DRX 3977D: Micronas introduces the World's Smallest, Highest Performance COFDM Demodulator (0523)

Freiburg, Germany - August 31, 2005 - Micronas (SWX Swiss Exchange: MASN, Frankfurt: MNSN, Prime Standard Segment, TecDAX), a leading supplier of innovative application-specific IC system solutions for consumer electronics, today launched their next generation COFDM demodulator IC. The fifth-generation DRX 3977D increases performance and integration while reducing size and power requirements.

The DRX 3977D raises the bar on DVB-T reception quality. Micronas' DRX 3975D, introduced in May 2004, was the first COFDM demodulator to substantially exceed all requirements of the NorDig-Unified Specification. The DRX 3977D exceeds, with several dB of margin, the NorDig-Unified Specification v1.0.2. The improved performance will help to advance the roll-out of the DVB-T standard by enabling error free reception in fringe areas, or when using Single Frequency Networks (SFN). With the introduction of the DRX 3977D, Micronas extends its family of demodulators to cover small form factor application requirements.

Integration is increased with the inclusion of the IF amplifier, and the DRX 3977D is the only DVB-T demodulator with a high-performance PLL that can reuse the tuner clock without performance degradation.

"Fringe reception is not just a problem in rural areas - buildings, hilly terrain, and mobile applications all present challenges. Our improved performance specifications make this an ideal chip for these designs." said Erik Venema, Product Marketing Manager Digital TV at Micronas. "And our QFN48 package takes less board space than any other chip on the market."

The DRX 3977D is offered in a QFN48 package, which has a 7x7 mm footprint. Compared to the widely used LQFP64 package, this means a 65 percent reduction in board space. The high level of integration and small package size make the DRX 3977D ideal for applications such as PC cards, ExpressCard™ designs, USB solutions, dual channel applications, and small form factor NIMs.

With the introduction of the DRX 3977D, Micronas extends its family of COFDM demodulators to cover all application requirements from a diversity solution for strongly improved indoor reception, to the smallest, highest integrated demodulator for small form-factor applications. The entire Micronas COFDM product family uses a common software driver. Together with pin-for-pin compatibility, this allows customers to easily adapt the application without any additional engineering effort.

In combination with the Micronas MDE 951xD MPEG-2 decoder or the APB 7202A nGene® PCI Express™ controller, the DRX 3977D is the complete system solution for DVB-T reception inside set-top boxes and PCs. And in combination with the Micronas VCT-P single-chip LCD-TV solution, a most efficient iDTV can be achieved.

Samples of the DRX 3977D are available now with mass production planned for Q4.