Full Description

Linear Technology Corporation (Linear Technology), incorporated in 1981, designs, manufactures and markets a line of standard linear integrated circuits. The Company’s products include high-performance amplifiers, comparators, voltage references, monolithic filters, linear regulators, direct current to direct current (DC-DC) converters, battery chargers, data converters, communications interface circuits, radio frequency (RF) signal conditioning circuits, uModule products, and many other analog functions. Applications for Linear Technology’s high-performance circuits include telecommunications, cellular telephones, networking products, such as optical switches, notebook and desktop computers, computer peripherals, video/multimedia, industrial instrumentation, security monitoring devices, consumer products, such as digital cameras and medical devices, automotive electronics, factory automation, process control, and military and space systems.

Amplifier circuits amplify the output voltage or current of a device. High-speed amplifiers are used to amplify signals from five megahertz to several hundred megahertz for applications, such as video, fast data acquisition and communications. Voltage regulators deliver a tightly controlled voltage to power electronic systems. This category of product consists primarily of two types: the linear regulator and the switch-mode regulator. Switch-mode regulators are also used to convert voltage up or down within an electronic system for power management and battery charging. Voltage references serve as electronic benchmarks providing a constant voltage for measurement systems usage. Precision references have a constant output independent of input, temperature changes or time. Interface circuits act as an intermediary to transfer digital signals between or within electronic systems. These circuits are used in computers, modems, instruments and remote data acquisition systems.

Data Converters change linear (analog) signals into digital signals, or visa versa. Low-speed data converters may have resolution up to 24 bits, while high-speed converters may operate in the region of 100 megahertz sample rate. Radio frequency circuits include mixers, modulators, demodulators, amplifiers, drivers, and power detectors and controllers. They are used in wireless and cable infrastructure, cell phones, and wireless data communications infrastructure. Radio frequency circuits include mixers, modulators, demodulators, amplifiers, drivers, filters, oscillators/synthesizers and power detectors and controllers. They are used in wireless and cable infrastructure, cellphones, and wireless data communications infrastructure. Power over Ethernet controllers (POE) circuites enable transmission of voltage and current over Ethernet cables to power equipment or devices connected to the network. DC/DC uModule power system simplifies the design of a DC/DC regulator circuit by integrating a complete circuit into a package. These devices are so small that they resemble a surface-mount Internet circuit (IC). Signal chain modules complete signal chain functions utilizing data converters, filter, amplifiers, RF circuits, and related passive components are encapsulated as system in a package (SiP) modules.

Other linear circuits include buffers, battery monitors, motor controllers, hot swap circuits, comparators, sample-and-hold devices, drivers and filters (both switched capacitor and continuous time), which are used to limit and/or manipulate signals in such applications as cellular telephones, base stations, navigation systems and industrial applications. Linear circuits are used in various applications, including telecommunications, cellular telephones, networking products, such as power over Ethernet switches, notebook computers, computer peripherals, video/multimedia, industrial instrumentation, security monitoring devices, high-end consumer products, such as digital cameras and moving picture experts group layer-3 audio (MP3) players, global positioning systems, medical devices, automotive electronics, factory automation, process control, and military and space systems.

The Company's wafer fabrication facilities are located in Camas, Washington (Camas), and Milpitas, California (Hillview). In addition to wafer fabrication facilities, Linear Technology has an assembly facility located in Malaysia, and a test and distribution facility located in Singapore. The Company's wafer fabrication facilities located in Camas and Hillview are used to produce six-inch diameter wafers for use in the production of the Company's devices. Linear Technology uses similar manufacturing processes in both its Hillview and Camas facilities.

The Company competes with Analog Devices Inc., National Semiconductor Corporation, Intersil, Maxim Integrated Products, Inc., Texas Instruments, Inc.