Keysight Custom Semiconductors

Pushing the boundaries of technology requires instantaneous bandwidth, spurious-free dynamic range, and signal fidelity beyond basic measurements. Keysight powers every performance product with custom MMICs*, designed in-house, and manufactured in our proprietary indium phosphide (InP) and gallium arsenide (GaAs) fab with custom ASIC* signal processing that ensure the industry’s fastest, most reliable measurements.

For over 50 years, Keysight has designed proprietary semiconductor ASIC and MMIC technologies that are specially customized for test and measurement equipment. Count on Keysight to accelerate your next innovation.

*Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuits (MMICs) and Application-Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs)

High-Frequency Technology Center (HFTC)

Keysight High Frequency Technology Center (HFTC) in Santa Rosa

Located in Santa Rosa, California, the HFTC invents, develops, and manufactures industry-leading custom, state-of-the-art integrated circuits (ICs). The HFTC drives the development of 14 compound building blocks using advanced indium phosphide (InP) and gallium arsenide (GaAs) semiconductor technologies.

This advanced hub provides Keysight with a competitive advantage which we use to develop the world’s leading patented high-frequency and high-speed capabilities to deliver the highest performance for your needs. The HFTC has a unique combination of compound semiconductor fabrication capabilities (19,500 sq. ft. class-100 fab) and world-class expertise in design, modeling, measurement, and microfabrication.

Customer Success Stories

Breaking Barriers in Optoelectronic Research

Photonic Systems Group at McGill University overcame test limitations in optoelectronic research using a Keysight 110 GHz UXR1104A oscilloscope and a Keysight M8199A arbitrary waveform generator (AWG). The UXR-Series includes revolutionary chipsets featuring a single 110 GHz four-channel Infiniium UXR that incorporates over 80 custom ASICs, 13 field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), nine unique MMICs, and 38 thin films.

The UXR performs higher precision analysis with up to four channels of simultaneous 110 GHz of bandwidth, each concurrently sampling at a staggering 256 GSa/s with 10 bits of high-definition analog to digital converter (ADC) resolution. The UXR performs up to 100x faster for some measurements, enabled by a powerful new measurement acceleration ASIC and memory controller capable of 5 trillion integer operations per second (IOPS).

Delivering First 5G NR Device Technology for Volume Shipments

A customer premises equipment (CPE) manufacturer asked Keysight to provide a test solution that simulates a 5G base station with network protocols to support beamforming, and the ability to measure the RF performance and throughput rates of its 5G devices. To introduce the first 5G CPE device at scale, the manufacturer chose Keysight’s UXM 5G Wireless test set with over-the-air (OTA) test capabilities. The CPE sought to simulate the 5G network protocols that support beamforming and beam tracking; the 5G RF Design Validation Test (DVT) toolkit provides the RF test cases used to measure the RF performance of the 5G device.

Keysight uses custom chips such as the 20 GHz Multi-Modulus pre-scaler and the 54 GHz fast-switching digital step attenuator in its flagship signal sources and analyzers. Keysight is able to design and fabricate new custom millimeter-wave (mmWave) semiconductors, such as the ultra-high dynamic range 54 GHz amplifier to deliver new test solutions that optimize testing when customers need to meet tight timelines on product introductions.

Enabling the Future of In-Vehicle Networks

A semiconductor-maker implemented a new test for automotive Ethernet using Keysight Infiniium MXR-Series eight-channel real-time oscilloscopes and Ethernet Compliance application software to support rigorous and fast compliance tests for automotive Ethernet in its labs. The global semiconductor company provides chipsets and modules that enable secure connections and infrastructure for the implementation of a new 1 Gb/s automotive Ethernet test.

The Infiniium MXR-Series operates on six unique ASICs designed in both silicon germanium (SiGe) and silicon complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) processes. It uses a 100M+ gate CMOS signal processing ASIC from our UXR-Series oscilloscope to bring some of the same levels of fully integrated multi-function amplifier features and performance into a lower-cost, higher-density product. With custom silicon ASICs, we drive integration to deliver eight channels into one product. Each model incorporates a 10-bit ADC with a sample rate of 16 GSa/s available on all channels simultaneously. Our fully integrated low-noise front-end includes custom ICs, like the 130 nm BiCMOS ASIC that incorporate user-selectable analog filters and bandwidth upgrades via a software license.

Shortening Dynamic Frequency Selection Test Time from Days to Hours

A leading wireless networking company that specializes in servers, storage, and networking services had trouble running wireless regulatory compliance testing, which is becoming more complex and resource-intensive due to dated pre-compliance test systems.

The IOT0047A regulatory test solution and IoT regulatory compliance software provide complete standards coverage with the latest test cases defined by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to validate the regulatory compliance of wireless devices in the industrial, scientific, and medical (ISM) band. This solution consists of three main products that use a Keysight custom digital signal processor ASIC to enable faster frequency sweeps and enhanced measurement accuracy.

Have questions or need help?