Common Acronyms

ADC

Analog to Digital Converter - a unit that transforms analog signals to digital signals.

ASIC

Application Specific Integrated Circuit - an IC designed for a specific application.

Automotive Band

Frequency band specified for automotive applications, 24 GHz, 77 GHz - 79 GHz.

BGA

Ball Grid Array - a packaging technology for silicon chips where the contacts of the chips are connected to metal balls (dots of solder) arranged in an array under the moulded chip, also see #LGA, #PGA.

Bistatic Radar

Radar system with separate antennas for the receive and transmit channel.

BIST-Circuit

Build In Self-Test-Circuit - a structure in an IC or circuit that simplifies testing or enables a self-test of the circuit.

Bonding / Wire Bonding

A method to connect a silicon chip to peripherals by attaching wires from the chip to the peripherals.

Bump Chip

Alternative method to wire bonding to connect a silicon chip to peripherals.

DSP

Digital Signal Processing - methods to process a signal in the digital domain, such as filtering or analysis, e.g. Fast Fourier Transformation, also see #FFT.

ESD

Electrostatic Discharge - an electricity flow between two electrically charged objects that can cause damage to electronic devices.

ESD-Structures

Structures in a circuit / IC, which protect the circuit from destruction by ESD. In Silicon Radar's ICs commonly made up of special diodes.

FAM

Film Assisted Moulding - a method to mould silicon ICs in a package. It allows free spaces in the moulding.

FFT

Fast Fourier Transformation - a method to convert analogue signals from the time domain to the frequency domain to be able to analyse their frequencies and signal strengths, also see #DSP.

Flip Chip

Alternative method to wire bonding to connect a silicon chip to peripherals. The chip is mounted "top side down".

FMCW

Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave - a method to operate a radar system.

FMEA

Failure Mode and Effects Analysis - a method to calculate the time to live and risks of failure.

Foundry

Factory or company that produces silicon chips. Usually technologies and chip designs are not interchangeable between foundries, since they use different technologies and processes.

FSK

Frequency Shift Keying - a method to encode a digital signal using analogue frequencies above and below a carrier frequency.

Globtop

Moulding on a silicon chip without a mould. The chip is attached to a carrier and the moulding mass is "dropped" on the chip.

GWR

Guided Wave Radar - a method where a radar impulse is send along a guiding tube or probe, mainly used for distance and level measurement in liquid or bulky media.

ISM-Bands

License free Industrial-Scientific-Medical bands for millimeter waves.

Lead Frame

Frame to which a silicon chip is attached, e.g. by wire bonding or flip chip technology, before it is moulded.

LGA

Land Grid Array - a packaging technology for silicon chips where the contacts of the chips are connected to flat patches of metal arranged in an array under the moulded chip, also see #BGA, #PGA.

LNA

Low Noise Amplifier.

MIMO System

Multiple Input Multiple Output System - a system using more than one receive and transmit antenna, also see #MISO System.

MISO System

Multiple Input Single Output System - a system using more than one receive antennas and only one transmit antenna, also see #MIMO System.

MMIC

Millimeter Wave IC - an IC designed to generate or process millimeter waves.

Monostatic Radar

A radar system using only a single common antenna for the transmit and receive channel.

MPW

Multi Project Wafer - a technology of a foundry where several silicon chips for various project are produced on the same wafer.

MTBF

Mean Time Between Failures - the average time before a device fails again after a failure / repair, also see #MTTF.

MTTF

Mean Time To Failure - the average time before a device fails (this is not the live time), also see #MTBF.

Multistatic Radar

A radar system using separate antennas for the receive and transmit channel.

Passive Radar

A radar system without transmit channel. It processes signals and their reflections transmitted by mobile devices, radio stations and so on.

PGA

Pin Grid Array - a packaging technology for silicon chips where the contacts of the chips are connected to pins of metal arranged in an array under the moulded chip, also see #BGA, #LGA.

Phase noise

The difference between the real phase and a theoretical phase of a signal seen in the time domain.

PLL

Phase Locked Loop - a method to stabilize or adjust a frequency in a circuit by looping the output signal back to the input and comparing the phase of both signals.

PRI

Pulse Repetition Interval - the time between two pulses, also see #PRF.

PRF

Pulse repetition Frequency - Frequency of repeating pulses, also see #PRI.

Pulse Radar

A radar system using short pulses as transmit signal.

Pulse Compression

A method to compress a complex signal to a short pulse.

SPI

Serial Peripheral Interface - a digital communication interface.

TPV

Through Polymer Via - a moulding technology where conducting vias are created from a silicon chip to the surface of the moulding mass.

VCO

Voltage Controlled Oscillator - an oscillator where the output frequency can be controlled by an input voltage.