Signalchip launches India's first semiconductor chips for 4G/LTE and 5G NR modems

Bengaluru-based fab-less semiconductor company has announced the launch of India's first semiconductor chips for 4G/LTE and 5G NR modems in the presence of Telecom Secretary Aruna Sundararajan.

Terming the launch of the Chip as tremendously significant, Sundarajan said that India is just breaking into the elite club of the world and this will have huge implications for India's data security and data sovereignty, besides the positive economic implications.

She informed that at present only 8 companies and a few countries can design and build semiconductor chips and launch of Indigenous Chip is in a real sense Make in India for the World.

The company launched four chips as part of its SCBM34XX and SCRF34XX/45XX series, code-named 'Agumbe'.

The four chips include SCBM3412 (single chip 4G/LTE modem), SCBM3404 (single chip 4X4 LTE), SCRF3402 (2X2 transceiver for LTE) and SCRF4502 (2X2 transceiver for 5G NR standards).

The RF sections cover all LTE/5G-NR bands up to 6GHz. These chips also support positioning using India's own satellite navigation system, NAVIC.

Himanshu Khasnis, Founder and CEO of Signal chip said, "Currently in India, all devices and infrastructure, whether imported or domestically manufactured, use imported silicon chips. Silicon chip design is a very challenging activity requiring high-cost R&D, deep know-how and mastery of multiple complex domains. Hence, this technology is not available in most countries. Given that wireless communication is central to almost all economic, strategic and domestic activities happening today, the ability to indigenously design and develop silicon chips is vital for the security and prosperity of our country."

The Agumbe series builds upon SCRF1401 which was supposedly India's first RF transceiver chip for high-performance wireless standards like 3G/4G and WiFi, created by Signalchip in 2015.