Sofant Technologies, a developer of radio frequency microelectromechanical systems (RF MEMS) technology has struck a deal with memsstar, a company that manufactures MEMS equipment, in order to upscale production of their smart antennas.
The Scottish firms have teamed up to increase production of the wireless communication devices.
The partnership which aims to increase production volumes and commercialise smart antennas comes at a time when 5G network infrastructure in the UK continues to be developed.
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The MEMS market
“While the MEMS market globally is mature with several consumer applications for the technology, radio frequency MEMS are still relatively early in the adoption cycle due to the challenges of manufacture and production at scale,” said David Wither, CEO, Sofant Technologies.
“The manufacturing process is critical and has a major impact on the cost and performance of the device. Sofant’s technology is produced in a conventional high-volume MEMS foundry and recent progress in the manufacturing approach has taken a leap forward as a result of our partnership with memsstar. This collaboration has dramatically reduced the development risk and cleared the path for volume production.”
Their partnership will enable Sofant Technologies to target markets including SatCom and 5G antenna systems, where it hopes to reduce the power consumption by more than 70%.
Tony McKie, CEO, memsstar said: “For the next generation of advanced MEMS devices, process technology will be more critical than ever to meet performance, reliability and yield targets. It’s exciting to see Sofant Technologies moving into volume production as a result of our collaboration, validating our MEMS platform and process expertise as well as our approach to MEMS development and manufacturing.”
