Intel Integrates Wireless Support On A Single Chip

Intel has designed a chip that can receive and transmit WiMax and multiple Wi-Fi signals. Intel on Monday said it has designed a chip that can receive and transmit WiMax and multiple Wi-Fi signals and has developed other on-die technology to lower power consumption and reduce the size of the processor.

Intel researchers outlined the achievements in four research papers presented at the International Solid-State Circuits Conference in San Francisco. The papers reflect some of the technology that may one day find its way in Intel chips for use in future mobile Internet devices. What Intel says it has accomplished is the building of a die that supports WiMax and Wi-Fi a/g/n. In integrating a transceiver capable of handling multiple frequencies on a single chip, Intel has eliminated the use of a "front-end module," technology that performs the same function today on a separate die, Hossein Alavi, director of communications circuits at Intel labs, told InformationWeek. Eliminating the separate module would ultimately enable the building of a smaller processor with lower power consumption, two important attributes for portable Internet devices.