sand 9 announced that telecommunications equipment and services company Ericsson invested $3 million in the company.


Related links and articles:

www.sand9.com

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