Advanced Communication Laboratory

EXPERIMENT NO: 5
RF FILTERS
AIM:
To measure the following parameters of RF high pass, Low pass and Band Pass of
Butterworth and Chebyshev filters using Spectrum Analyzer:
a. The insertion loss
b. Pass band and Stop band frequency
APPARATUS REQUIRED:
RFT-06-A1 RF high pass Butterworth module,
RFT-06-A2 RF high pass Chebyshev module,
RFT-06-B1 RF low pass Butterworth module,
RFT-06-B2 RF low pass Chebyshev module,
RFT-06-C1 RF band pass Butterworth module,
RFT-06-C2 RF band pass Chebyshev module,
NA-04 Scalar Network Analyzer,
RFS-01 RF signal source,
RFPD RF power detector,
GSP-810 Spectrum Analyzer with Tracking Generator (150 KHz-1GHz),
Connecting cables,
Dual DC variable power supply.
THEORY:
Butterworth filter:
The Butterworth filter is a type of signal processing filter designed to have as flat a
frequency response as possible in the pass band. It is also referred to as a maximally flat
magnitude filter. An ideal electrical filter should not only completely reject the unwanted
frequencies but should also have uniform sensitivity for the wanted frequencies.
Such an ideal filter cannot be achieved but Butterworth showed that successively
closer approximations were obtained with increasing numbers of filter elements of the right
values. At the time, filters generated substantial ripple in the pass band, and the choice of
component values was highly interactive. Butterworth showed that a low pass filter could be
Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering

Advanced Communication Laboratory

designed whose cut-off frequency was normalized to 1 radian per second and whose
frequency response (gain) was
I B(j ) I2 =1/[1 + (j /j c)]2N
where is the angular frequency in radians per second and n is the number of poles in the
filter equal to the number of reactive elements in a passive filter. If = 1, the amplitude
response of this type of filter in the pass band is 1/2 0.707, which is half power or 3 dB.
Insertion loss:
Insertion loss is equal to the difference in dB power measured at the filter input and at
the filter output. The power measured at the filter input is equal to the measured power when
the filter is replaced by a properly matched power meter or Network Analyzer. Insertion loss
is equal to the sum of three loss factors:
1. Loss due to impedance mismatch at the input
2. Mismatch at the filter output
3. Dissipative loss within the filter
Pass band:
It is equal to the frequency range for which the filter insertion loss is less than a
specified value.
Stop band:
It is equal to the frequency range for which the filter insertion loss is greater than a
specified value.
Cut-off Band:
The basic function of a filter is to selectively pass, by frequency the desired signals
and to suppress undesired signals. The amount of insertion loss and phase shift encountered
by a signal passing through the filter is a function of the filter design. Three types of filters
are available:
(1) Low pass (2) High pass

(3) Band pass

Low pass filters have been designed to provide high rejection of undesired signals
very close to the pass band and to provide linear phase to frequency characteristic across the
pass band frequency range. A linear phase to frequency characteristic is essential in order to
preserve the pulse shape. High pass filters have been designed to provide high rejection of
undesired signals very close to the pass band. The filters can provide complete matching
between the input and the output.

Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering

Advanced Communication Laboratory

Voltage Standing Wave Ratio (VSWR):

It is a measure of the impedance looking into one port of the filter while the other
filter port is terminated in its characteristic impedance, namely 50.Many times the
impedance match is expressed in terms of return loss. Typically the VSWR in the center of
the pass band is better than 1.2 to 1 and the VSWR in the stop band is typically 18 to 1, very
highly reflective. But in constant impedance band pass filter series, both filter ports provide a
good impedance match in the pass band and the stop band.
Center Frequency:
Center Frequency is the frequency at which the band pass filters are geometrically
centered. For example, if f 1 and f 2 represent the 3 dB frequency points of a band pass
filter, then the center frequency f0 is calculated as:
f0= (f 1f 2)
CIRCUIT DIAGRAM:
a) To measure the insertion loss of RF high pass Butterworth module:

b) To measure the insertion loss of RF high pass Chebyshev module:

Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering

Advanced Communication Laboratory

C) To measure the insertion loss of RF Low pass Butterworth module:

d) To measure the insertion loss of RF Low pass Chebyshev module:

Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering

Advanced Communication Laboratory

e) To measure the insertion loss of RF band pass Butterworth module:

f) To measure the insertion loss of RF band pass Chebyshev module:

PROCEDURE:
1. Connect low band output of RFS-01 to input of RFPD.
2. Set it for maximum output level.
3. Vary frequency of RFS-01 from 10MHz to 575MHz insteps of 10MHz and note down the
DC output reading from RFPD for each frequency.
4. Connect high band output of RFS-01 to input of RFPD.
5. Vary frequency of RFS-01 from 575MHz to 1150MHz insteps of 10MHz and note down
the DC output reading from RFPD for each frequency.

Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering

Advanced Communication Laboratory

6. Convert the DC output of RFPD to corresponding RF voltage at its input using the power
conversion table.
7. Plot the above readings for frequency vs RF voltage output from RFPD as a reference line
for measurement.
8. Connect low band output of RFS-01 to input of RFPD.
9. Connect output of RFT-06-A1 to input of RFPD.
10. Vary frequency of RFS-01 from 10MHz to 575MHz insteps of 10MHz and note down the
DC output reading from RFPD for each frequency.
11. Connect high band output of RFS-01 to input of RFT-06-01.
12. Vary frequency of RFS-01 from 575MHz to 1150MHz insteps of 10MHz and note down
the DC output reading from RFPD for each frequency.
13. Convert the DC output of RFPD to corresponding RF voltage at its input using the power
conversion table.
14. Plot the above readings for frequency vs RF voltage output from RFPD as an output of
high pass filter.
15. Difference between RF voltages at a given frequency on reference plot to RF voltage
output of the filter will give insertion loss at that frequency.
16. Repeat steps 1 to 15 by replacingRFT-06-A1 with RFT-06-A2 for finding the insertion
loss of RF high pass Chebyshev module.
17. From the plot of procedure from steps 1 to 15, find the frequency for which the insertion
lossis 3dB which gives the cutoff frequency of the filter.
PROCEDURAL SETUP:
a) To measure the insertion loss:
The filters have been replaced accordingly for the corresponding filter modules. For
High pass Butterworth filter the setup is shown below:

Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering

Advanced Communication Laboratory

MODEL GRAPHS:
a) For High Pass Filter:

Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering

Advanced Communication Laboratory

b) For Low Pass Filter:

Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering

Advanced Communication Laboratory

c) For Band Pass Filter:

TABULATION:
S.
N
O

LOW PASS
BUTTERWORT
H FILTER

LOW PASS
CHEBYSH
EV FILTER

HIGH PASS
BUTTERWO
RTH FILTER

BAND PASS
BUTTERWO
RTH FILTER

BAND PASS
CHEBYSHEV
FILTER

FREQ POWER
(MHz (dB)
)

FRE
Q
(MH
z)

FREQ
(MHz)

FREQ
(MHz)

FREQ
(MHz)

PO
WE
R(d
B)

HIGH
PASS
CHEBYS
HEV
FILTER
PO FREQ P
WE (MHz O
R(d )
W
B)
E
R
(d
B
)

Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering

P
O
W
E
R(
dB
)

POWER(
dB)

Advanced Communication Laboratory

INFERENCE:
Insertion loss for the Butterworth High pass filter and Chebyshev high pass filters for
the frequency range from 350MHz to 1GHz are of the order of 2dB and their pass band and
stop band frequencies are of the range of 400MHz to 1GHz and from dc to 350 MHZ
respectively. Insertion loss for the Butterworth Low pass filter and Chebyshev Low pass
filters for the frequency range from dc to 350MHz is of the order of 2dB and their pass band
and stop band frequencies are of the range of dc to 350 MHZ and from 400MHz to 1GHz
respectively.
RESULT:
Thus the RF filters are analyzed for its bandwidth, pass band and stop band frequencies.

Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering