The general characterization of complex DUTs such as amplifiers requires the measurement of several parameters. Some may require more than one test device or expensive equipment. Thanks to its versatility, the R&S®ZNL is an economic solution that can characterize a variety of DUTs both via network analysis and spectrum analysis.

17-Dec-2021

Generation of wideband digital modulated signals in V-band and above is a challenging task and typically requires a set of multiple instruments. This application note aims at simplifying the task and looks into the analysis part as well. Latest signal and spectrum analyzers like the R&S®FSW67 and R&S®FSW85 are first to allow use in V-band up to 67 GHz and E-band up to 85 GHz respectively without external frequency conversion. Up to 8.3 GHz of modulation bandwidth can be covered using the R&S®FSW-B8001 option. Millimeter wave use of analyzers ranging from 26 GHz up is shown. Application note 1MA217 describes V-band signal generation and analysis up to 500 MHz modulation bandwidth. This application note expands modulation bandwidth up to 2 GHz and covers both V- and E-band examples.

18-Jun-2015 | AN-No. 1MA257

Today’s digital designs and high-speed data converters require clean clocks with minimal jitter

03-Aug-2017

Selecting Your Next Oscilloscope:

If you are selecting your next oscilloscope and want more insight on how to understand ENOB values measured and published by oscilloscope manufacturers, this document is for you. The effective number of bits (ENOB) is a way of quantifying the quality of analog to digital conversion. A higher ENOB means that voltage levels recorded in analog to digital conversion are more accurate. Understanding oscilloscope vendor-supplied ENOB values can be complex. This document focuses on interpretation of measured ENOB results made on oscilloscopes rather than the math behind ENOB calculations.

21-Jun-2024 | AN-No. 1TD12

Deep memory in an oscilloscope ensures that long waveforms are captured with high resolution right down to the details thanks to a high sustained sample rate. Users can be confident that they are not ‘missing anything’. They benefit from viewing longer periods of time and quickly finding signal anomalies or important events.

21-Mar-2017

Testing the tolerance to phase and impulsive noise is an integral part of quality tests for DVB-T/H and ATSC (8VSB) receivers, and several national and international standards specify guidelines and minimum requirements in this context. This Application Note introduces the R&S SFU-K42 impulsive noise option, the R&S SFU-K41 phase noise option, as well as the R&S SFU-K43 multinoise use option and describes how these can be used for testing the tolerance to phase and impulsive noise on commercial receivers.

26-Jan-2007 | AN-No. 7BM64

The R&S®TSStream multi-TS streaming software streams a number of MPEG transport stream files simultaneously over a single IP interface. The individual transport streams result in a high overall bit rate. To make the streams available on a standard PC, the R&S®TSStream software does not play the transport stream files directly from the hard disk but first loads them into the RAM. The maximum number and length of the transport streams depends solely on the PC's available RAM.

16-Mar-2017 | AN-No. 1GP113

The I/Q-Modulation Generator AMIQ provides high precision I/Q analog output for data calculated by the software WinIQSIM. Additionally, the software AMIQ-K2 enables you to read, convert, and transfer existing data files from various other programs to AMIQ format. Input formats supported by AMIQ-K2 are: - The propriety R&S programs IQSIM and DAB-K1. - Mathematic calculation programs like Matlab and Mathcad. - AWG202, COSSAP and ADS data files. AMIQ-K2 also provides you with remote control for AMIQ. For hardware and software requirements see section 2. AMIQ-K2 transfers data to AMIQ using either - GPIB - RS232. An extensive manual is supplied to help you use AMIQ-K2.

24-Nov-1999 | AN-No. 1MA10

This appication note introduces a program suitable for generating and analyzing WiMAX IEEE 802.16 signals for power amplifier testing. The program allows the user to change the generator settings, to select specific pre-defined test parameters and to analyze the test results. The application note describes the test parameters and the features and capabilities of the program.

03-Aug-2007 | AN-No. RAC-0611-0025

R&S®NESTOR cellular network analysis software supports law enforcement agencies in alibi verification by analyzing mobile network traces. R&S®NESTOR gives users reliable confirmation of whether an individual’s mobile phone was at a specific location at the time of a crime.

10-Apr-2024

7BM30 Digital TV,DTV,DVB,MPEG2,Broadcasting,Television,SFQ,EFA Phase Jitter in DTV Signals Phase Jitter in DTV Signals 7BM30 Digital TV,DTV,DVB,MPEG2,Broadcasting,Television,SFQ,EFA Phase Jitter in DTV Signals

16-May-2002 | AN-No. 7BM30

Designing and implementing an active phased array antenna requires precise characterization of individual components and the integrated performance of the array. To ensure an accurate test of the intended adaptive nature of the active phased array antenna, the embedded algorithms need to be tested as well.This application note aims to explain test procedures and give recommendations towards characterization of the relevant parameters for active phased array antennas and their passive subsystem, as often used in applications for Mobile Communication and RADAR. This application note describes transmit signal quality testing, multi-element amplitude and phase measurement techniques both in receive and transmit cases and introduces a new automated test methodology antenna radiation pattern measurement over frequency. This paper also describes the test system used for transmit and receive module (TRM) characterization in active array antennas.

04-Jul-2016 | AN-No. 1MA248

An offline AC/DC switching converter has no separate bias power supply that provides power to the control integrated circuit itself. Here, an auxiliary primary winding and discrete components are added to supply power to the control circuit. Verifying this circuitry is essential and requires accurate and detailed signal level and timing measurements. The startup sequence takes a long time, which needs to be taken into consideration in the measurement and requires an instrument with sufficient memory.

23-Nov-2022

The RSIB interface enables the network analyzers of the ZVR family to be controlled by means of Windows applications via DDE. The interface functions are contained in the DLL RSIB.DLL. The other DLL RSDDE.DLL provides functions for the DDE access to the instrument firmware. These functions are used by RSIB.DLL. The interface of these functions greatly corresponds to that of National Instruments for programming the GPIB. The function names are similar to those of the NI library but preceded by RSDLL. The two DLLs are part of the firmware and are updated with the firmware update kits.

31-Jul-1998 | AN-No. 1EZ33

The Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers (SCTE) defined the ANSI/SCTE 40 specification: Digital Cable Network Interface Standard. ANSI/SCTE 40 tests are designed to test conformance of set-top boxes and other cable receiving equipment to ensure that they will operate correctly when installed in a cable system. The tests are a combination of noise (AWGN and phase noise), AM hum, micro-reflections, digital and analog adjacent channels, and other discrete interferences. These impairments are found on most cable systems to some degree. Rohde & Schwarz provides set-top box manufacturers with an easy solution to perform conformance testing in line with ANSI/SCTE 40 by using the R&S®SFU broadcast test system and the R&S®SFE100 broadcast tester. The R&S®SFU is able to perform most of the test procedures in one unit. Furthermore, additional test transmitters allow the simulation of full channel loading. This Application Note explains the specific test requirements, a possible setup, and the configuration using the R&S®SFU/SFE100.

29-Oct-2009 | AN-No. 7BM68

RF system noise contributions define receiver capabilities and sensitivity. The noise figure measures how the critical components affect the signal.

28-Jan-2022

IEEE 802.15.4 (ZigBee™) uses OQPSK with a half-sine pulse shaping filter as modulation. This application note describes how to generate and analyze ZigBee™ signals. Simple test signals can be setup with the free-of-charge simulation software R&S WinIQSIM™ and transferred to the vector signal generator R&S SMU200A. It describes how to setup the vector signal analyzer R&S FSQ with option R&S FSQ-K70 for ZigBee™ signal demodulation and how to analyze modulation quality such as error vector magnitude (EVM).

21-Jun-2007 | AN-No. RSI03

Leaving aside the microwave generators, the present line of Rohde & Schwarz products comprisessignal generators up to 1 GHz (SMX, SMG), up to 2 GHz (SMH, SMGU), up to 3 GHz (SME, SMT) and up to 4.3 GHz (SMHU). For applications at higher frequencies, all signal generators can also be operated with an external passive frequency doubler. This extends the range of possible applications up to 8.6 GHz. Some degraded specs regarding level and modulation are described below. For people using the frequency range 3 to 6 GHz, the low priced combination SMT plus frequency doubler will mainly be interesting. Signal generator SMHU is useful for the frequency range up to 8.6 GHz. Especially the phase noise performance is excellent with this instrument. the required output signal. It should also be pointed out that the residual FM and the SSB phase noise will be 6 dB poorer as a result of frequency doubling.

20-Apr-1998 | AN-No. 1GPAN03

The use of Rohde & Schwarz device drivers under VEE software is not complicated. However, a number of factors are involved, the errors that occur are often difficult to diagnose. This application provides easy and detailed support for installation and troubleshooting using National Instruments or Agilent GPIB boards.

20-Dec-2012 | AN-No. 1MA035

Welcome to this introductory video show about the R&S® ZVA family of network analyzers. Network analysis is sometimes considered to be cumbersome and difficult to understand, a very offputting reputation for newcomers to network analyzers. To help you look at network analyzers in a different light, we have created this video series. We have intentionally refrained from explaining any theory in depth. Rather, we want to show you how to operate our analyzers for simple and useful applications. As well as just watching this video show, you can also use it as a guide and try yourself. All the operational steps shown only require a standard RF power amplifier which should be available in almost every lab. So, before we get properly started, we hope you enjoy this video show and much success in becoming familiar with network analysis in general, and our R&S products in particular.

13-Feb-2014 | AN-No. 1MA50

Smartly verify and decode Bluetooth® Low Energy (BLE) transmit signals with a reliable and costefficient spectrum analyzer – the R&S®FPC.

17-May-2018

Detailed instructions on 'How to activate the Win XP firewall'. The firewall is already activated on new units!

23-Nov-2004 | AN-No. 7BM46

Monitoring on up to 10 000 channels with different parameter settings

13-Jul-2012

R&S®AdVISE is a visual inspection software to monitor different regions of interest (ROIs) in a video for visible and audible changes. It automates the process of visually monitoring equipment under test during a test sequence and therefore eliminates human inattention, ensures reproducible results and simplifies the test documentation. R&S®AdVISE offers the possibility to monitor up to 32 ROIs in one video with 12 different specialized ROI types for different kinds of events. That allows the user to apply R&S®AdVISE to all sorts of individual test setups.This application note explains how to setup R&S®AdVISE to monitor the temperature of an EUT by using an infrared camera.

14-Sep-2020 | AN-No. 1S008

This paper describes the characterization of aluminum electrolytic capacitors specifically used in AC-DC power converter applications. It will be discussed why this capacitor technology is critical regarding lifetime and why it cannot be substituted simply by any another capacitor technology. Different aging effects of the capacitor will be discussed. Usage of the capacitor in different AC-DC converter topologies will be presented. Simulation circuits will be used to analyze the capacitor in more detail before suitable measurements will be performed to demonstrate a real example of a switching-mode power supply (SMPS).After the introduction into the aluminum electrolytic capacitor basics and theory, this paper will also present all important and possible measurements of capacitor parameters, like capacitance, equivalent series resistance (ESR) and ripple current. This includes in-circuit measurement which can be performed with an oscilloscope. An LCR-bridge is used to obtain high accuracy measurements in addition. A comparison between the two measurement methods will be presented. Furthermore, the required measurement hardware for the in-circuit measurements and the bridge measurement will be discussed and presented.Lastly, two different lifetime calculation methods are presented and a real example is used to compare the advantages and disadvantages of the different methods.Thanks to Mr. Frank Puhane from Würth eiSos GmbH & Co. KG who provided me with all aluminum electrolytic capacitor samples including the prepared capacitor with build-in temperature sensors to perform all measurements. Furthermore, his great expertise was very beneficial and helpful to create this premium application note.

07-Feb-2023 | AN-No. 1SL388

Most of the tests specified in standard TS 34.121 for 3GPP Rel-99 can be performed with R&S®CMU200. This document provides a step by step guide on how to perform Rel-99 measurements on transmitter/receiver characteristics, and performance tests according to TS 34.121 V8.4.0 clauses 5, 6 and 7 with standalone R&S®CMU200. Test cases that require additional instuments e.g. fading simulator (R&S®SMU200A or R&S®AMU200A) or spectrum analyzer (R&S®FSQ) will be discussed in brief in this application note with recommended reference. A set of *.sav files based on R&SCMU200 firmware V5.02 for UE supporting band I with power class 3 in RMC 12.2 kbps downlink/uplink is attached to this application note.

15-Apr-2009 | AN-No. 1CM71

RF interference is one of the largest contributors to poor network performance. It shows up in dropped calls and low data throughput rates. Traditionally, interference hunting means you get a list of sites with bad performance from an OSS. This defines the areas for interference hunting quite well.If, however, the problem remains after attempts at mitigation, it could be because other sources often mask symptoms of RF interference. Usually the strongest masking is due to the overlap between the interference signal and your network's signals. Analysis could involve complete cities or even countries, an error-prone task when using traditional spectrum analyzers and/or portable receivers and one that consumes a significant amount of time and budget.A more automated solution for larger areas can make the effort involved more manageable. The Rohde & Schwarz network scanner family (R&S®TSME, R&S®TSMA and R&S®TSMW) plus the network problem analyzer (NPA) feature of the R&S®ROMES4 measurement software is such a solution. It allows you to perform a fast drive test with a fleet of cars and collect spectrum data for your targeted or even complete network area in next to no time. Back at your office, the NPA tells you where to send dedicated interference hunting teams with an analyzer or receiver to track down the source of interference. This paper introduces the approach in detail.

02-Oct-2017 | AN-No. 1MA293

This Rohde & Schwarz application note provides an introduction into the DVB-H standard at first. It then discusses the test of DVB-H-capable mobile phones in development and production.

07-Apr-2005 | AN-No. 1MA91

Spurious emission search with spectrum analyzers is one of the most demanding measurements in the design, verification and production of RF and microwave devices. RF designers, especially in the aerospace & defense industry need to detect very low level spurs. Very narrow resolution bandwidths are required to measure with a low noise floor, hence increasing measurement time. Even working with very fast spectrum analyzers, a spur search may take several hours or even days.In this paper we will review the basics of spurious measurements and how the parameters used can affect the detection performance. A new technique as used in the R&S®FSW-K50 spurious measurement application which makes spurious search faster and easier to configure.

14-Jul-2017 | AN-No. 1EF97

Oscilloscopes are the workhorses for power electronics engineers. With powerful and easyto- use FFT analysis capabilities, their application fields extend to EMI debugging – and that saves a lot of time and money. A typical task is verifying the effectiveness of an EMI filter – early in the development phase.

23-Sep-2019