At Mobile World Congress 2018, Rohde & Schwarz is showcasing its innovative solutions for LTE and 5G. At their booth in Barcelona, they are showcasing the first one-box 5G NR test solution for chip manufacturers. Also on display at their booth is the world’s first test solution for a chipset that utilizes enhanced Carrier Aggregation (eCA) for LTE mobile broadband transmissions. The chipset receives and processes eight downlink carrier signals in parallel, allowing transmission rates of up to 2 Gbit/s in current LTE networks.
Fifth generation (5G) mobile communications offers communications solutions for diverse key areas of applications. Data rates of 10 Gbit/s and more are possible with 5G New Radio (NR). These are achieved through higher bandwidths of up to 100 MHz in the traditional mobile radio bands (sub-6 GHz range) and up to 800 MHz in the millimeter-wave (mmW) range. Signals in the mmW range experience strong attenuation in the atmosphere. Antenna arrays with narrow pencil beams are used to minimize losses due to attenuation. As a result, conventional conducted tests are increasingly being replaced by over-the-air (OTA) tests.
R&S is addressing these mobile communications needs with new 5G NR sub 6 GHz and 5G NR mmW test solutions. Since many network operators will continue using their LTE networks, Rohde & Schwarz is not giving up on innovation in LTE and is showcasing new 4G Test Solutions as well. This will allow network operators to utilize added value generated from their existing infrastructures for the introduction of 5G. Here is some information about the demonstrations at the R&S booth at MWC 2018:
R&S CMP200 One-box Tester and OTA Test System for 5G NR mmW Range
Rohde & Schwarz is exhibiting its new R&S CMP200 radio communication tester for the 28 GHz and 39 GHz frequency bands. The tester is designed for 5G NR OTA measurements and consists of an IF unit and remote radio heads (RRHs). Users can position the RRHs as close as possible to the OTA antenna test chamber to minimize cable losses during the measurements. It is also showcasing the R&S CMP200 as a complete OTA test solution together with the R&S ATS1000 antenna test system and accessories such as Vivaldi antennas from Rohde & Schwarz and the R&S NRPM OTA power measurement solution.
R&S CMW100 One-box Tester for 5G NR Sub 6 GHz Range
The latest version of the leading R&S CMW100 production tester supports 5G NR TX and RX measurements. The solution is fully compatible with the 2G, 3G and 4G cellular technologies and with wireless technologies such as WLAN and Bluetooth. The new 5G test options can be enabled via license keys.
R&S CMWflexx Test Solution for LTE-A Pro 8CA
Another highlight on display is a Rohde & Schwarz test solution for verifying chipsets that support the 3GPP Rel. 13 enhanced Carrier Aggregation (eCA) feature. The solution makes it possible to test user equipment that is capable of receiving up to 8 downlink carriers in parallel. It is based on an R&S CMWflexx test set consisting of two R&S CMW500 wideband radio communication testers.
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