The heart and backbone of IoT: Efficient and reliable communication and data infrastructure

As the number of IoT devices and applications increases, so does the volume of data traffic.

At present, 16.3 zettabytes of data are produced and collected every year. One zettabyte is equivalent to a billion terabytes.

This figure is set to increase to 163 zettabytes by 2025, as reported in a study by IDC and Seagate.

The demands for processing, transferring, and storing this mass of data are every bit as challenging as might be expected.
In particular, the performance of telecommunication networks, data centers, and servers - which together make up the backbone of the IoT - needs to keep improving, combining higher bandwidth with more storage capacity and improved energy efficiency.

The super-fast 5G mobile-communications standard is the second cornerstones – the heart of the IoT.
Seamless data transfer in real time is a basic prerequisite for “smart” applications. End-to-end 5G networks are instrumental in ensuring an unbroken connection of people, companies, machines, and automated processes in the IoT.

As in the other areas, consumers and businesses are becoming more demanding and require more and more from their IoT applications - especially ease of use, energy efficiency, and reliability as they want to focus on what really matters.

What are the prerequisites to strengthen the backbone of the IoT?

High-speed device connections for reliable communication

The full potential of the IoT can only be leveraged if nodes, clouds, and networks can seamlessly communicate.



Wireless technologies

Connecting new devices can be annoying. With standardization for IoT, I can connect my devices in less than 5 seconds.

 


Wireless technologies like Wi-Fi for wireless local area networks (WLAN), Bluetooth® technology for content streaming, and Bluetooth® Low energy technology for ultra-low-power connectivity may be important, but also have to be reliable – at all times and places.

By standardization users can switch or migrate intuitively from one device to another without having to worry about connectivity. For system developers, the distributed architecture of Wi-Fi 6 under the home automation connectivity standard Matter, defined by the Connectivity Standards Alliance,where Infineon is the member of Board of Directors. Thus Infineon is shaping the markets.

Since Matter defines a standard application interface, manufacturers can create products that will work out of the box with all major IoT ecosystems. This new standard for enhanced communication across smart home devices, mobile apps and cloud services covers major IoT connectivity technologies such as Wi-Fi and 802.15.4/Thread.

Reliable connectivity gives us the possibility to work from home so we can balance our job with our family.

 

 

5G is another key element in the race to deliver reliable IoT communications. It has the capacity to dramatically extend the reach of reliable connectivity, promising significantly higher data capacity and ultra-fast response times for reliable wireless communications in a gigabit-connected society.

Our broad portfolio of 5G-ready RF products is supporting the evolution of the mobile network towards 5G.

For improved energy efficiency, higher bandwidth and smaller footprints.

Every percentage point in power saving achieved at the RF Power Amplifier directly translates into sizable less operational cost, smaller physical footprint and reduced CO2 emissions of the entire 5G radio access network.

 

 

The RF Amplifier is considered the most decisive component in a 5G mMIMO system as an essential part in a base station radio unit.

For this mission critical application, Infineon has come up with a cutting edge GaN on silicon technology optimized for RF Power Amplifier solutions, which helps base station radios to elevate their energy efficiency and bandwidth metrics to unprecedented levels of performance.

The number of antennas is increasing – as is the need to support a larger number of frequency bands and features in a constrained size, possibly compromising antenna performance.

 

 

Antenna tuning has the potential to resolve this challenge, boosting antenna efficiency for the highest data rates, excellent signal quality, and longer battery lives.

Building on our deep-rooted RF expertise and wide-ranging competence in this area, coupled with a rich and unique IP portfolio, our comprehensive antenna tuner portfolio provides the broadest selection of smallest, ready-to-use components to maximize antenna radiation efficiency, also reducing the number of antennas required for greater design flexibility and faster time-to-market.



Efficiency and security for server farms

Data centers and server farms have complex requirements:

Alongside providing the computing power and storage capacity required by the Internet of Things, they also need to offer maximum security for the data stored and processed within them.

High-performance power semiconductors enable high PUE (power usage efficiency) and DCIE (data center infrastructure efficiency). Storing and processing data are not the only power-intensive tasks in this context.

The amount of power required to keep servers cool is likewise high because so much waste heat is generated during operation, especially when inefficient voltage converters are used.

This ensures high-performance and energy efficiency.

I am sure my data is handled with the utmost care - thanks to secured communication and data centers.

 

 

Cybersecurity is the second key topic for data centers: In the form of trusted platform modules (TPMs), there are already standardized and certified security

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