At the Institut Universitaire de Technologie (IUT) in Blagnac, France, a quiet revolution in ultra-wideband (UWB) education and research is underway. Thanks to a long-standing collaboration with Qorvo, faculty and students are developing real-world applications that bridge the gap between innovation, education and industry.
What began with a challenge in a PhD research project, accurately localizing nodes that kept getting nudged out of place, has grown into a robust, multi-facility UWB test bed. The project, spearheaded by IUT Blagnac’s educators and researchers Carine Livoti, Adrien Vonenbosch and Réjane Dalcet, is part high-tech experimentation, part professional training platform, and entirely driven by passion for accessible innovation.
“Our platform was built opportunistically,” said Adrien. “It wasn’t directly funded at the beginning, but every time we had a project, we looked for ways to expand and improve the platform.” With Qorvo’s early support and technology access, the team was able to get hands-on with UWB modules before the broader market recognized their potential. “This gave us a real head start,” he added.
The test bed spans two main locations: a research facility and a “smart home” environment in Blagnac. In the research building, UWB nodes are deployed in open spaces and even inside anechoic chambers to simulate radio-isolated conditions. Some nodes are installed on rails to allow for controlled movement, and recent additions include robotic mobility to add a higher degree of experimentation.
But it’s the smart home installation that reveals the human-centered possibilities of UWB. “It’s about more than experiments,” said Réjane. “It’s about providing a service to people, testing how UWB can function in real environments, with real users.” From locating lost keys to optimizing hospital asset management, their UWB applications focus on transforming technical localization data into intuitive, human-readable outputs. Instead of cryptic coordinates, systems can say, “Your keys are next to the coffee maker in the kitchen.”
The demo room at IUT Blagnac.
The team also places an emphasis on education and training. Their platform supports both undergraduate students and professionals from engineering schools and industry. As Carine noted, “At first, students may tune out when we explain that UWB occupies at least 500 megahertz of spectrum. But once they participate in hands-on activities, like a treasure hunt app built on UWB, the technology becomes real and exciting.”
That spirit of engagement drives the team’s larger mission: to popularize UWB and make cutting-edge research accessible to startups, educators and professionals. “A few years ago, I had never even heard of ultra-wideband,” said Carine. “Now, thanks to Qorvo, we are working with startups and developing training sessions that help people outside of academia understand and apply this technology.”
The test bed is deployed at a building scale, over the first floor of building C of IUT Blagnac, using Qorvo’s DWM1001C.
Qorvo’s contribution has gone far beyond supplying hardware. Their partnership has helped IUT Blagnac create an educational and experimental environment that merges technical rigor with public-facing impact. It’s a model for how industry and academia can collaborate to make complex technology both approachable and transformative.
Looking ahead, the Blagnac team sees even more opportunities to grow. They are working on turning UWB data into natural-language feedback for use in healthcare, smart homes and public services. Their goal is to continue opening research to the world and bringing innovation from the lab to everyday life. As Réjane put it: “We want to make ultra-wideband popular, understandable and useful. Not just for researchers, but for everyone.”
Find out more about Qorvo UWB solutions here.
At Qorvo, we’re proud to lead the industry in high-performance RF filters—a title we work hard to earn every day. As spectrum becomes more crowded and devices grow smaller and more complex, filters must perform better than ever in less space.
We sat down with Gernot Fattinger, vice president of Global Operations Technology, to talk about how Qorvo is pushing the boundaries of filter innovation and why it matters to our customers across industries. His message was clear: filters are everywhere, and innovation is non-negotiable.
Q: Why are RF filters so important in today’s wireless world?
Gernot:Acoustic filters—specifically bulk acoustic wave (BAW) and surface acoustic wave (SAW)—are critical to virtually all wireless communication above 500 MHz, from smartphones and Wi-Fi networks to radar and Ultra-Wideband (UWB) applications.
Filters isolate and shape signals, allowing devices to connect faster, more reliably and more efficiently. Today’s premium smartphones contain nearly 100 filters, with Qorvo contributing across low-band, mid-band, high-band and ultra-high-band frequencies, and even Wi-Fi and UWB modules. However, filters aren’t just for mobile devices. They are essential for robust defense communications, aerospace, 5G base stations, the IoT and emerging wireless applications.
Q: What’s the latest innovation coming out of Qorvo’s filter technology?
Gernot: One of the biggest breakthroughs is our 7th generation BAW technology, also known as GEN7 BAW. GEN7 removes the cavity structure used in prior uBAW designs—a major step to shrinking size without compromising performance. GEN7 BAW is 30% smaller on average than its predecessor and offers better power handling, all while simplifying integration into compact modules. In short, we found a way to eliminate the cavity and can even place connections right on top of the resonator. This kind of innovation helps us deliver the performance our customers need.
Q: What about lower frequencies? Are you innovating there too?
Gernot: Absolutely. While BAW technology remains the predominant choice at higher frequencies, SAW filters play a vital role below 1.5 GHz, particularly in low-band applications, as well as for some specific mid-band frequencies. This is where our new low-loss resonator SAW (LRT-SAW) technology is leading the way. LRT-SAW delivers dramatically better performance than legacy SAW platforms, such as temperature-compensated SAW (TC-SAW). LRT-SAW enables sharper transitions and more efficient filtering—exactly what’s needed as more devices compete for low-band spectrum. I expect LRT-SAW to become the go-to solution for low-band frequencies and a critical component in future integrated modules. LRT-SAW will be Qorvo’s next crown jewel.
Q: What makes Qorvo’s approach to filter development different?
Gernot: Having our own BAW and SAW filter technologies isn’t just about performance — it’s a strategic advantage. We’re the only company manufacturing both SAW and BAW filters in the U.S., and our in-house technology gives us unmatched flexibility in how we build and integrate modules.
That matters more than ever, because the future is about integration. What used to be a few discrete parts has now evolved into highly integrated front-end modules. Soon, there will be one fully integrated RF front-end module per phone, containing every band and filter.
Final Thoughts
RF filters may be small, but their impact is massive. At Qorvo, our teams are already working on technologies that are five years ahead—and that will power products launching in 2030 and beyond. This is our commitment to helping our customers stay ahead with world-class technology, deep integration capabilities and relentless innovation across every band. Whether you’re building smartphones, defense systems, or the next-gen IoT device, Qorvo filters are built to power what’s next.
Explore surface acoustic wave (SAW) and bulk acoustic wave (BAW) technologies, how temperature affects filter performance, how multiplexers and antennaplexers help engineers create more complex wireless next-generation solutions and the secret of how RF filters help our many wireless devices coexist.
Staying ahead of the curve in the technology business is essential. With Wi-Fi 8 on our industry’s doorstep, its promise to dramatically advance connectivity as we know it—It’s time to make ready. This new standard promises not just faster internet speeds but also smarter, more efficient networking. To help us navigate the intricacies of Wi-Fi 8 and its implications for design engineers, we spoke with several experts, including Qorvo Connectivity Product Line Directors Kevin Gallagher and Wayne Polonio. Here, Kevin and Wayne share their expert insights on what engineers can expect from Wi-Fi 8 and how it will shape the future of wireless networking, including how key front-end innovations will support the next leap in wireless networking.
Q: What’s the real difference between Wi-Fi 7 and Wi-Fi 8?
Kevin Gallagher: At a glance, it might seem like Wi-Fi 8 offers only incremental changes over Wi-Fi 7—both support high data rates and similar throughput. But under the hood, Wi-Fi 8 introduces important enhancements focused not on raw speed but on efficiency, coordination, and futureproofing.
The most visible change is an increase in available spectrum. Wi-Fi 8 extends the upper band limit from 7.125 GHz to 7.25 GHz. This subtle shift enables the addition of one more 320 MHz channel and another 160 MHz channel—critical assets in reducing interference and enhancing performance in dense environments.
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Wayne Polonio: Not exactly. While faster data rates are always desirable, Wi-Fi 8 is about smarter Wi-Fi. It builds on the technologies introduced in Wi-Fi 7, like Multi-Link Operation (MLO), but adds features that enable better coordination between access points (APs) and client devices.
One standout feature is multi-AP coordination, which allows multiple routers or access points to work together to optimize coverage and reduce latency. This is a shift from the brute-force model of today’s home networks where devices cling to a weak signal until they drop, rather than seamlessly handing off to a better AP.
Q: How will these changes affect CPE and mobile design?
Kevin Gallagher: On the CPE (Customer Premises Equipment) side expect more emphasis on adaptive transmission modes. Historically, routers operated in a single, high-power mode to ensure coverage. But this isn’t always optimal, especially for nearby devices.
Wi-Fi 8 encourages a shift toward dynamic front-end modes, similar to mobile handsets. This means APs will intelligently select different transmit profiles based on range and throughput needs, improving efficiency and thermal performance.
In mobile, the requirements are diverging regionally. For example, some phone makers are demanding higher output power (up to 26 dBm) to enable unique use features, while others are focused on minimizing current draw thus extending the battery life per charge. This variability increases pressure on front-end module (FEM) designers to offer more flexibility—without compromising range or battery life.
Q: What challenges do engineers face when designing for Wi-Fi 8?
Wayne Polonio: There are several:
Q: What solutions are emerging to meet these challenges?
Kevin Gallagher: Qorvo is focusing on three core pillars to enable Wi-Fi 8 system design:
Q: Will the shift to Wi-Fi 8 be as disruptive as 5G?
Wayne Polonio: No. Unlike the bumpy transition to 5G, Wi-Fi standards mandate backward compatibility. Consumers will be able to use Wi-Fi 8 routers with legacy devices, and infrastructure upgrades are more evolutionary than revolutionary.
That said, with emerging applications like VR/AR demanding ultra-low latency and consistent handovers, Wi-Fi 8’s system-level improvements will become critical to user experience.
Q: Final takeaway: What should design engineers prioritize?
Kevin Gallagher: Wi-Fi 8 won’t be defined by eye-popping data rates, but by intelligence and efficiency. To build systems that are ready for this shift, engineers should focus on:
Qorvo remains committed to supporting both CPE and mobile solutions across the ecosystem—enabling our partners to deliver robust, efficient, and future-ready Wi-Fi 8 experiences. Learn more about Qorvo’s Wi-Fi technology and innovations.
While Ultra-Wideband might sound like Ultra-Weird-band to some, UWB continues to gain traction in automotive circles. This ultra-precise, low-power radio technology is making your car smarter, safer and possibly more judgmental about how loudly you sing in traffic.
UWB in Cars: Not Just a One-Key Wonder
UWB first popped up in cars to enable Digital Key systems, giving drivers the futuristic ability to unlock their car without touching a thing. Unlike traditional key fobs that yell “I’m nearby!” to anything that’ll listen (including hackers), UWB precisely tells your car not just that you’re there, but where you are within a few centimeters, in fact. That’s close enough to unlock the door, but not close enough to judge your fast food choices.
Qorvo’s new automotive-qualified UWB SoC, the QPF5100Q, is a slick piece of silicon packed with security, configurability and enough swagger to impress German car engineers. It’s currently going through design verification with top automotive OEMs and no, you can’t install it in your 2002 minivan just yet, but we admire your enthusiasm.
One of the most important new UWB applications is Child Presence Detection (CPD). With high-precision sensing, the car can now detect tiny movements like breathing or the heartbeat of a sleeping child to alert parents if someone’s left behind.
This goes way beyond motion sensors. UWB-powered CPD (as demoed at CES 2024 with Qorvo tech inside) can distinguish between a child, a gym bag or the burrito that rolled under your seat months ago.
Wave Hello to Gesture Control
UWB’s talents also extend to gesture control. Want to skip a track or adjust the stereo without hunting for a touchscreen? Just wave. Wave left to skip the track. Wave right to pump the bass. Wave up to adjust the volume. Qorvo’s QM35825 SoC makes these midair interactions feel like sc-ifiI sense the music is strong in you, Luke. I am your fader.”
This same tech can monitor movement, improve cabin personalization and—perhaps someday soon—detect when you’ve nodded off mid-podcast.
What’s Next for UWB?
Want to Geek Out?
For more on how Qorvo is driving the future of automotive UWB (with actual engineers, not just blog posters), check out:
So yes, UWB might have started as the misunderstood, oddly named member of the wireless tech family, but today it’s the hero that quietly makes your car safer, smarter and a whole lot cooler. And no, it’s not Ultra-Weirdband. It’s more like Ultra-Wowband!
This article first appeared in Brent’s Musings in Microwave Journal
Linearity of a receiver plays an important role in the overall performance of the system. It affects system-level parameters like link budget and receiver sensitivity. Designing high-performance RF receivers involves navigating the classic tug-of-war between two critical specifications: Noise Figure (NF) and input linearity, typically expressed as input third-order intercept point (IIP3). Lower NF improves sensitivity but often requires higher Gain. Conversely, high IIP3 supports better tolerance to interference but usually comes at the cost of reducing Gain.
This article explores the interaction between these specifications and how receiver linearity performance is critical to the overall system performance. We’ll also cover key concepts in intermodulation distortion, the difference in linearity optimization for transmitters versus receivers, and how tools like Error Vector Magnitude (EVM) can simplify the overall system-level trade-offs.
A Brief Review of Linearity
Linearity is the ability of the amplifier to produce an output signal that is a linear representation of the input signal. Having a good linear signal helps maintain signal integrity. Non-linearity can lead to distortion, intermodulation products and spectral regrowth – all of which can lead to a degraded signal quality in the system. Linearity performance is measured at medium signal levels, i.e., the system is not driven into compression, but intermodulation distortion is generated.
Second- and Third-Order Intercept & IMD Products
The second and third-order intercept-point (IP2 and IP3) products are widely used to benchmark the linear performance of an RF system. IIP3 refers to the hypothetical input power level where the power of third-order intermodulation products (IMD) equals the power of the fundamental output signal. To fully understand IP3, it’s important to know the difference between Input IP3 (IIP3) and Output IP3 (OIP3).
IIP3 is the signal power going into the device at the intercept point, while OIP3 is the signal power coming out of the device at that same point. Both values help us understand how an RF device performs when dealing with different input signal levels. Understanding the relationship between Input IP3 (IIP3) and Output IP3 (OIP3) can provide invaluable insights into the behavior of RF devices and systems. OIP3 can be calculated using the formula:
Before the IP3 point is reached, the device usually hits saturation. This means it can’t increase its output power in a straight linear line anymore, no matter how much you raise the input. The result is signal compression and distortion. See Figure 1.
Two-tone tests shown in Figure 2 can be performed to measure IP2 and IP3. Two closely spaced sinusoidal signals (Fundamental Tones) with equal power level input power (Pin) at frequencies f1 and f2 are applied, and the level of the second order IMD (IM2) at frequencies |f2 – f1|, 2f1 and 2f2 is then observed as Pin increases. For third-order intermodulation products, the two-tone frequencies are chosen such that the IM products fall inside the received signal band. For IP3, the IM3 components at |2f1−f2| and |2f2−f1| are observed as Pin increases.
The IP3 is a result of third-order IMD products, specifically |2f1 – f2| and |2f2 – f1| as shown above. The third-order intercept is a figure of merit that characterizes an RF receiver’s tolerance when subjected to multiple RF signals within the desired passband. These IMD products apply to both transmit and receive sides of the RF system. But optimizing each end of the system requires slightly different approaches.
As shown in Figure 3 below, the graph illustrates two distinct slopes that represent different regions of amplifier behavior. In the initial linear region, the output power increases proportionally with input power at a 1:1 slope, reflecting the ideal, distortion-free operation of the device where the fundamental signal dominates. This region indicates that the amplifier operates within its linear dynamic range, preserving signal integrity.
However, as the input power continues to rise, the device transitions into a non-linear region where intermodulation distortion products, particularly third-order (IMD3), begin to emerge. In this region, these distortion components increase at a much faster rate than the fundamental, with a characteristic slope of 3:1. This means that for every 1 dB increase in input power, the IMD3 components grow by 3 dB, quickly surpassing the desired signal and degrading overall performance. Understanding these two regions and their respective slopes is essential for accurately characterizing the linearity of RF components and for predicting how they will perform under real-world signal conditions.
Optimizing the Receiver via IIP3
Designing RF receivers with a focus on output linearity can be misleading, as it often focuses on Gain that ultimately compromises receiver performance.
While higher output Gain helps maximize output linearity (like one would do for a transmitter), it simultaneously degrades input linearity by making the system more susceptible to compression from smaller input signals, as shown in Figure 4. The data shows that optimal receiver performance requires a careful balance between input-referenced linearity and NF. Lower NF is achieved with higher front-end Gain, but this comes at the cost of reduced input linearity. Conversely, maximizing input linearity calls for lower overall Gain, which can raise the NF. Therefore, effective receiver design demands trade-offs between these parameters, so neither parameter is sacrificed excessively. Designers must avoid the transmitter-oriented mindset that more Gain is inherently better and instead select a Gain profile that optimally balances NF and IIP3 for the intended application.
But why is the receiver linearity IIP3 so important? It is because it directly impacts the receiver’s ability to handle multiple signals and prevent IMD. A high IIP3 in a receiver design indicates the receiver is more linear and therefore can better separate designed signals from unwanted IMD products.
It is important for system designers to understand the influencing factors such as Gain, NF, OIP3 and IIP3. Balancing the trade-offs between these parameters is critical to ensuring the overall system is optimized.
EVM and the Bathtub Curve Explained
The manifestation of Error Vector Magnitude (EVM) (a measure of the difference between an ideal signal and the actual received signal in digital communication systems) can come from many different sources. The EVM figure of merit is typically a combination of noise and distortion. As shown in Figure 5, at lower power levels, noise tends to dominate, and the EVM increases as we lower the power. At high power levels, distortion tends to dominate, and we observe increased EVM as we increase power levels. In the middle, we often see the minimum EVM, and so the overall shape resembles a bathtub curve. As such, the EVM bathtub curve becomes an essential visualization tool for system-level optimization, offering a comprehensive view of how different impairments jointly impact overall performance.
And yes, we’re keeping an eye on the next wave, too. AI-powered radar? Ultra-wideband-enabled machine vision? BAW and SAW filters that are smaller, faster and even smarter than the systems they serve? That’s all in our wheelhouse.
While most frequency devices exhibit low phase noise below 2 GHz, this advantage diminishes at higher frequencies and wider signal bandwidths, where integrated phase noise can increase substantially and degrade system performance. This challenge is particularly acute in millimeter wave (mmWave) systems operating above 20 GHz, where elevated phase noise directly contributes to higher EVM.
To address this, system-level design often begins with cascade analysis, using low-level performance metrics of individual components to estimate overall system behavior. In these situations, EVM serves as a highly practical system-level performance metric, enabling engineers to consolidate the effects of multiple impairments, such as noise, non-linearities and phase noise, into a single optimization target. Rather than tuning several individual parameters, designers can focus on minimizing the root-mean-square (rms) EVM value for an efficient and effective design process. This optimization is visually aided by the EVM bathtub curve.
The System Advantages of Optimized Receiver Linearity
High linearity in an RF receiver is critical for maintaining robust system performance in the presence of strong or closely spaced signals. One of the primary benefits of high receiver linearity is an expanded spurious-free dynamic range (SFDR), which quantifies the usable signal range before intermodulation products rise above the noise floor. SFDR is directly proportional to the IIP3 and inversely proportional to the noise floor (No), with the relationship defined by this formula.
Conclusion
In summary, optimizing RF receiver performance demands a careful balancing act between input linearity and NF, as both parameters critically influence system sensitivity, interference tolerance and overall signal fidelity. While conventional design approaches may prioritize output metrics like OIP3 or default to maximizing Gain, this can lead to suboptimal trade-offs, particularly in dynamic RF environments. A focus on IIP3, supported by tools like EVM analysis and cascade modeling, enables more accurate predictions of receiver system behavior and better-informed design choices. Whether operating in low-interference conditions that favor higher Gain and lower NF or in high-interference scenarios that require improved linearity through Gain reduction, adaptive receiver architectures that dynamically adjust to their signal environment offer the greatest design flexibility. By embracing a system-level perspective that accounts for all impairments, including intermodulation, compression, noise and phase distortion, engineers can achieve receiver designs that are both robust and efficient across a wide range of use cases.
Additionally, you can find more interesting collateral on this subject by visiting our Qorvo Design Hub for a rich assortment of videos, technical articles, white papers, tools and more.
For technical support, please visit Qorvo.com or reach out to Technical Support.
About the Authors
Our authors bring a wealth of technical expertise in developing and optimizing high-performance RF receiver solutions and systems. With a deep understanding of customer needs and industry trends, they collaborate closely with our design teams to drive innovation and deliver cutting-edge solutions that support industry-leading products.
Thank you to our main contributors of this article: David Corman (Chief Systems Architect) and David Schnaufer (Corporate, Technical Marketing Manager) for their contributions to this blog post, ensuring our readers stay informed with expert knowledge and industry trends.
Let’s dive into what each calculator does and how it can enhance your next IoT design.
1. Crystal Procurement Tool: Ensure Stable Oscillation and Precise Frequency Offset
Selecting the right 32 MHz crystal is critical for ensuring your wireless device performs within specification. This tool checks if the crystal electrical parameters, as specified in the datasheet, can meet Qorvo procurement requirements. It calculates the (external) load capacitors and the test limits for finished goods production tests and, if needed, generates a frequency correction look-up table for up to 125°C applications. This tool saves design engineers time by helping them pick the optimum crystal for their design.
Key Benefits:
With this tool, hardware designers can confidently select crystals that will maintain stability and accuracy across all operating conditions, including lifetime temperature variations.
2. Energy Budget Calculator: Estimate and Optimize Battery Life
Battery life is one of the most critical metrics for IoT devices. The Energy Budget Calculator helps you forecast energy usage and lifetime under various wireless use cases, from Matter (over Thread)/Zigbee Sleepy End Devices to BLE peripherals and UWB initiators.
Key Benefits:
By visualizing current profiles and total power consumption, developers can make smarter design tradeoffs and avoid premature battery failures.
Understanding the limits of your wireless RF range and how to optimize them is crucial for reliable operation in diverse environments. This Link Budget & Range Calculator gives you an easy way to estimate RF range and link margin under various propagation models.
Key Benefits:
Whether you’re designing for indoor, urban or long-range outdoor conditions, this tool helps you design with confidence.
Get Started Today
All three calculators are free downloadable PC applications designed to give Qorvo IoT developers an edge. They are located on Qorvo’s Design Hub on the Interactive Tools & Calculators webpage. Whether you’re optimizing RF performance, estimating energy usage or selecting components that meet our strict specs, these tools can help you bring robust, efficient devices to market faster.
Need help or want to learn more? Reach out to Applications Support for expert assistance.
For more information on this and other Qorvo designs, please visit Qorvo.com or reach out to Technical Support.
About the Authors
Our authors bring a wealth of technical expertise in developing and optimizing wireless solutions for advanced technologies. With a deep understanding of customer needs and industry trends, they collaborate closely with our design teams to drive innovation and deliver cutting-edge solutions that support industry-leading products.
Thank you to our main contributors to this article, David Schnaufer (Technical Marketing Manager) and Roy Lau (Sr. Manager, Applications Hardware Engineering).
Have another topic that you would like Qorvo experts to cover? Email your suggestions to the Qorvo Blog team and it could be featured in an upcoming post. Please include your contact information in the body of the email.
Consumers choose smart devices to enhance home security, safety, convenience, energy saving and efficient health and safety. Although individual features and functions may meet their needs, many struggle with interoperability across their network. As the number of devices increases, managing multiple interfaces through various technology standards like Thread, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth® often becomes frustrating.
Matter addresses this fragmentation challenge in smart homes with its industry-standard framework, promoting seamless interconnectivity, reliability and security. It independently supports Wi-Fi, Thread and Ethernet, allowing developers, device manufacturers and consumers to concentrate on application and use cases rather than technology or standard. This ensures a more interoperable and efficient smart home environment.
Matter provides IoT manufacturers and platform vendors, such as Amazon, Google, Apple and the smart home device market, with the necessary interoperability and control via a single interface. The main drivers that Matter brings forth are shown in Figure 2 below.
Matter simplifies the smart device ecosystem by standardizing development and supporting product certification. This allows retailers to address consumer concerns about wireless ecosystems and interconnectivity.
So, where does the wireless standard Thread fit within this Matter story? Thread is based on the IEEE 801.15.4 standard and uses Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) as a networking protocol. Thread offers several benefits such as powerful encryption, low latency and low power consumption and can accommodate several hundred devices in a single network.
This wireless technology is built specifically for smart home Matter devices, helping to extend the overall strength, capacity, and reach of Matter-enabled devices. Later in this article, we will explore Thread more, but for now, let’s provide a quick review of Matter.
As shown in Figure 3 below, Matter utilizes a layered architecture with a physical layer at the base and an application layer at the top, incorporating several IP technologies, including transmission control protocol (TCP) and user datagram protocol (UDP)—common protocols used for web browsing. At its core, Matter uses IPv6, an internet layer protocol that enables end-to-end data transmission across various networks, found in everyday devices like laptops and smartphones.
This framework allows Matter to establish a secure application layer over IPv6-based transport protocols, facilitating message routing. Unlike current systems like Bluetooth or Zigbee, using IP technology enables direct communication across all network devices—for example, your laptop can interact with an IP-enabled light bulb using Wi-Fi without needing cloud-based translation or gateway interpretation.
Moreover, Matter supports multiple physical layers for connectivity, including Ethernet and Wi-Fi. It also introduces the option of using Matter over Thread. This Thread-enabled standard enhances latency and power efficiency for battery-operated devices. Let’s explore how Thread provides the catalyst needed for a more efficient and reliable home network.
Thread’s Technology Superiority
Thread is a wireless mesh network standard designed for low-power IoT devices, including battery-powered devices. Its low power consumption significantly prolongs battery life, making it ideal for end devices like thermostats, locks and home sensors that operate using sleep modes.
Thread is designed to make IoT devices work faster, have fewer points of failure, use less power and communicate with each other more seamlessly. Thread focuses on devices that need to conserve battery by sleeping for extended periods, briefly waking to send data before returning to sleep.
Overall, Thread is a low-power, fast communication standard that creates a mesh. This allows it to create redundancies in the network and communicate faster than Bluetooth and Bluetooth Low Energy.
Thread only requires one border router in the network, and it can be built into any Wi-Fi network device, like a lightbulb, thermostat, etc. However, the more border routers in the network, the more efficient and reliable the network will be. Thread border routers communicate across these varied physical layers, and having more Thread-enabled devices and border routers, as illustrated in Figure 4 below, enhances the efficiency and reliability of the network.
Thread creates a mesh network so light bulbs, thermostats, light switches, smart blinds, sensors and more can talk to each other free of the constraint of having to go all the way back to a Wi-Fi or network hub or bridge. A Thread network does not require a hub because if a device fails in the network, the data is simply relayed to the next device (i.e., a light bulb or sensor).
Thread’s Interoperability and Futureproofing
The ultimate smart home will have a universally compatible ecosystem of devices that communicate no matter who the manufacturer is. This is the goal of Matter. To achieve this, Matter must incorporate a technological standard that ensures future-proofing. Investing in a technology like Thread guarantees this, as it is designed to evolve over time with updates like Thread 1.4.0, which prepares the home for future advancements in IoT. It is an IP-based open technology that is not tied to specific manufacturers or market strategies.
The IoT will soon have devices with little or unrecognizable latency. The Thread protocol is already designed for these low-latency, high-throughput, real-time scenarios. Whether transmitting data to the cloud or between network devices, Thread ensures effectiveness and efficiency with minimal latency. It also supports multi-path routing, so as more Matter-based IoT devices become available to consumers, they can easily be incorporated into the network.
Security is always vital in a network, and security breaches are a concern in the IoT space. Thread provides a highly secure mesh network, using financial-class security encryption. Thread incorporates a 128-bit Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) for all network data traffic, giving users a high level of security.
Thread Offers:
Overcoming the Matter/Thread Headwinds
Ok, so it’s not all unicorns and rainbows for Thread and Matter. At least not yet. But, just like when Wi-Fi and Bluetooth were starting out, there were some headwinds. Ultimately, Matter leaders chose to use Wi-Fi and Thread for their wireless communications.
The Connectivity Standards Alliance and the Thread Group realize the headwinds, so they have encouraged Thread adoption by integrating its competitors; for example, Thread uses Bluetooth for initial device discovery and allows ZigBee’s application layer to run on its network, ensuring compatibility with existing ZigBee software.
As with any new standard, there are challenges, and adoption will take time. However, the many advantages Thread brings will ultimately make it one of the go-to standards for secure IoT Matter-enabled devices.
Ultimately, the overall solution for Thread involves platforms and manufacturers agreeing on a unified method to share network credentials across devices and create an industry standard for securely establishing a single Thread network within homes. Today, the CSA and Thread Group are decisively addressing these headwinds by encouraging unity and outlining a clear strategic roadmap.
A Final Word
This article has delved into how Matter and Thread collectively enhance the IoT landscape, offering a robust framework for smart home devices. Matter simplifies network complexity and ensures device interoperability through its open-source, IP-based standard, which supports a variety of physical layers, including Ethernet, Wi-Fi and Thread. Thread, specifically designed to complement Matter, excels in creating efficient, reliable mesh networks that support a wide array of devices without the need for a central hub. Its features, like low latency, high security with 128-bit AES encryption, and self-healing capabilities, address many current IoT challenges. Despite facing headwinds, solutions are emerging through industry collaboration to standardize network credential sharing, aimed at reducing platform fragmentation and enhancing user experience in smart homes. The combined efforts of Matter and Thread are setting the stage for a universally compatible, scalable and secure IoT ecosystem.
About the Authors
Our authors bring a wealth of technical expertise in developing and optimizing IoT connectivity solutions for advanced technologies. With a deep understanding of customer needs and industry trends, they collaborate closely with our design teams to drive innovation and deliver cutting-edge solutions that support industry-leading products.
Thank you to our main contributors to this article, Chitra Mysore (Sr, Product Marketing Manager), David Schnaufer (Technical Marketing Manager), Marcel Virjkorte (Sr. Mgr. Applications Engineering) and Abnob Abdelnour (Sr. RF System Engineer) for their contributions to this article, ensuring our readers stay informed with expert knowledge and industry trends.
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Greensboro, NC, May 13, 2025 – Qorvo® (Nasdaq: QRVO), a leading global provider of connectivity and power solutions, today announced the expansion of its QPG6200 portfolio with three new Matter systems-on-chips (SoCs). This expanded product lineup features ultra-low power consumption and Qorvo’s unique ConcurrentConnect™ technology to deliver robust multi-protocol capabilities and seamless interoperability for smart home, industrial automation and IoT markets.
Built on the previously announced QPG6200L SoC, now in production with leading smart home OEMs, this expanded SoC family shares an energy-efficient architecture and ConcurrentConnect technology for truly concurrent Matter (over Thread), Zigbee and Bluetooth® Low Energy operation. A compact QFN40 package delivers up to 20 dBm Tx output power, supporting a broad range of high-performance smart home applications. This unified platform ensures efficient, reliable multi-protocol connectivity across the entire portfolio.
“We’re thrilled to extend our Matter offering with a full family of QPG6200 solutions,” said Marc Pegulu, vice president and general manager of Connectivity Systems at Qorvo. “With this expanded portfolio, we deliver solutions that span a full range of connected home devices – including gateways and sensors – that maximize performance and accelerate time-to-market for our customers.”
The full QPG6200 family offers software configurable transmit power for global regulatory compliance. Each variant is optimized to minimize power consumption, ensuring best-in-class energy efficiency for a broad range of applications like battery-powered and energy-harvesting designs. All variants deliver next-generation Matter capabilities, built-in security and ultra-low power operation. The table below highlights key differences:
| Qorvo Part # | QPG6200J | QPG6200L | QPG6200M | QPG6200N |
| Best For | Global | EU/APAC | Global | EU/APAC |
| Devices | Low pin-count, small footprint | Low pin-count, small footprint | Coex integration | Coex integration |
| Key Applications | Connected lighting, gateways, smart sensors, thermostats | Connected lighting, switches, thermostats | Gateways, connected lighting, thermostats | Gateways, thermostats |
| Max Tx Power | 20 dBm | 10 dBm | 20 dBm | 10 dBm |
| GPIOs + ANIOs | 20 + 2 | 21 + 2 | 28 + 4 | 29 + 4 |
| ADCs | 1x 16-bit ADC 1x 11-bit ADC |
1x 16-bit ADC 1x 11-bit ADC |
2x 16-bit ADC 2x 11-bit ADC |
2x 16-bit ADC 2x 11-bit ADC |
| Packaging | QFN32 | QFN32 | QFN40 | QFN40 |
| Size | 4 x 4 x 0.85 mm | 4 x 4 x 0.85 mm | 5 x 5 x 0.85 mm | 5 x 5 x 0.85 mm |
The QPG6200L development kit is available now, with the full family going into production in the third quarter of this year. For more information about ConcurrentConnect technology and Qorvo’s innovative, ultra-low-power wireless data communication controllers, visit Qorvo’s low-power IoT solutions page.
About Qorvo
Qorvo (Nasdaq: QRVO) supplies innovative semiconductor solutions that make a better world possible. We combine product and technology leadership, systems-level expertise and global manufacturing scale to quickly solve our customers’ most complex technical challenges. Qorvo serves diverse high-growth segments of large global markets, including automotive, consumer, defense & aerospace, industrial & enterprise, infrastructure and mobile. Visit www.qorvo.com to learn how our diverse and innovative team is helping connect, protect and power our planet.
In an increasingly connected world, the demand for robust and reliable wireless communication has grown exponentially. Wi-Fi Customer Premises Equipment (CPE) access points play a crucial role in maintaining seamless connectivity across various devices. However, the dense occupancy of the Wi-Fi Tri-band RF spectrum and the inherent challenges in multi-band operations necessitate the use of specialized filters in CPE access points (APs). These filters ensure that Wi-Fi signals remain strong and stable, even in the presence of potential sources of interference. This article explores the critical need for filters in CPE APs, delving into the challenges posed by the RF spectrum, self-generated interference, and the technical requirements of these filters.
As shown in Figure 2, tri-band Wi-Fi 6 and 7 offer increased bandwidth, relieving congestion and enhancing performance, along with offering greater capacity to provide consumers with a larger data pipeline. However, this also creates more opportunities for interference, which can degrade performance across various applications.
Using RF filters in these more advanced tri-band AP applications not only mitigates signal interference but also plays a vital role in extending coverage, enhancing frequency performance, and increasing network capacity. They also address key design challenges faced by engineers developing Wi-Fi routers for congested RF environments.
Self-Generated Interference in Multi-Band Routers
While this tri-band capability (i.e., 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6) enhances network flexibility and performance, it also introduces a significant challenge: self-generated interference. This self-generated interference arises whenever a multi-band AP transmits. Since the multi-band transmitters are located in the same product as the receivers in the AP, mitigation of cross-band interference must be a major design consideration.
For example, as shown in above Figure 3, when an AP transmits signals across multiple bands simultaneously, strong RF signals from one band can interfere with others. This is especially problematic because Wi-Fi receivers are highly sensitive to detecting weak signals, making them more susceptible to interference from both external sources and other bands within the AP. This phenomenon can cause receiver desensitization.
RF Receiver Desensitization: A Critical Concern
Intra-device coexistence issues arise when multiple radios in a system interfere with each other. This interference, combined with external AP transmit signals, increases the noise power at the affected receiver, degrading the signal-to-noise ratio and leading to reduced receiver sensitivity, or “desensitization.” This results in dropped or interrupted wireless connections.
While desensitization has long been an issue, it’s especially problematic today for devices like smartphones, Wi-Fi APs, IoT and Bluetooth systems. There are two effective ways to prevent this: providing sufficient isolation between transmit and receive signals and using RF filters. While coexistence filters to reduce desense are common in smartphones and client devices, their use in Wi-Fi APs is becoming increasingly important.
Most RF chain antenna designs provide 20-30 dB of isolation between interfering and intended signals to mitigate desense. However, to maintain good throughput, interfering signals should not exceed -70 to -90 dBc, meaning designers need an additional 40-60 dB of isolation in the Wi-Fi front end. Filters play a critical role in achieving this.
Technical Requirements for RF Filters
To ensure that a Wi-Fi AP operates efficiently and reliably, it must be equipped with filters that meet specific technical criteria. An adequate filter for a CPE AP should possess the following characteristics:
Qorvo’s Best-in-Class Filters
Qorvo, a leading provider of RF solutions, has developed filters that excel in meeting the demanding requirements of modern CPE APs. One of the key factors contributing to the superior performance of Qorvo’s filters is their use of Bulk Acoustic Wave (BAW) technology. BAW filters are known for their high-quality factor (Q), which is a measure of the filter’s efficiency in terms of insertion loss and the steepness of its skirts.
Qorvo creates compact, cost-effective filter designs that fit all Wi-Fi applications. Figure 6 shows the placement of two such filters. Qorvo’s BAW filters have the highest Q in the industry, allowing them to achieve low insertion losses, steep filter skirts, and high rejection levels. These characteristics make them ideal for use in CPE APs, where the need for precise filtering is paramount to ensure reliable and high-performance Wi-Fi connectivity.
Qorvo’s filters are designed to address the increasingly stringent requirements for coexistence between different Wi-Fi bands, sub-bands, and external systems like cellular networks. In support of this coexistence and compliance with out-of-band restricted emissions regulations, Qorvo’s filters ensure that Wi-Fi APs operate efficiently without compromising the performance of neighboring bands.
This is particularly critical when transmitting over wider Wi-Fi channels, such as a 320 MHz channel in the UNII-5 band, commonly used in the 6 GHz spectrum. In this scenario, an AP broadcasts the lowest channel, channel 31, which spans from 5945 MHz to 6265 MHz, as shown in Figure 7 below. Without a filter, as seen in the light blue trace of the graph, significant spectral regrowth occurs both above and below the 320 MHz waveform. This regrowth represents noise that spills into adjacent frequency bands, such as UNII-2c and UNII-3 in the 5 GHz band. Such noise would desensitize the 5 GHz receivers, rendering them ineffective.
Introducing a bandpass filter, shown in Figure 7, results in a much cleaner signal with significant noise reduction in the 5 GHz bands. The filter’s high rejection characteristics, particularly in the lower frequencies of the 320 MHz waveform, allow the AP to maintain signal clarity and minimize interference with the adjacent Wi-Fi bands. A similar situation can be demonstrated with a 5 GHz Bandpass Filter with a Ch 155 transmission, as shown in below Figure 8. The ensuing noise level is much lower when a filter is present, ensuring stronger signal integrity.
However, not all filters are suitable for this type of application. A filter with a very high Q-factor is necessary to achieve minimal insertion loss while ensuring steep skirts, meaning the transition from low insertion loss to high rejection happens within a narrow frequency range. This steep rejection is essential not only for preventing interference with other Wi-Fi bands but also for adhering to regulatory standards, such as the out-of-band restricted emissions imposed by the FCC in the United States.
RF Filters – A Critical Component in Future CPE Applications
As the RF spectrum becomes increasingly crowded and the demand for high-performance Wi-Fi continues to rise, the need for effective filters in CPE routers has never been more critical. These filters play a vital role in mitigating both external and self-generated interference, ensuring that Wi-Fi signals remain strong, stable, and reliable. By incorporating high-quality filters, such as those offered by Qorvo, CPE access points can achieve optimal performance, providing users with seamless and uninterrupted connectivity in even the most challenging RF environments.
For more on this topic and solutions, we encourage you to view these collateral pieces – Wi-Fi 7 & Matter Ratification: What You Need to Know, 4 Ways to Address the Most Common RF Filtering Challenges for Modern Applications, Exploring Automated Frequency Coordination (AFC) in the Wi-Fi 6 GHz Realm, or read our RF Filter Technology For Dummies book. Additionally, you can find more interesting collateral on this subject by visiting our Qorvo Design Hub for a rich assortment of videos, technical articles, white papers, tools and more.
For more information on this and other Qorvo 5G and 6G base station design solutions, please visit Qorvo.com or reach out to Technical Support.
GREENSBORO, NC – October 31, 2024 – Qorvo® (Nasdaq: QRVO), a leading global provider of connectivity and power solutions, today announced that MediaTek has selected Qorvo as a key supplier for the inaugural wave of Wi-Fi 7 front-end modules (FEMs) on the MediaTek MT6653 Wi-Fi 7/Bluetooth® combo chip. Qorvo’s Wi-Fi 7 FEMs and the MediaTek MT6653 used in the MediaTek Dimensity 9400 platform are optimized to deliver a best-in-class end-user experience that help enable enhanced Wi-Fi 7 performance, power efficiency and technical features in mobile devices.
Eric Creviston, president of Qorvo’s Connectivity and Sensors Group, said, “We’re pleased MediaTek has selected Qorvo to be a key supplier of Wi-Fi 7 FEMs for their next-generation mobile Wi-Fi platform. This achievement underscores our commitment to working closely with MediaTek and our joint customers to advance state-of-the-art mobile connectivity.”
Qorvo offers the broadest and most advanced portfolio of Wi-Fi 7 FEMs for mobile applications, enabling customers to select the optimal solution for their specific products and market segments. Qorvo’s Wi-Fi 7 FEMs for mobile applications offer unmatched flexibility in power management and efficiency, which is critical to meeting the performance demands of 5G smartphones. The solutions feature additional transmit modes for enhanced efficiency and throughput across the entire operating power range. Qorvo FEMs support both linear and non-linear architectures, as well as low- to high-power offerings. They span the entire Wi-Fi 7 spectrum to address a broad range of applications including smartphones, consumer premises equipment (CPE), enterprise and industrial computing.
Qorvo also offers Wi-Fi iFEMs that integrate BAW filtering to ensure optimal performance and reduce board space requirements while increasing efficiency and throughput.
Qorvo’s Wi-Fi 7 FEMs supporting the MediaTek Dimensity 9400 platform will be shipping in volume during the fourth quarter of 2024. More information about Qorvo’s Wi-Fi innovations can be found at www.qorvo.com/innovation/wi-fi.
About Qorvo
Qorvo (Nasdaq:QRVO) supplies innovative semiconductor solutions that make a better world possible. We combine product and technology leadership, systems-level expertise and global manufacturing scale to quickly solve our customers’ most complex technical challenges. Qorvo serves diverse high-growth segments of large global markets, including automotive, consumer, defense & aerospace, industrial & enterprise, infrastructure and mobile. Visit www.qorvo.com to learn how our diverse and innovative team is helping connect, protect and power our planet.
Qorvo is a registered trademark of Qorvo, Inc. in the U.S. and in other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
