Menlo Micro Adds SP4T Switches

August 26, 2022 - David Manners for Electronics Weekly

Menlo Micro has announced the formal qualification and production release of its MM5120 single-pole/four-throw (SP4T) DC-to-18 GHz switch and MM5140 DC-to-6 GHz SP4T switch.

The two switches are for RF switching applications, 5G network infrastructure, and test and measurement equipment.

MM5120 and MM5140 SP4T switches offer 25W power handling, ultra-low insertion loss and highlinearity, significantly outperforming electromechanical relays (EMRs) and conventional solid-state switches. Both switches feature an integrated charge pump and driver circuit with SPI and GPIO interface control options.”

The SP4T switches can operate with more than three billion switching cycles, resulting in reduced downtime, maintenance and cost and a 1000x longer lifetime compared to conventional EMRs.

The MM5120 and MM5140’s small-footprint/low-profile design features a custom-designed, built-in high-voltage charge pump/driver circuit integrated into a miniature 5.2 mm x 4.2 mm LGA package, eliminating the need for external components, simplifying customer layouts and reducing BOM cost.

The switches operate at less than 10 mW, a 99 percent reduction in power consumption compared to EMRs, making them the most energy efficient broadband SP4T switches available.

Both switches feature IP3 linearity of 90 dBm, enabling significant reductions in distortion, which is critical for applications such as beam-steering antennas used in 5G network infrastructure.

IP3 is a figure of merit in determining how much distortion a switch will introduce into a system, impacting the quality of transmitted or received signals.

For more information on MM5120 and MM5140 RF switches, click here.