DURHAM, N.C., June 4, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Cree, Inc (Nasdaq:CREE) announces the sample release of two breakthrough gallium nitride (GaN) HEMT transistors for use in WiMAX applications covering the 4.9 to 5.8GHz frequency band. The new transistors, CGH55015F and CGH55030F, are the first released GaN HEMT WiMAX products specified to operate at up to 5.8 GHz, a performance level that further demonstrates Cree's leadership in GaN technology.
Significant potential benefits offered by the new 15-watt and 30-watt devices include:
* A four-fold increase in efficiency compared with similar power level GaAs MESFET devices * Elevated frequency operation compared with commercially available silicon LDMOS * Operational capability in the license-exempt 5.8 GHz ISM (industrial, scientific and medical) band as well as 5.3-GHz and 5.47-GHz U-NII (Unlicensed National Information Infrastructure) bands * Superior linearity of better than 2.5% EVM at average power under a WiMAX signal at 25% drain efficiency covering an instantaneous bandwidth of 5.5 to 5.8 GHz.
Both transistors are available with "reference design" amplifier platforms.
As business and residential customers continue to demand increased capacity and functionality for wireless networks, these transistors can enable efficient power amplifiers in small base-station formats (access points) for last-mile service utilizing WiMAX-based architectures. Such outdoor units can allow Internet service providers to maximize their ROI on spectrum due to the ability to offer tiered services (enabled by improved quality of service and wider channel bandwidths) to hundreds of broadband users from a single access point.
"The CGH55015F and CGH55030F are two great examples of new GaN transistors Cree developed to support the higher operational frequency and stringent efficiency and linearity requirements needed to enable next-generation WiMAX base stations and access points," said Jim Milligan, Cree's director of RF and microwave products. "These 5-GHz transistors complement the CGH35060 product that we are also releasing now to round out our 3.5-GHz GaN HEMT WiMAX product line. This 60-watt product is a direct result of customer feedback and offers customers greater flexibility for 3.5-GHz WiMAX applications, particularly in Europe where remote radio heads (RRHs) are increasingly being used."
Additional information about the Cree products may be obtained by calling Cree at 919-287-7505 or by visiting www.cree.com.
About Cree
Cree is leading the LED lighting revolution and setting the stage to obsolete the incandescent light bulb through the use of energy-efficient, environmentally friendly LED lighting. Cree is a market-leading innovator of lighting-class LEDs, LED lighting retrofit solutions, and semiconductor solutions for backlighting, wireless and power applications.
Cree's product families include recessed LED down lights, blue and green LED chips, high-brightness LEDs, lighting-class power LEDs, power-switching devices and radio-frequency/wireless devices. Cree solutions are driving improvements in applications such as general illumination, backlighting, electronic signs and signals, variable-speed motors, and wireless communications.
For additional product and company information, please refer to www.cree.com.
This press release contains forward-looking statements involving risks and uncertainties, both known and unknown, that may cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated. Actual results may differ materially due to a number of factors, such as the risk we may encounter delays or other difficulties in ramping up production of our new sample products which are currently available for evaluation and testing purposes only; the risk we may be unable to develop and release commercial products with performance ratings comparable to the development results described above; the risk we may be unable to manufacture products with sufficiently low cost to offer them at competitive prices or with acceptable margins, the rapid development of new technology and competing products that may impair demand or render our products obsolete; the potential lack of customer acceptance for the products; variations in demand for Cree's products and its customers' products; and other factors discussed in Cree's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its report on Form 10-K for the year ended June 24, 2007, and subsequent filings.
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