Integrated front end module boosts short range wireless signals

Rutronik UK now offers the nRF21540 2.4GHz RF front end module from Nordic Semiconductor. The range extender can be combined with the company’s nRF52 and nRF53 series multi-protocol wireless SoCs, or other radios, to extend range.

There is an integrated power amplifier for output and the low noise amplifier for input to minimise external components. It can be combined with an nRF52 series SoC for output power of +21dBm, RX gain of 13dB and low noise figure 2.5dB. According to Rutronik this improves link budget for up to 16x longer range. When combined with an nRF52840 SoC running Bluetooth Low Energy at 1Mbps, the front end improves the RX sensitivity by 5dBm to -100dBm. Coupled with the increased output power, the link budget is raised by 18dBm.

The TX power is dynamically adjustable and output power can be set in small increments. Maximum output power exceeds the permissible value of the 2.4GHz band by 1dBm, reports the company, providing sufficient room to compensate losses in the signal chain to the antenna while simultaneously taking advantage of the 20dBm from antenna radiation. This is the case for all protocols (Bluetooth, ZigBee, Thread, ANT and Gazell as well as proprietary variants).

By reducing the fail rate and continuous retransmissions, the energy consumption is also reduced, despite the additional energy needed by the range extender.

The device operates at -40°C to +105°C, for use in industrial applications, professional lighting, asset tracking, drones, agricultural technology, audio, smart homes and remote controlled toys.

The distributor reports that Nordic will roll out driver support for future releases of nRF5 SDK, nRF5 SDK for Thread and Zigbee, and the nRF Connect SDK.