everything RF recently interviewed Oz Abramson, Senior VP, is an accomplished entrepreneur and a veteran in the defense & telecommunications industry, and a professional in business development sales and marketing. Oz served as a product development manager in ADC for their “ERC” product line consisting of point-to-multipoint radio access systems. He also served as the CEO of Microlink, which specialized in encryption technologies and was acquired by Elbit, and held several sales and marketing positions in telecommunications and IT companies.
Oz then joined StageOne Ventures as their Chief Analyst responsible for the technology analyses of start-ups and acted as the VP of business development of its incubator. Previously to his career in the telco industry, Oz managed technology teams in ELTA that were focusing on the development of MIC technology and Phased Array antennas based on MMIC technology. In 2009, Oz was one of the founders of RFOptic and is currently serving as the VP of sales, marketing, and business development at RFOptic and its US subsidiary RFOptic Inc. Oz holds an MSc degree in Applied Physics from the Hebrew University and a BSc in Math and Physics from the Hebrew University, which also included business studies.
Q. Can you tell us about RFOptic? When was the company formed and what was its objective?
Oz Abramson: RFOptic Ltd. is a private company founded by 3 industry veterans. The Company started its RF over Fiber activities in 2012. In 2014, the Company developed a programmable RFoF, covering frequencies up to 6GHz, and followed later with products that transport RF signals up to 40GHz and above. The Company decided to focus on 5G and EW/Radar markets.
Q. What products and solutions do you develop?
Oz Abramson: We started by developing programmable 6GHz RF over fiber links based on direct modulation, soon to be followed by a 12GHz programmable product. We also developed RFoF products that support signals up to 67GHz. Based on these technologies, we also provide Optical Delay Lines (ODL) and other customized solutions.
Q. What market segments do you cater to? Which segment is the largest for you? What is the % break up?
Oz Abramson: We are focusing on RF over Fiber for 5G testing, which is an emerging market, and solutions for remote antenna base stations. We are leading the market with contracts with base station vendors and telcos.
Q. What is RF-over-fiber technology? And why is it important? Can you tell us about some use cases that this technology enables?
Oz Abramson: RF over fiber technology is used for coax cable replacement for any application where distance and frequency make using coax impractical.
Q. Apart from RF over fiber modules, RFOptic also manufactures optical delay line systems. What made you enter this segment? Is it an important segment for you? Can you tell us more about this?
Oz Abramson: The ODL segment is limited, and the main demand is for radar testing and calibration. ODL solutions are always customized and require careful design and implementation. We are the leading source of ODLs to most of the testing & calibrating radar systems worldwide.
Q. What role do RFOptic's RF over Fibre solutions play in 5G testing? How do these solutions contribute to overcoming the obstacles of testing and monitoring 5G networks?
Oz Abramson: 5G and 6G use frequencies above 4GHz and, in the future, extend to mm-wavelengths where using long coax cable runs is impractical;, therefore the RFoF is the best replacement of the coax. In such systems, an optical switch replaces RF switches for signal routing. Furthermore, the Open-RAN technology requires vendors and users, such as telcos, to test systems before deployment to the network. Here, RFOptic has good solutions that comply with cellular communication requirements, such as dynamic range, and provide good EVM and ACLR performance. Our compact solutions can accommodate many RFoF links as well and also provide smart management and monitoring.
Q. RFOptic develops RFoF products for critical applications like telecommunication and electronic warfare. Where are RF over fiber products used in these segments?
Oz Abramson: Besides remote antenna solutions up to 67GHz, we are the first company that has innovative solutions for phase-matched RFoF links that are used in EW applications.
Q. How do your RFoF solutions compare to other manufacturers, what do you think sets you apart?
Oz Abramson: Our approach is that we are providing high-end solutions to ensure that they always perform better. We offer high-level technical support and very quick response to custom requirements.
Q. Who are your customers? Where are they located?
Oz Abramson: We have customers for RFoF links and subsystems in North America and Europe as well as substantial worldwide sales.
Q. Can you tell us more about your global support and sales channels?
Oz Abramson: One of the key strategies of RFOptic is supporting customers during the pre-sales and post-sales stages. In the pre-sales stage, we provide support to optimize the RFoF subsystem design. In the post-sales stage, we support our customers with remote troubleshooting capabilities, and if RMA is needed, it is done quickly and effectively.
Q. What is the 3-year roadmap for RFOptic?
Oz Abramson:
- Expanding the market for 5G and 6G solutions.
- Expanding our solutions for EW and Radar.
- Increasing sales in the US significantly through our NJ-based subsidiary RFOptic Inc.
- Positioning RFOptic as the world leader in RF Optical solutions.
