August 3, 2009
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By Katelyn Chapman
Arriving at Fort Williams in Cape Elizabeth, Maine on Saturday for the 12th 
TD Banknorth Beach to Beacon 10K, my breath was taken away. This didn’t happen from physical exertion but from the majestic beauty of the sunrise over the beautiful rocky coast. I had a feeling that this meant it would be a memorable day.
When the race started, we knew that people from all over the world and over 50 of our own employees were running the picturesque course. Anticipation rose as we awaited the arrival of the first finishers.
At first the runners trickled in but soon the field was flooded with participants of all ages. We congratulated everyone on their successful completion and were excited to spot the green shirts of our co-workers. The Fairchild Semiconductor men ended up finishing #2 in the men’s corporate challenge! Congrats guys!
In our Green Energy Sponsor tent, 
we had fun mingling with interested community members who took home free give-aways like green water bottles. Visitors of all ages rode the bicycle to charge their cell phone.
When I left at the end of the event, I thought how amazing the day was- perfect sunrise, great location, wonderful people!
A big thanks to my fellow employees at Fairchild Semiconductor who ran and helped man
our Green Energy Sponsor booth. Our contributions will go to the 2009 beneficiary, Maine Handicapped Skiing. Thanks to everyone at Fairchild who made our Green Energy Sponsorship a success!
Tags: Fairchild, Fairchild Semiconductor, green, sponsor
July 17, 2009
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By Sona Kim
Standing in the park, I have been checking emails, making phone calls and taking a few precious pictures of my darling dog. Wishing to send the pictures to a friend’s cell phone, I press the button and stare at the cell phone display. Suddenly, it says “connection failed.” What! I try again and realize that the cell phone battery is too low with barely one bar showing.
Does this sound familiar to you?
We all want to be connected via cell phone whenever and wherever we are. Unfortunately, our cell phone battery does not always keep up with our busy lifestyle.
Inside of every cell phone is a radio frequency (RF) transmitter. Every time you talk, text or send data, the transmitter drains power from the battery. Often the transmitter consumes only 10% of the phone’s total power. However, if you’re in a poor coverage location, surf the net or up-load photo/video, the transmitter’s battery consumption can top six times, sapping 60% of the battery’s charge. This transmitter can be a huge power drain and dramatically reduce your talk time on the cell phone.
Today’s feature-rich 3G phones require more power than ever before. The design challenge facing engineers today is how to improve efficiency in existing areas such as RFPA, display and increased talk time so more power is available for new features.
One solution is to install a step down DC-DC converter with dynamic voltage scaling to control VOUT between the battery and the RF Power Amplifier (RFPA). This reduces current consumption by 30-50%, and makes power available for other functions (such as MP3, GPS and video). In addition to reducing current consumption, a step down DC-DC converter also reduces heat and increases talk time.
If you would like to check out Fairchild’s solution, please watch a short video demonstrating a solution to extend battery power for a 3G phone by improving the efficiency of the RFPA. More information on RF Power is available at www.fairchildsemi.com/rfpower.
About the author:
Market Development Program Manager, Fairchild Semiconductor Tags: battery life, cell phone, DC-DC converter, Fairchild, Fairchild Semiconductor, power, RF Power Amplifier, RF transmitter
