Infineon takes lead in MEMS microphone market and launches new technology

According to research consultancy, Omdia, Infineon Technologies AG has successfully positioned itself as a market leader for MEMS microphones. Based on MEMS chip unit sales, the market share was reported to hit a staggering 43.5 percent.

This positions Infineon at the top, with a lead of almost four percent over second place and more than 37 percent over third place. This is attributed to Infineon’s long-term experience in MEMS microphone design and high volume manufacturing.

Most recently, Infineon is launching a next-generation analog MEMS microphone that renders even better results: the XENSIV MEMS microphone IM73A135.

When designing microphones, engineers often have to accept trade-offs, such as a high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), a small package, high acoustic overload point, low-power consumption, and MEMS versus electret condenser microphones (ECM). For this reason, applications that require high-performance microphones may have previously used ECMs instead of MEMS.

The new IM73A135 reduces the need to compromise. This is thanks to the the 73 dB SNR and a high-acoustic overload point (135 dB SPL), which make for a high dynamic range microphone with a small footprint (4 x 3 x 1.2 mm 3).

Infineon’s new MEMS microphone also features a tight frequency curve matching for the most effective audio signal processing and the industry’s lowest power consumption of 170 μA. The IM73A135 allows designers to reach a level of high audio performance, restricted to ECMs, while reaping the benefits inherent in MEMS technology.

The MEMS microphone also offers excellent characteristics to enhance active noise cancellation in headphones, a market that’s expected to grow to about 250 million devices by 2025, with a CAGR of 16 percent.

Additionally, the low self-noise makes the IM73A135 especially suited for high-quality audio capturing required in conference systems, cameras, or audio recorders. This is a market that’s also expected to increase significantly.

Low-power technology for wearables
Infineon is not only expanding its portfolio of branded MEMS microphones but also extending its lead via a new, low-power digital ASIC technology. It will be used in several, next-generation digital microphones that are manufactured and branded by the “Infineon-inside” microphone partner network.

Its low-power mode current consumption (of as little as 110µA) makes it an ideal match for the wearables segment, including smartwatches, fitness bands, etc.

The growing demand for aesthetically appealing products with the ability to serve the consumers’ daily needs better will grow this market to reach approximately 650 million units by 2025, at a CAGR of almost 20 percent over a forecast period from 2020 to 2025.

The XENSIV MEMS microphone IM73A135 will be available for the distribution market in March 2021.