Recently, TechInsights conducted further disassembly analysis on a well-known domestic Chinese brand of mobile phone and discovered more information, especially in the area of baseband chips (modem) and key chips in the radio frequency front end, seemingly making significant progress.
For a mobile phone, especially a 5G flagship phone, the core elements are the processor and the radio frequency front end. These components have much higher technological content compared to components like memory, power management, and display panels, creating evident technological barriers. Therefore, whoever masters the key technology of 5G processors and radio frequency front ends will possess significant industry discourse power and won’t have trouble making money.
Mobile processors can be divided into application processors (AP) and basebands. Among these, baseband development presents great difficulty because it is responsible for communication signal and protocol processing, involving numerous protocols like 3G, 4G, 5G, etc., making it highly complex.
Radiofrequency chips handle RF transmission and reception, frequency synthesis, power amplification, etc., primarily composed of power amplifiers (PA), low-noise amplifiers (LNA), filters, radio frequency switches, antenna tuners, etc. Among these, the core elements are PA and filters, possessing the highest technological content.
Currently, only a few manufacturers have the production capability for application processors and baseband chips, with MediaTek, Qualcomm, and Samsung occupying a major global share. Within China, there are only Huawei’s HiSilicon and UNISOC.
Regarding the mobile radio frequency front end, particularly in crucial radio frequency chip aspects, Avago/Broadcom, Murata, Qorvo, and Skyworks hold dominant positions, while MediaTek, Qualcomm, and Samsung also offer corresponding solutions. For a long time, the technology and performance of related domestic Chinese manufacturers were notably lagging, but recent developments over the past year indicate a quietly changing situation.
01
The Market Battle of Baseband Chips: A Single Breakthrough in China
To develop mobile baseband chips, one must be mentally prepared to face various difficulties because it’s incredibly complex. It involves managing diverse communication protocols, patents, power consumption, speed, and balancing costs, as well as emerging mobile applications like satellite communication. Baseband chips not only need to support 5G but also be backward compatible with 4G, 3G, and 2G communication technology standards. Before mass production, extensive on-site testing is required to support different network formats for various operators worldwide.
As the 5G communication standard gradually expands, with increasingly complex frequency band combinations, greater demands are placed on the new generation of baseband chips. For instance, they need to possess diverse and complex functional modules while maintaining high integration. They also require extensive software applications and a better universal platform for support and adaptation.
Currently, Qualcomm remains the leader in manufacturing baseband chips that excel in these aspects.
Why has Qualcomm dominated the global mobile baseband chip market for so many years, leaving even Apple with no choice but to pay “Qualcomm tax”? The main reason is its early entry into the 3G communication field, accumulating a wealth of technology and patents over the years, which has persisted into the 5G era.
Take Qualcomm’s X75 as an example; it’s the world’s first 5G Advanced-ready baseband chip, positioned between 5G and 6G, achieving better upgrades for XR, connected cars, and 5G uplink communication capabilities.
The X75 integrates mmWave hardware (QTM565) with Sub-6 hardware, where the QTM565 mmWave antenna module, combined with the integrated transceiver, reduces costs, circuit board complexity, hardware footprint, and power consumption.
Manufacturers excelling in baseband chips also boast excellent mobile radio frequency front-end products. Not only Qualcomm but also notable companies like MediaTek, and Huawei, among others, fall into this category.
Regarding the development of domestic Chinese baseband chips, UNISOC takes the mid-to-low-end route. Huawei pursued the high-end path for several years, but since losing access to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company’s advanced manufacturing capacity, Huawei’s market share in smartphone baseband chips has sharply declined.
TechInsights’ disassembly of a prominent domestic Chinese phone revealed significant progress in 5G baseband chips. This breakthrough in China’s domestic smartphone baseband chips marks a pivotal moment. While there remains a considerable gap in overall technological capabilities and market share compared to Qualcomm, MediaTek, and Samsung, achieving a technological breakthrough in a single product could greatly inspire and drive future developments.
02
The Radio Frequency (RF) Chip Market: Varied Opportunities for Chinese Enterprises
Compared to baseband chips, the global market for mobile RF front-end and related chips is more diverse, fostering intense competition. This market scenario favors latecomers, allowing Chinese domestic RF front-end enterprises more opportunities relative to baseband chips. Recent developments over the past two years also highlight significant achievements in this field.
Before discussing the achievements of Chinese enterprises, it’s essential to underscore the significance and development complexity of the RF front-end, especially in the 5G era, which is much more intricate than the previous 4G. In the 5G eMBB (Enhanced Mobile Broadband) scenario, mobile speeds have surged to gigabit or even terabit levels, nearly a hundred times faster than early LTE rates (100Mbps). This necessitates a doubling or more in the number of antennas and supported frequency bands. While early 4G had fewer than 20 frequency band combinations, 5G had over 10,000. All these factors demand heightened performance from RF chips.
On the eve of the 5G explosion, numerous domestic Chinese companies entered the RF front-end market. As the number of participating domestic enterprises increased, homogeneous competition intensified. In the mid-to-low-end sector, Chinese RF chip companies engaged in intense price wars as the primary means of market competition. Price-driven competitive strategies mainly encompass RF switches, low-noise amplifiers, and power amplifiers conforming to 4G standards. However, there has been a scarcity of mass-produced products in high-tech content areas such as filters and power amplifiers conforming to 5G standards, urging Chinese domestic enterprises to achieve breakthroughs in these domains.
As of 2023, Chinese domestic enterprises have made noticeable progress in the RF front end, particularly in filters and power amplifiers conforming to 5G standards.
In the SAW (Surface Acoustic Wave) filter domain, companies like Qorvo, Deqing Huaying, HiDeepTech, and MacMic Technology have achieved breakthroughs. For instance, MacMic Technology’s SAW filters, produced in collaboration with partners, have entered the supply chains of Huawei, and TCL, among others. HiDeepTech’s SAW filters are part of ZTE and Meizu’s phone supply chains. While Qorvo dominates the RF switch market, it seeks to break free from the “low-end” market. Its developed SAW filters and high-performance filters like DiFEM and LDiFEM, along with GPS modules, have passed brand customer audits and begun gradual mass production deliveries.
Regarding Bulk Acoustic Wave (BAW) filters, there are comparatively fewer Chinese enterprises capable of independent research and development. However, in August of this year, domestic manufacturer Sigmicro Electronics successfully trial-produced BAW filters and secured specific customer orders. This signifies China’s breakthrough in manufacturing crucial 5G RF chip components. This achievement is the result of collaborative optimization between Sigmicro Electronics and Wuhan Minsheng in process and device design, with the former completing customized BAW filter process development within its own Fab facility.
On a global scale, Japanese manufacturers who have entrenched themselves in the SAW filter domain for many years have fewer patents in the BAW filter domain, occupying around 87% of the BAW filter market share, predominantly held by Broadcom. Qorvo accounts for 8% of the market share. The combined market share of these two companies exceeds 95%.
Based on a long-term procurement agreement signed by Sigmicro Electronics with a specific client, this cooperation marks the first phase involving 12 different BAW filter models and their derivative devices (duplexers, quadplexers, etc.) executed between August 2023 and December 2024, with a contract value of no less than 100 million RMB.
In the power amplifier domain, during the first half of 2023, WeiJieChuangXin achieved breakthroughs in the 5G L-PAMiD RF module chip, moving into mass production. This year, it has managed large-scale mass production and validation by multiple brand customers. It introduced a new generation of low-voltage L-PAMiF products, validated by domestic brand manufacturers for small-scale shipments. HuiZhiWei began mass production of 5G recultivation band L-PAMiD, compact high-integration n77 and n79 dual-frequency L-PAMiF for 5G new bands, as well as cost-effective n77 single-frequency L-PAMiF and L-FEM supporting 5G full bands.
TechInsights’ disassembly of a prominent domestic Chinese phone not only revealed breakthroughs in baseband chip technology but also showcased the impressive nature of RF front-end related chips, particularly in filter and module integration, packaging technology advancements, using improved techniques in acoustic wave filters, and hybrid technologies based on Integrated Passive Devices (IPD) and Low-Temperature Co-fired Ceramic (LTCC). This marks a significant advancement compared to the RFFE 5G architecture before 2015 and 2016 (circumventing US technology restrictions).
IPD (Integrated Passive Devices) is a silicon or glass-based integrated passive device technology developed to meet the miniaturization needs of passive systems. It offers high wiring density, small size, lightweight, high integration, and good high-frequency characteristics. IPD technology is crucial in developing 5G filters and duplexers, among other RF module products, as it aids in reducing chip size and power consumption.
LTCC is a multi-layer glass ceramic substrate, an alternative to PCB. LTCC is ideal for applications requiring high functional density and reliability under extreme environmental conditions. LTCC packaging involves assembling multiple single-layer ceramic or glass sheets, perforating them to create vias, and using conductive, dielectric, and resistance pastes for circuit component formation. LTCC offers excellent dielectric properties, a low coefficient of thermal expansion, and outstanding thermal conductivity.
Globally, IPD and LTCC fall under advanced module packaging technologies. TechInsights’ disassembly reveals that the RF front-end module and related chips (especially filters) of this Chinese flagship phone have reached internationally advanced levels in both core chip and module aspects through the adoption of emerging or innovative technologies.
Apart from the mobile end, China has recently made progress in the RF terminal of base stations. In August, China Mobile announced the successful development of the country’s first commercially available reconfigurable 5G RF transceiver chip “Breaking Wind 8676.”
RF transceiver chips are crucial for 5G base stations, featuring high research and development complexity, a technological domain long monopolized by foreign giants. Breaking Wind 8676 utilizes a reconfigurable architecture design allowing for the reconfiguration of core chip specifications, module algorithms, and functions, effectively reducing costs. It can be applied in 5G cloud base stations, home base stations, and other core network devices.
03
As a Conclusion
As the core functional modules of smartphones, both processors and RF front-ends boast high technological content. With the global smartphone market becoming increasingly competitive and the incremental market shrinking, everyone is compelled to compete in the existing market. At this juncture, the importance of product differentiation becomes more pronounced. Whoever can master the research and production capabilities of more core chip components will wield greater influence and competitiveness.
In previous years, Chinese domestic manufacturers lagged in smartphone baseband and RF front-end core chip technologies. However, over the last two to three years, the progress and development pace of relevant Chinese companies have noticeably accelerated. Particularly in RF filters and power amplifiers, progress has been speeding up. Despite the existing gap with international giants, this disparity is gradually narrowing. Continuous efforts can elevate the competitiveness of Chinese domestic enterprises and their products.
However, compared to RF chips, the progress of Chinese domestic smartphone baseband chips has been considerably slower and has only seen sporadic breakthroughs. Cooperation among enterprises specializing in chip design, manufacturing, and tool development is crucial to breaking through design and process bottlenecks and achieving advancements in this area.
Related:
- Baseband vs RF Circuit: Core Differences Simplified
- Chip Design Stages: Front End vs Back End Guide
- SAW vs BAW: Key Differences Between Acoustic Waves
- China’s Tech Puzzle: Customers Reject NVIDIA Downgrades
- U.S. AI Technology Surpasses China’s by a Decade
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