Asahi Kasei Microsystems has developed the AK8973S, said to be the world’s smallest and thinnest 3-axis electronic compass with chip-size packaging of 2.5 x 2.5 x 0.5mm. The small size is made possible by forming Si monolithic Hall elements together with amplifier and logic circuitry on a single chip. Target applications include pedestrian navigation systems in cellphones and personal navigation devices, and motion input in video game controllers. The compass has a chip-size packaging of 2.5 x 2.5 x 0.5mm that enables it to be used in circuit board designs with extremely high mounting density. The AK8973S uses wafer-level CSP, or WLCSP, in which LSIs are encapsulated in resin before the wafer is cut into individual chips.
Asahi Kasei Microsystems, www.akm.com
