Mouser Electronics

Single-chip transceiver ICs operate in SIGFOX network

Product

SIGFOX

Atmel’s ATA8520 transmitter and ATA8520D transceiver ICs are available from Mouser. They are suitable for operation in the 868MHz SIGFOX network.

Targeting European LPWAN and Internet of Things (IoT) applications, the devices incorporate an RF front end, a digital baseband and a low-power 8bit AVR microcontroller in a single chip.

The ATA8520 transmitter and ATA8520D transceiver reduce external part count by offering a high level of integration, combining RF performance with baseband signal processing to achieve robust wireless communication.

Firmware stored in the internal memory supports the chips’ operations, including handling of the SIGFOX protocol. The transmit path uses a closed-loop fractional-N modulator, while a serial peripheral interface provides for external control and configuration.

The single-chip solutions provide very low-power consumption, requiring just 32.7mA current at +14.5dBm output power and 5nA in off mode. Both ICs provide uplink data rates of 100bits per second with differential BPSK modulation, with the ATA8520D transceiver offering 600bits per second with GFSK modulation for downlink.

Mouser supports ATA8520/D design-in activities through three evaluation kits. The ATA8520-EK1-E standalone kit comes with a fully pre-programmed ATA8520D transceiver, an Atmel ATmega328P microcontroller, a temperature sensor and an external 868MHz antenna. It also includes a SIGFOX ID and PAC code for registration in the cloud-based SIGFOX back end.

Mouser also offers the ATA8520-EK2-E and ATA8520-EK3-E extension boards. The ATA8520-EK2-E board is designed for use with an Atmel Xplained Mini development kit or an Arduino Uno R3, while the ATA8520-EK3-E board is intended for use with an Atmel Xplained Pro development kit. Both boards include an ATA8520D transceiver, a temperature sensor and an 868MHz antenna as well as SIGFOX ID and PAC code.

Engineers can use the 32-pin QFN transmitter and transceiver to provide IoT and other machine-to-machine connectivity using an air interface to the SIGFOX proprietary network in industrial and consumer applications such as environmental sensors, smart meters, patient monitors, home automation and building security systems.