Evaluation Engineering - 12

RF/MICROWAVE TEST

VTI Instruments, a product line in
AMETEK's Programmable Power business unit, also addresses switching.
The company recently introduced its
SMX-7xxx Series of 15 PXIe microwave
switch modules, according to Chris
Gibson, senior product manager. "These
new modules extend functionality typically reserved for dedicated standalone
systems into the PXIe form factor. The
26.5-GHz bandwidth operation as well
as single- and dual-slot versions provide
the ability to create multiple configurations, including SPDT, SP4T, SP6T, and
transfer switches."
He continued, "a pass-through adapter
module extends functionality even further with programmable drive lines for
controlling attenuators and other microwave devices. Embedded web-browser
control further simplifies setup and test
debugging, which allows all relays to be
controlled independently of application
software and device drivers."

Amplifiers, analyzers,
and generators
AR RF/Microwave Instrumentation
continually releases updated amplifier
models, according to Dale Hauck, applications engineer. "Of particular interest
is AR's line of S-series amplifiers, spanning from 0.7 to 18 GHz," he said. "These
amps, along with all of AR's amps, offer
the widest bandwidth, highest output
power, longest life, and best mismatch
tolerance on the market."
Hauck added that AR's amplifiers serve
in all stages of product life cycle, including R&D, production test, and field test.
"AR amps are actively used for each of
the stages, whether it's characterization
testing, production chip testing, product
compliance testing, or radar communications in the field, as well as many other
applications," he said, adding that the
company serves 5G, Wi-Fi 6, automotive
radar, IoT, radar, and EMC compliance.
He further noted that AR has formed
strategic partnerships with companies
including Keysight, Comtest, and Nexio
to provide total solutions for customers.
Tabor Electronics has recently introduced two RF/microwave test products,
according to Mark Elo, US manager. The

12

EVALUATION ENGINEERING JULY 2020

first is Proteus, "...a 9-GHz bandwidth
arbitrary waveform transceiver that not
only generates directly to RF and microwave frequencies, but also has a receiver
architecture with FPGA processing built
in. This allows you to generate real-time
signals based on feedback from the receiver, which are then processed onboard
in the FPGA."
The second is Lucid, which, Elo said,
redefines analog signal generation. "This
12-GHz modular instrument has specifications comparable to leading bench/rack
instrumentation," he said, adding that it is
available in four form factors: a basic brick
module, a multichannel unit for R&D and
production (available in benchtop or rackmount models), and a portable version for
field support.
Elo commented on applications.
"Proteus focuses on wide-bandwidth
applications in the communications,
automotive, electronic warfare, and physics verticals, and can generate up to 4.5
GHz of instantaneous bandwidth. This
is frequently used in signal-simulation
applications for emulating next-generation wireless systems, such as Wi-Fi 6
and 5G, and radar signals for automotive
and electronic warfare applications. We
also simplify the quantum-physics experiment setup by providing the ability
to generate signals direct to microwave,
eliminating the need for complex measurement setups."

Siglent SSA3000X-R real-time spectrum analyzer.

He added that Lucid has broader applications. "It has been used in EMI applications,
chamber test (especially with the increase
in frequency ranges driven by Wi-Fi 6 and
even UWB systems), product RF calibration
systems, military field test, multichannel
applications such as those required in upand-down conversion chains, and other
applications where multiple channels of
coherent carriers are required."
Several companies have recently introduced signal and spectrum analyzers.
For example, B&K Precision's 2680 Series
spectrum analyzers, offer frequency ranges from 9 kHz to 2.1 GHz, or to 3.2 GHz.
"Each model includes advanced measurements such as channel power, adjacent
channel power, occupied bandwidth, total
power, and third-order-intercept, along
with a 2D and 3D spectrum monitor," said
Jamie Pederson, product marketing manager. "The standard preamplifier, tracking generator, and 1-Hz minimum RBW
round out the list of features," he added.
Siglent's RF development team has been
busy this year, according to Jason Chonko,
applications marketing manager, Siglent
North America. "We announced 7.5-GHz
additions to our swept-superheterodyne
and VNA product lines, as well as our
first real-time spectrum analyzer series,
the SSA3000X-R. They all feature solid RF
performance, easy-to-use UI, and toolkits
that really tailor the instruments for EMI,
broadcast, and RF development work."
Evaluation Engineering

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