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5RFTransmitterMeasurementsEveryEngineerShouldKnowNationalInstruments

5RFTransmitterMeasurementsEveryEngineerShouldKnow
PublishDate:Jul11,2014

TableofContents

1.OutputPower
2.PowerinaBand
3.UnwantedSignals
4.PhaseNoise
5.ModulationQuality
6.Summary
RF(http://www.ni.com/rf/)transmittersareanessentialpartofmoderncommunications.
DesignedandassembledfromcoreRFcomponents,RFtransmittershavemanydifferent
formsandapplications.WeoftenthinkofRFtransmittersinwirelesscommunications,but
theconceptappliesequallytowiredapplicationssuchascabletelevision.Cellularphones,
radar,militarycommunications,avionics,wirelessLAN,modems,andsignalgeneratorsare
justafewexamplesofsystemsthatemployoneormoreRFtransmitters.

Figure1.TheblockdiagramofagenericRFtransmittershowsbasebandinformation
conditionedwithsignalprocessing,andthenmodulatedandconvertedtoanintermediate
frequencybeforethefinalconversiontoRFfortransmission.
Operatingparameters,cost,anddesignconsiderationsimpactRFtransmitterperformance
and,subsequently,theRFsignalquality.Consequently,ensuringtheRFtransmittermeets
specificationisessentialinqualityRFcommunications.Acrossvariousimplementationsof
RFtransmitterstherearestandardteststhatareessentialtoensuringproperoperation.This
paperexploresfiveessentialmeasurementsfrequentlyperformedonRFtransmitters.
1.OutputPower

ThemostcommonRFtransmittermeasurementisRFpower.Beforeperforminganyother
tests,theengineerwantstoknow,IsmyDUToutputtingpower?Isitoutputtingpowerwithin
specifiedparameters?TestingRFpoweranswersthesequestionsandisthefirstindication
ofthesystemshealth.
RFpowermeasurementstakemanyforms,dependingontheRFtransmitterdesignand
application.TheRFoutputmaybeasimplecontinuouswave(CW)signal,apulse,an
analogmodulatedsignal,oracomplexdigitallymodulatedtransmission,suchasanIQor
orthogonalfrequencydivisionmultiplexing(OFDM)waveform.AmongthetypesofRFpower
measurements,thesteadystateRFpowerofaCWtoneisperhapsthesimplest.Peak
power,suchastheovershootofanRFpulseorIQwaveform,isthemaximumvalueover
someperiodoftime.Thepowermeasurementcanbeaveragedacrossatimeperiod,such
asacrossaseriesofRFpulses,yieldingtheaveragepower.RFpowercanbeintegrated
overafrequencyband,asisthecaseformanymobilecommunicationsignals.Digitally
modulatedsignalstendtobenoiselikeinnatureandoftenhavespecifiedaverageandpeak
powervalues.
OneaccurateandcosteffectiveinstrumentformeasuringRFpoweristheRFpowermeter
(http://sine.ni.com/nips/cds/view/p/lang/en/nid/208934).Becauseitsascalarinstrument,
incapableofmeasuringphase,careshouldbetakentominimizeimpedancemismatches
whosereflectionscanaddinandoutofphasewiththesignalbeingmeasured,resultingin
greatermagnitudeuncertainty.Powermetersarebroadbandandnotfrequencyselective,so
anyunwantedsignalsareaveragedintothedesiredmeasurement.Thedynamicrangeof
mostpowermetersis50to70dB.Highendpowermetersarecapableofspecialized
measurementssuchasintegratedpoweracrossabandandtriggeringforpulsedRFpower.
Forthesereasons,powermetersareagoodchoiceiftheRFenvironmentiswellcontrolled.
AnotherinstrumentcommonlyusedtomeasureRFpowerisaspectrumanalyzer.With
thesemorecomplexRFinstruments,engineerscanmeasuretheindividualspectral
componentsacrossfrequency.Theabsolutepowermeasurementaccuracyisnot
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outstanding,typically+0.5to+2.0dB.However,therelativepoweraccuracy(oramplitude

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linearity)isexcellent.Therefore,calibratingatagivenfrequencywithaknownpowerlevel,
fromasignalgenerator,forexample,resultsincorrectedpowermeasurementsthatare
accurateacrossadynamicrangegreaterthan100dB.
HighperformanceRFinstruments,includingvectorsignalanalyzers
(http://sine.ni.com/nips/cds/view/p/lang/en/nid/203041)andvectornetworkanalyzers
(http://sine.ni.com/nips/cds/view/p/lang/en/nid/208966),canmeasuremagnitudeandphase,
offeringthepotentialforgreatererrorcorrectionandmeasurementaccuracy.Inadditionto
theRFpowermeasurementsmentionedpreviously,specialtymeasurementscanbemade
onpulsedandothercomplexRFwaveforms.Thisincludespulseprofiling,whichmeasures
thepoweracrosstheenvelopeofanRFpulse,alongwiththeaverageandpeakpowerof
theRFpulse.ComplexIQwaveformsaremeasuredinmoreofanoiselikefashionwith
measurementssuchaspeaktoaverageratio,andcomplementarycumulativedistribution
function(CCDF).

Figure2.RFPowerMeasurementofaSingleCWSignal,aBroadbandSignalIntegrated
AcrossaFrequencyBand,andPulseEnvelopeSignalUsingaVectorSignalAnalyzer
OnefinalconsiderationwhenmeasuringRFpowerismeasurementspeed.Powermeters
offerexcellentaccuracybuttypicallyslowermeasurementtimeswithrespecttohigh
performanceRFinstruments.Thisfrequenttradeoffbetweenaccuracyandspeedisa
compromisethatcanbemitigatedtosomeextentwithenhancedcalibrationprocedures.
UnderstandingthetypeofRFpowermeasurement,theaccuraciesrequired,andthe
capabilitiesoftheRFinstrumentwillresultinaccuraterepeatablemeasurements.
2.PowerinaBand

Toimprovespectralefficiencyandpermitmultipleusersforagivenspectrum,RF
transmittersuseavarietyofmodulationtechniquestoencodeandsendinformation.Modern
communicationsareallocatedaspecificamountoffrequencyspectrum,oftenreferredtoas
achannel.Thechannelisusuallydefinedbyaregulatingbody,suchastheFederal
CommunicationsCommission(FCC)intheUnitedStates.Usersaregenerallyconcerned
withtwomeasurementswithregardtotheirassignedspectrum.Onemeasurementisthe
integratedpoweracrosstheassignedchannel,oftencalledtheoccupiedbandwidth(OBW),
powerinband,orchannelpower.Herethepowerisintegratedacrossthechannelfromthe
assignedstarttotheassignedstopfrequency.
Inadditiontomeasuringthepowerinthechannel,thereisalsoaneedtoensurethat
transmissionsarenotleakingintochannelsassignedtootherusers,especiallythoseon
eithersideoftheassignedchannel.Inadditiontotechnicalshortcomings,thiscanresultin
costlyfinesfromregulatoryagencies.Atypicaltestapproachistofilltheassigned
(occupied)bandwithatestsignalandmeasuretheintegratedpowerversusfrequencyinthe
channelsadjacenttotheoccupiedchannel.Thistestgoesbymanynames,butits
genericallyreferredtoastheadjacentchannelpower(ACP)measurement.Theexact
frequencies,integratedpowerspecifications,andtestmethodsarespecifiedbythe
standardsgoverningthetransmission.

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Figure3.AnACPtestshowsthespecifiedpowerandfrequencylimitsfortheoccupied
channelandfourunoccupiedadjacentchannels.
3.UnwantedSignals

WithaperfectRFtransmitter,theonlysignaltransmittedwouldbethesignalofinterest.
However,unwantedsignalsareaconsequenceofrealworldtransmitterdesigntradeoffs.
Cost,performance,andotherrequirementsinfluencethefinalproduct.Theseunwanted
signalsfallwithinthreebroadcategories:harmonic,intermodulation,andspurious(spurs).
Signalsthatareintegermultiplesofthemaincarriersignalaresaidtobeharmonically
related.Leadingsourcesofthesesignalsareamplifiersusedinthetransmitter.These
signalsmaybelowenoughinamplitudesotheyarentconsideredsignificant.Or,theymay
befarenoughawayinfrequencythattheycanbereducedwithfiltering.Harmonicsareeasy
todetectbecausetheirfrequencyispredictable.Forexample,theharmoniccontentofa
signalat1GHz,canbefoundat2GHz,3GHz,andsoon.
Intermodulationproductsaresignalsgeneratedbynonlinearinteractionsinthetransmitter
components.Mixersareanexampleofacircuitcomponentwithnonlinearbehavior.The
mixeroutputsthesumanddifferenceofthetwoinputsignalfrequencies.InRFtransmitters,
theoutputisfilteredtoisolatethehigherfrequencysuminaprocessknownas
upconversion.Inthisway,throughoneormoreupconversionstages,thelowfrequency
basebandinformationcanbetranslatedtothefinalRFfrequencyfortransmission.
Unfortunately,mixersalsoprovideahostofothersignalsincludingcombinationsoftheinput
signalsandtheirharmonics,aswellasleakageoftheinputsignalstotheoutput.The
frequencyandamplitudeoftheintermodulationproductschangewithchangesintheinput
signals.Withcarefulanalysis,intermodulationproductscanbepredicted,makingitpossible
tominimizetheirimpact.
Thetermspuriousorspurisoftenappliedtoanyunwantedsignal.Inthecontextofthis
paper,itreferstoanyunwantedsignalnotdiscussedabove.Spurscanoccuratany
frequencyandpowerlevelfromsourcessuchasleakageandelectromagneticinterference.
Theunpredictablenatureofspurioussignalsmakesthemmorechallengingtodetectand
remove.Empiricalandanalyticalmethodsalongwithgooddesignpracticesarethebest
toolstominimizetheirimpact.
Spectrumorvectorsignalanalyzerswiththeirexcellentlinearityandrelativepoweraccuracy
aregoodinstrumentstoidentifythefrequencyandrelativepowerofunwantedsignals.
Powermetersontheotherhandaretypicallynotusedbecausetheyarebroadbandwith
limiteddynamicrange.InanRFtransmitter,unwantedsignalsrepresentwastedRFpower
thatsnotgoingintothedesiredtransmission.Thisresultsinavarietyofconsequences
includinglowerefficiency,excessiveheat,reducedbatterylife,andlowertestyields.The
bestplanofactionistoperformproperanalysisduringthedesignphasetoidentifyand
mitigateunwantedsignalsfromthetransmitter.

Figure4.AvectorsignalanalyzerdisplayshowsthedesiredRFoutputsignal,identifiedwith
ayellowmarker,andotherharmonic,intermodulation,andspuriouscontent.
4.PhaseNoise

PerhapsoneofthemostcompetitivespecificationsforanRFtransmitterisphasenoise.RF
transmitters,andreceiversforthatmatter,typicallyconsistofseveralfrequencyconversion
stages.ReferringbacktoFigure1,thisisdonetoupconvertthesignalfromitsoriginal
basebandfrequencytothefinalRFtransmissionfrequency.Thisisoftenaccomplishedusing
aseriesofmixers,whichsumtheinputfrequencywiththelocaloscillator(LO)frequency.
ThefrequencystabilityoftheLOiscriticalinhighqualityRFcommunicationand
transmissionsystems.Anyshorttermfrequencyinstabilityresultsindiminished
performance.Thisshortterminstabilityisknownasphasenoise.Therelatedterminthe
timedomainisjitter.Ideally,wewantphasenoisetobezero,butinrealworldsystemsthat
isneverthecase.Phasenoiseisaproductofacommondesigntradeoffbetweentuning
speedandphasenoiseintheLOphaselockloopandoscillatorcircuitry.
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Phasenoiseisusuallyassumedtobesymmetricwithrespecttothecarrier.Thatis,the
shapeofthephasenoiseisassumedtobethesameontheuppersideofthecarrierasitis
onthelowersideofthecarrier.Byconvention,phasenoiseisplottedwiththecarrieronthe
verticalaxis,andthehorizontalaxisrepresentsoffset,asapowerspectraldensity(PSD)in
dBc/Hertz,fromthecarrier.Valuesonthisplotareexpressedastheamplitudevaluebelow
thecarrieratagivenfrequencyoffsetfromthecarrier,suchas85dBc/Hzata10kHzoffset.
Theshapeofthephasenoisecurvealsoprovidesinformationaboutthecircuit,suchasloop
bandwidth,flickernoise,andnoisefloor.

Figure5.Aphasenoiseplotmeasuredwithavectorsignalanalyzershowsthefrequency
offsetfromthecarrieronthehorizontalaxisandtherelativeamplitudeontheverticalaxis.
Theredplotrepresentstherawdataandthewhitetraceisthemeanvalue.Notethelow
levelspurioussignals(inred)between1.0and10MHzoffset.
Thestraightforwardwaytomeasurephasenoiseisthedirectmethod.Withthismethod,a
testinstrument,suchasaspectrumanalyzerwithphasenoisemuchbetterthanthedevice
undertest(DUT),isconnecteddirectlytotheDUT,andthephasenoiseisplottedwithatest
programorinternalpersonality.Forhigherperformancephasenoisemeasurements,the
DUTiscomparedagainstoneormorehighlystable,lowphasenoisesources.Two
examplesarethedelaylinemethodandthecrosscorrelationmethod.Averagingisusedto
reducethemeasurementnoise.

Figure6.Threemeasurementtechniquesforphasenoiseincludethedirectmethod(top),
thedelaylinemethod(middle),andthecrosscorrelationmethod(bottom).
5.ModulationQuality

RFtransmittersencodeinformationononeormoreCWcarrierswithmodulation.Evaluating
thequalityofthemodulatedsignalprovidesinsightintothehealthoftheentiretransmitter
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chainfrombasebandtoRFoutput.Sometestsarespecifictoagivenmodulationscheme,
butothersarewidelyused.Forexample,withAMandFManalogmodulation,modulation
indexanddeptharegenerallymeasured.
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FordigitalIQwaveforms,errorvectormagnitude(EVM),alsoknownasrelativeconstellation
CustomerReviews
error(RCE),dependingonthestandardbeingemployed,describesthequalityofthe
modulation.Ateachcycleofthetransmittersinternalsymbolclock,thewaveformsphase
andmagnitudearesetandtransmitted.Tomeasurethesignalsphaseandmagnitude
accuracy,avectorsignalanalyzerwiththeappropriateIQmeasurementpersonalityisused.
Ateachcycleofthesymbolclock,thephaseandmagnitudevaluesofthetransmitted
waveformismeasured,convertedtoIQcomponents,andcomparedwiththeexpected
(ideal)valueoftheIandQcomponents.Theseidealvalues,definedbytheappropriate
standard,areplottedonanIQplotknownasaconstellationdiagram.Thedifference
betweentheactualvalueandexpectedvalueofthewaveformisexpressedasanerrorterm
inpercent,whichistheEVM.ToencompassmultipleIQstates,itistypicallyarunning
averageofseveralhundredEVMmeasurementsacrosstheconstellationdiagram.

Figure7.AnIQdiagramofa64QAMsignalwiththeEVMmeasurementcomputedbelow
alongsideanenlargementofasingleconstellationpointshowingtheidealIQstate(blue)the
measuredIQstate(yellow)andtheerrorvector(red)representingthedifferenceasEVM.
6.Summary

NumeroustestscanbeemployedtoanalyzeRFtransmitters.Thefivetestscoveredinthis
paperarefrequentlyusedacrossawiderangeofRFtransmittersandapplications.Ensuring
theproperperformanceofanRFtransmitterleadstogreateraccuracy,lessuncertainty,
higherefficiency,andreducedcost.AssessmentofRFtransmittersrequiresamethodical
approachthatincorporatestheappropriateamountofqualitytesting.Careshouldbeused
withallRFcomponents,equipment,andconnections.Usingthefivetestshereinasa
foundationforatestplanleadstoimprovedperformanceandreliabilityaswellasbetter
insightintothedesignandoperationofanRFtransmitter.
SteveTenney(mailto:steve.tenney@ni.com)
SteveTenneyistheRFMarketDevelopmentManageratNationalInstruments.Hehasover
31yearsofexperienceinhighfrequencyRFdesign,test,andmeasurement.Heholdsa
BachelorofSciencedegreefromTennesseeTechUniversityandaMasterofScience
degreefromSouthernMethodistUniversity.
LearnmoreaboutNIsolutionsforRFandwirelesstest.(http://www.ni.com/rf/test/)
CustomerReviews
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