RF System-On-A-Chip Is An Industry First

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A single-chip 300-to-1000-MHz CMOS RF transceiver and microcontroller IC is now available. Dubbed the CC1010 chip, this device was spawned from the integration of the CMOS CC1000 RF transceiver and the 8051 microcontroller core—with its on-chip Flash nonvolatile memory—on a single die. Targeted at the short-range, low-power RFIC market, this chip is ideal for systems like FSK in the 315-, 433-, 868-, and 915-MHz ISM/SRD bands. Some specific applications might include home automation, wireless alarm and security systems, automatic metering systems, gamepad controllers, and other intelligent toys and products. As an added benefit, it can easily be programmed for operation at other frequencies between 300 and 1000 MHz.

At the heart of the CC1010 device is the proprietary SmartRF technology platform. The device therefore brings with it a heritage of unique features, such as low power, low cost, high performance, flexibility, and maximum integration. It even boasts significant processing power, having 32 KB of self-programmable Flash memory coupled with the peripherals needed to build a complete RF system.

The CC1010 flaunts low current consumption, high sensitivity (typically -107 dBm), and a programmable output power of up to 10 dBm. It also offers FSK modulation with a data rate of up to 76.8 kbps, a program-mable carrier frequency, bit synchronization, and a RSSI output that can be sampled by the on-chip ADC. The supply voltage of the CC1010 is 2.7 to 3.6 V. The chip is provided with on-chip power-on-reset (POR) and brown-out circuitry.

Additional features include a three-channel, 10-b analog-to-digital converter (ADC), a real-time clock (RTC) with its own 32-kHz crystal oscillator, and a program-mable watchdog timer (WDT). The CC1010 also features two 8051 timers and two timers/PWM; two programmable serial UARTs; a master SPI interface; and 26 configurable general-I/O pins.

On the heels of the CC1010 single-chip announcement comes word of an FSK/ASK CMOS RF transceiver for narrowband and multi-channel applications. Also on a single chip, this device is designed for FSK and ASK systems operating in the 424-to-470-MHz and 848-to-940-MHz frequency bands. The typical frequency bands used are 426, 429, 433, 868, and 902 to 928 MHz. It is ideal for applications using 25-kHz and 12.50-kHz channel spacing. The transceiver has a range of up to 2000 m. By increasing the programmable IF bandwidth, data rates of up to 153.6 kbps can be supported.

Dubbed the CC1020, this device features receiver sensitivity of up to -119 dBm. It also boasts selectivity for 25-kHz systems of 30-dB adjacent-channel rejection and 40-dB alternate-channel rejection. It offers adjacent-channel power for a 25-kHz system of 45 dBc. The supply voltage is 2.3 to 3.6 V. The chip also boasts a narrowband digital RSSI function, intelligent wake-up circuitry for power management, and a fully on-chip voltage-controlled oscillator.

The CC1010 is now available and comes in a thin-quad flat-pack (TQFP)-64 package. In million-unit quantities, pricing starts at $3.60 (U.S. dollars). Samples and development kits are available. The CC1020 is also available in sample or production quantities. It comes in a 32-pin QFN package. In million-unit quantities, the starting price is $2.60 (U.S. dollars).

Both the CC1010 and the CC1020 are supported by development tools and SmartRF Studio Software for quick and easy device-performance evaluations. These tools enable engineers to design their own RF products. In-circuit interactive debugging is supported for the Keil µVision IDE through a simple serial interface. A large code library with a range of application examples is provided.