Infineon, Intel To Develop Solutions For HD SIM Cards

Infineon and Intel have agreed to collaborate on developing chip solutions for high-density SIM Cards. Infineon will architect modular chip solutions, including a 32-bit security microcontroller based on its existing SLE 88 family. Intel will contribute leading-edge flash memory technologies, capabilities, and manufacturing, offering capacities from 4MB to 64MB. Intel's NOR flash memory will be manufactured on 65-nanometer (nm) and 45-nm process technologies. The security microcontroller is produced on 130-nm process technology, which is state-of-the-art for chips used in smartcard applications, according to Infineon. The companies are banking on market research that predicts high-density SIM cards will account for six to eight percent of the total SIM card market in 2010. Existing SIM cards handle network security and basic user functionality. By late 2008, the new USB interface of SIM cards will enable more data-intensive mobile applications, requiring more memory in the SIM card, according to market researach firm Frost & Sullivan. "It is Intel’s and Infineon’s common vision that high-density SIM cards will grow significantly as \[mobile network operators\] launch new application-driven services using a rich multimedia user interface and carrier branding," Glen Hawk, general manager of Intel’s Flash Products Group, said in a statement. Samples of the Intel-Infineon HD SIM card solution will be available in die form or in a chip card IC package in the second half of 2008.