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As a leading manufacturer in the RF field, Qorvo has been engaged in early product specification formulation and technical exchanges with mainstream Wi-Fi main chip manufacturers such as Qualcomm and Broadcom more than two years ago when Wi-Fi 6 was still in the early stages of standard setting. After many improvements and design changes, Qorvo currently has corresponding middle power and high power transmission power (High Power) and 5V to 3.3V front-end RF modules (FEM) for Qualcomm and Broadcom's Wi-Fi 6 solutions and has successfully introduced the corresponding reference designs.
In addition to front-end RF modules, Qorvo also provides sideband filters (Bandedge Filter) and LTE-Wi-Fi co-existence filters (LTE Co-existence Filter) to address the different regulatory restrictions in different regions mentioned above, and can be used in conjunction with FEM.
First, let's look at the sideband filter. This Qorvo product can effectively suppress the sideband frequencies of non-Wi-Fi 2.4GHz CH1 and CH11. In addition to preventing Wi-Fi signals from interfering with LTE signal quality, it also enables all 2.4GHz channels to transmit with the same transmission power (Flat Power), ensuring that users can enjoy the best coverage and signal quality no matter which channel they use.
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Looking at the LTE Co-existence filter, Jeff Lin said that Qorvo's LTE Co-existence filter can avoid interference between Wi-Fi and LTE signals.
LTE Co-existence filter reduces LTE interference to Wi-Fi while meeting EU Blocker compatibility specifications
In addition, Qorvo has also created a product line called iFEM (Integrated FEM). iFEM, as the name suggests, integrates the previously mentioned Bandedge or LTE Co-existence filter into the front-end RF module of Wi-Fi 6, which not only simplifies the design of the wireless RF front-end, but also reduces component costs and line matching adjustment time.
Thanks to the investment and accumulation in related technologies, Qorvo Wi-Fi 6 front-end RF products have been certified and incorporated into the reference designs of mainstream Wi-Fi wireless network solution chip manufacturers such as Qualcomm, Broadcom, Intel and Quantenna. According to Jeff Lin, with the help of reference designs, product developers can shorten product development time and simplify product verification work, accelerating the commercialization and shipment of Wi-Fi 6.
At the same time, Qorvo is also working with network product developers and network service providers to participate in new network applications and architectures, further combining the concept of the Internet of Things with actual application scenarios.
The relationship between WiFi and 5G
Entering the WiFi 6 era, especially after the launch of WiFi 6E, the speed of WiFi has made a qualitative leap, and 5G itself has also been greatly improved. There are also many discussions about the future development of these two networks. Some people even think that the two are in a substitution relationship.
Regarding this issue, 5G and Wi-Fi are not in competition or opposition with each other, but in a mutually supportive and cooperative relationship. This is mainly because 5G and Wi-Fi have their own advantages and disadvantages in different environments and application scenarios.
For example, the deployment of 5G must be led by telecom operators, and there will be charges for the use of frequency bands, so the overall operating cost will be much higher than Wi-Fi. Wi-Fi itself uses free open frequency bands, and the industry supply chain and product coverage are complete. In places and application scenarios within the coverage range of Wi-Fi networks, such as home networks, public areas (airports, stations, stadiums, etc.), and specific places (campuses, hotels, stores, etc.), Wi-Fi will be a more economical choice. In areas where Wi-Fi cannot cover, such as rural areas, mountainous areas, outlying islands, and other areas with low population density and weak network infrastructure, 5G networks are needed to support them.
Currently, many solution providers and telecommunications network service operators have invested a lot of time and money in the development of 5G. However, due to the huge scale of 5G itself, the specification formulation has been subject to many policy restrictions from the beginning (such as frequency band allocation and patent competition). Coupled with the political struggles between countries (such as the Huawei case and the US-China trade war that have been a hot topic in recent days, etc.), it is undeniable that 5G faces many challenges.
On the other hand, Wi-Fi is the most popular wireless network technology in the world with the highest product coverage and the most key technologies are led by Wi-Fi chip providers and RF solution manufacturers. Therefore, it is much easier to introduce and deploy new technologies than 5G. Since the launch schedule of 5G and Wi-Fi 6 is similar, many people have begun to debate whether 5G will replace Wi-Fi 6.
Based on the above analysis and the current market response to Wi-Fi 6, I personally believe that the product maturity and specification completeness of Wi-Fi 6 will be faster and more complete than 5G.
Because the FCC allows WiFi to use the 6Ghz frequency band, this has triggered more thinking about the future of WiFi. Facing this impending new regulation, how does Qorvo view it?
Wi-Fi 6 incorporates many new technologies that greatly improve the efficiency and throughput of connections. Currently, IEEE and Wi-Fi Alliance are working hard to incorporate the newly added 6GHz band (5925MHz-7125MHz) into the Wi-Fi 6 standard. In 2019, Wi-Fi Alliance officially named this extended 6GHz band Wi-Fi 6E. In April of this year, the FCC also officially voted to allow Wi-Fi 6 to use this band. This move expanded the unlicensed band used by Wi-Fi from the original Wi-Fi 5 U-NII 1-3 to U-NII 1-8, and the newly added 6GHz band is U-NII 5-8. The following is the frequency distribution and power limit of U-NII 5-8:
Wi-Fi 6E adds new frequency bands and power limits
Higher frequencies and wider bandwidth support also bring many challenges to Qorvo. Qorvo is currently working closely with Wi-Fi chip providers and system vendors to develop the front-end RF modules (Front-End Modules), filters (Filters) and splitters (Diplexers) required for Wi-Fi 6E, and plans to start system verification testing by the end of 2020.
The greater bandwidth supported by Wi-Fi 6E brings unlimited imagination to network equipment manufacturers, especially for enterprise and public hotspot applications. According to him, Wi-Fi 6 can solve the technical bottlenecks encountered by Wi-Fi 5, such as network congestion and uneven distribution of upload and download schedules.
Since enterprise-level Wi-Fi Access Points and Hotspots must be able to support a large number of users connecting simultaneously and have comprehensive management of bandwidth and security, efficient connection and network service mechanisms can allow each Wi-Fi AP to connect and manage more users. WiFi 6E allows each user to enjoy a better user experience and reduces the number of Wi-Fi APs deployed based on the same coverage area.
Taking advantage of the newly opened frequency band of Wi-Fi 6E, which has 1.2GHz bandwidth and less interference, some network equipment manufacturers have begun to plan to use this frequency band as a "backhaul network" between APs. He said that Wi-Fi 6 has clear definitions and descriptions of the network architecture of mesh or distributed Wi-Fi in the specifications. However, using the new frequency band defined by Wi-Fi 6E as the backhaul between APs can allow each AP to have a more stable and faster exclusive network or channel to connect to each other, thereby achieving a completely seamless connection and indoor roaming with full indoor coverage.
Using 6GHz as Backhaul to Solve Signal Coverage Issues
As the Wi-Fi 6E specification is finalized, Wi-Fi network system solution providers will also upgrade the current Wi-Fi Tri-Band architecture from 2.4G + 5G (Low-Band) + 5G (High-Band) to 2.4G + 5G (U-NII 1-3) + 6G (U-NII 5-8).
Wi-Fi tri-band architecture based on Wi-Fi 6E
When WiFi 6 was not yet popular, the market was also full of discussions about WiFi 7. When asked about the views on this future new standard, it is not very objective to talk about Wi-Fi 7 now. After all, the entire specification of Wi-Fi 6 has not yet been perfected. The FCC just voted to open the frequency band of Wi-Fi 6E on April 23 this year. Wi-Fi RF chips, other peripherals (such as PAs, FEMs, filters, antennas) and test equipment manufacturers are beginning to develop new products in full swing to respond to the increasingly mature market and growing demand for Wi-Fi 6.
According to market research, Wi-Fi 6 will reach a market share of more than 50% in 2022. I think it will be more meaningful to discuss Wi-Fi 7 at that time.
However, there are rumors in the market that 802.11be will be the main architecture and prototype of the future Wi-Fi 7. 802.11be can support a maximum bandwidth of 320MHz, and the modulation method has been upgraded from 1024QAM of Wi-Fi 6 to 2048QAM.
To achieve such technical requirements, better RF chips, higher frequencies, more complete solutions and appropriate application scenarios are needed. As a global leader in RF components, Qorvo will actively participate in the early stages of specification formulation, joint development with solution providers, and then complete product mass production, testing and deployment with terminal equipment manufacturers.
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