UMS and Ansoft Collaborate on MMIC Process, Simulation and Design Technology to Address New Millimeter-Wave Applications; Resulting RF Design Kit Leverages Advanced Circuit and Electromagnetic Simulation for the Development of 60GHz Front-End ICs.

INTERNATIONAL MICROWAVE SYMPOSIUM, SAN FRANCISCO -- United Monolithic Semiconductor (UMS) and Ansoft Corporation (NASDAQ:ANST) today announced the implementation of a GaAs IC design methodology for millimeter-wave frequencies utilizing on-chip electromagnetic extraction and a new Ansoft Designer(R)/Nexxim(R) RF design kit for the PH15 PHEMT process.

"MMIC design at millimeter-wave frequency requires a combination of powerful circuit and accurate electromagnetic simulation of the whole circuit. Ansoft with Nexxim, Ansoft Designer and HFSS(TM) provides the level of performance and accuracy expected by UMS Foundry customers, especially the ones who perform Q, V or W band designs on our very low-noise PH15 PHEMT process," said Mr. Eric Leclerc, UMS foundry manager.

The millimeter-wave qualified kit implements rigorous device modeling and validation by the foundry and is combined with advanced frequency-domain simulation for highly nonlinear and highly integrated circuits as well as integrated electromagnetic simulation for on-chip extraction. The Ansoft Designer/Nexxim design kit supports electrical design and physical circuit layout, enabling reliable MMIC design at millimeter-wave frequencies. The kit provides all parameterized electrical models and layout cells for hot and cold FETs, diodes, MIM capacitors, spiral inductors, thin-film resistors and distributed interconnects, such as transmission lines.

The library will be available to Ansoft customers directly from UMS (www.ums-gaas.com) and is easily configured for use within the Ansoft Designer design management front-end, planar EM simulator and Nexxim circuit simulator. The kit is available on Microsoft Windows(R) 2000 and XP, Red Hat Enterprise Linux(R) v3 as well as Solaris 8 and 9 systems.

UMS and Ansoft collaborated with a major Japanese electronics manufacturer and successfully developed a 60 GHz front-end MMIC for short-range wireless communication. The ICs take advantage of the high mobility .15-micron PHEMT process from UMS to achieve excellent performance and stability at these millimeter-wave frequencies.

"Using Ansoft's next-generation simulation products, Nexxim and Ansoft Designer, we are now able to design 60GHz transmitter/receiver circuits," said Mr. Ken-ichi Ohta, Manager of Engineering Development. "Our requirement for multi-tone harmonic-balance analysis of highly nonlinear circuits made it impossible for us to use previous generation simulation tools."

About UMS (United Monolithic Semiconductor)

United Monolithic Semiconductors designs, produces and markets leading-edge RF, microwave and millimeter-wave components and systems for the Telecom, Space, Defense, Automotive and ISM Industries. As an independent joint venture between two of the world's leading enterprises, THALES and EADS, UMS offers a broad range of standard and custom-designed MMICs, along with an open advanced GaAs technology foundry service. The open foundry provides an integrated suite of services and high-volume capacity aimed at ensuring that ASIC designs with leading-edge performance are fabricated successfully on the first fabrication run. UMS has two production facilities, at Ulm in Germany, and Orsay in France, where the commercial headquarters and product design and development also are based. To learn more, please visit www.ums-gaas.com.

About Ansoft

Ansoft is a leading developer of high-performance electronic design automation (EDA) software. Engineers use Ansoft software to design state-of-the-art electronic products, such as cellular phones, Internet-access devices, broadband networking components and systems, integrated circuits (ICs), printed circuit boards (PCBs), automotive electronic systems, power electronics and fuel-cell technology. Ansoft markets its products worldwide through its own direct sales force and has comprehensive customer-support and training offices throughout North America, Asia and Europe. To learn more, please visit www.ansoft.com.