ITEQ’s Tarun Amla Discusses 5G Inflection Points
April 8, 2019 | Andy Shaughnessy, I-Connect007Estimated reading time: 3 minutes
ITEQ Corporation Executive VP and CTO Tarun Amla discusses effects of 5G on materials and shares general observations on the 5G rollout at DesignCon.
Andy Shaughnessy: Can you tell us about what brings you to DesignCon this year?
Tarun Amla: I’ve been coming here for a long time primarily because it’s where you get a flavor for what’s happening and what’s going to be happening over the next three to five years or even longer. I’m here to talk to customers, check in with them, and see what’s going on. It also helps me with road mapping in terms of planning for products of the future.
Shaughnessy: What are some of the challenges that you’re seeing for your company? And what are some of the problems your customers come to you with?
Amla: The biggest issue right now is that there is this inflection point on the RF microwave side. The 5G rollout is supposed to happen over the next 36−48 months. It’s going to be an evolutionary process, initially starting with sub-6 GHz and some millimeter wave bands. There are a lot of unanswered questions, and our customers want to know what is required. For instance, how do you characterize the materials for the millimeter and centimeter wave frequencies, what materials are available and will be suitable for that space, and what type of manufacturing technology will be used? The shift toward higher layer count, mixed RF, and digital boards with high-density interconnects is continuing. There’s a little bit of confusion out there that is going to sort itself out over the next few months, once people realize what’s going on and things become more clearly defined.
Take frequency bands, for example. It’s not clearly defined as to what they’re going to be, and that’s one key challenge our customers are facing. While the RF side will see growth due to 5G, most OEMs on the high speed digital side are concerned about the immediate hurdle of jumping to and beyond 112 Gbps per channel. Everyone wants a solution to the “material” side of the problem. ITEQ has been diligent in coming up with solutions to these challenges.
Shaughnessy: Are you seeing a lot of demand for 5G stuff?
Amla: Yes, the rollout of some sub-6 GHz and millimeter wave bands has started. The boards that are being built are not revolutionary; they’re just an evolution on the existing technology. Incorporating massive MIMO antennas with smart beam-forming capability into circuit design is the main challenge. Increasing layer count, higher thermal loads, stability of materials are some of the main challenges. And on the digital backhaul side, there’s a lot of growth there. We are also seeing good growth with the sub-6 GHz out on remote radio units.
Shaughnessy: Are you seeing any shortages of the raw materials affecting your lead times?
Amla: As the millimeter wave 5G material sets have not been completely defined, there is some time for things to settle in. However, there have been some shortages with low DK glass and ultra-low profile copper, which, though not directly related to 5G, do have some bearing. Regarding 5G material sets, ITEQ did some planning and has most of the raw materials in-house to ensure our customers don’t have to suffer.
Shaughnessy: That’s good. You’re based mainly in Asia, so you see a pretty good slice of the industry. Where do you think the industry is going, and what do you see for the next few years?
Amla: There is a little bit of disenchantment with regular high layer-count boards, and people want to go into higher value products. Customers are anticipating 5G to be a relief from the kind of work they’re doing with higher value added to the boards. With new technologies coming out, building RF boards is going to be different. There will be higher layer count boards even for consumer-premises antenna and small base stations. High-density interconnects will be required to help with routing and that’s not the domain of expertise for the existing RF board suppliers. We’ll see a shift, and that’s why the bigger and more capable shops are trying to develop a capability for building RF boards, which were considered a specialty in the past. We’re also seeing a general trend toward getting more capability in-house to test for reliability and signal integrity. There has been a huge change in Asia from the standpoint of capability, investment, and the grand spectrum of products that they can do.
Shaughnessy: Thanks for your time.
Amla: Thank you.
Suggested Items
Trouble in Your Tank: Supporting IC Substrates and Advanced Packaging, Part 5
03/19/2024 | Michael Carano -- Column: Trouble in Your TankDirect metallization systems based on conductive graphite or carbon dispersion are quickly gaining acceptance worldwide. Indeed, the environmental and productivity gains one can achieve with these processes are outstanding. In today’s highly competitive and litigious environment, direct metallization reduces costs associated with compliance, waste treatment, and legal issues related to chemical exposure. What makes these processes leaders in the direct metallization space?
AT&S Shines with Purest Copper on World Recycling Day
03/18/2024 | AT&SThe Styrian microelectronics specialist AT&S is taking World Recycling Day as an opportunity to review the progress that has been made in recent months at its sites around the world in terms of the efficient use of resources:
Matrix to Exhibit at IPC APEX EXPO 2024 in Anaheim, CA
03/05/2024 | MatrixMatrix will be exhibiting at IPC APEX EXPO 2024, to be held on April 9-12, 2024, at the Anaheim Convention Center, Anaheim, CA.
The Chemical Connection: Getting to Know Your Vendor
02/16/2024 | Don Ball -- Column: The Chemical ConnectionAfter working for a capital equipment supplier for almost 50 years, I’ve found that the most important part of getting to know your vendor is good communication among all parties. While contact between fabricators of a constantly changing product line and the designers of those products may occur daily or weekly, conversations between you and your equipment supplier may be years apart. That lengthy gap often means that previous contacts may have been promoted, retired, or moved on to other opportunities. You may have also migrated to a new supplier with whom you have little or no history. In either case, you will be interacting with someone you are unfamiliar with (as they are with you). Therefore, it is essential for both sides to communicate clearly so expectations will align.
EIPC Winter Conference 2024, Day 2: A Closer Look at Global Trends
02/14/2024 | Pete Starkey, I-Connect007The opening session of the second day’s conference proceedings focused on global PCB trends and was introduced and moderated by Dr. Michele Stampanoni, vice president of strategic sales and business development at Cicor Group in Switzerland. He opened the session with Dr. Hayao Nakahara’s knowledgeable and enlightening video presentation on the IC substrates industry.