HUBER+SUHNER Solves Connectivity Challenges in the IC Marketplace

Our lives are changing, and societal needs require data-intensive networks. AI (artificial intelligence) clusters and neural networks enhance machine learning applications to solve complex problems. Data center architectures that accommodate unfathomable data storage and processing tasks support social networks. The need for advanced computing continues to grow; these things we take as unarguable and not stated as an exaggeration. As humans, we seek to connect, collaborate, and create.

These social trends create significant engineering challenges to developing new networking data transport solutions. Virtually all engineering students are taught the concept of Moore’s Law, the observation of Intel’s Gordon Moore regarding a doubling of transistors per Integrated Circuit (IC) every two years, but do we also extrapolate that hypothesis into a future-looking problem context? As ICs offer more computing power, their design and development cycles will also require innovative solutions.

As those of us of a certain age will recall, there was a time when computers and peripheral devices supported data transport speeds in the kilobit scale. More recently, in order to support these data-intensive networks at scale with their cutting-edge ICs, we talk of terabit data transmission! Such innovation, of course, has inextricable engineering challenges, including accurate digital transmit and receive operations carried out by high bandwidth high-fidelity microwave connectivity solutions. At HUBER+SUHNER, we focus on the practical testing challenges presented in the development and manufacturing of high-speed semiconductors.

Building the networks of today and tomorrow, ICs need to be designed, tested, and validated to a high level of performance. It is with this in mind that we continually design our interconnectivity solutions to help solve the challenges of the marketplace. Challenges include bit rate measurement tasks with low jitter and noise introductions from the test setup. IC OEMs (original equipment manufacturers), therefore, require broadband microwave frequency cables and connectors that can effectively handle testing operations. The IC OEM needs reliable and repeatable performance from their test setup. Also, minimizing signal attenuation through the test system is important for low amplitude signals to effectively reach industry-available test equipment or within sub-system test circuits. This is one space where HUBER+SUHNER excels.

Our high-performance and low-loss microwave cables, branded Sucoflex^TM, are available in a variety of options up to 110 GHz. Customer lengths and connector choices are available on request with short lead times. When used in combination with our novel and industry-leading multi-coaxial channel interconnection interfaces, such as MXP, MXPM, and now our new MXPD, these high-density connectors offer a superior value to the customer.

The SF104/11SMA/11SMA/1000MM is an example of an SMA to SMA coaxial cable assembly in the Sucoflex family. (Image source: HUBER+SUHNER)

Further, HUBER+SUHNER also routinely supports our partners with added engineering expertise to maximize the performance characteristics of the products themselves in diverse application implementations.

(Image source: HUBER+SUHNER)

As a trusted partner to HUBER+SUHNER, DigiKey offers many of these solutions off-the-shelf for near-term delivery so you can continue to meet project milestones without delay. As is commonly said, time is money. Find the right products with the right delivery and speed up your design cycles as you simultaneously speed up your data rates!