Trending RF & Microwave News Stories of the Week (29 June

Researchers Develop Microwave Amplifier Circuit Using Flexible Wooden Film

In the not-too-distant future, flexible electronics will open the door to new products like foldable phones, tablets that can be rolled, paper-thin displays and wearable sensors that monitor health data. Developing these new flexible/bendy products means using materials like new plastics and thin films to replace the rigid circuit boards and bulky electronic components that currently occupy the interiors of cell phones and other gadgets.

New research by a University of Wisconsin–Madison engineer leverages a surprising and inexpensive substance — wood — to make the flexible microwave circuits that can power modern communications. Click here to read more.

Nordic and Qorvo Expand their Collaboration to Include Ultra-Wideband Technology

Nordic Semiconductor and Qorvo announced that they are expanding their partnership to include dual Ultra-Wideband (UWB) and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) connectivity solutions, complementing the companies’ low power cellular IoT portfolios. The announcement was made following Qorvo’s acquisition of UWB pioneer Decawave.

Nordic and Qorvo have built a solid partnership developing next generation cellular IoT solutions with combined expertise from both companies. They expect the collaboration on Bluetooth LE and UWB to complement their partnership and accelerate the adoption of location-based technologies and services for a new generation of products. Click here to read more.

CRFS Arrays Deployed at Deep Space Antennas Sites by the European Space Agency

The European Space Agency (ESA) has chosen to deploy the CRFS RFeye Array 300 Arrays at the Deep Space Antennas sites 1 and 2 to protect the communication from interference and monitor RF spectrum activity around the sites. These antennas operate in the S, X, K and Ka-band frequencies, and can be subject to interference from terrestrial sources – airfields, military bases, WiMAX etc.

CRFS Arrays provide spectrum monitoring and geolocation capabilities, both of which are of key use at the antenna sites. Highly sensitive receivers allow for detailed and comprehensive surveys of the RF environment around the arrays. Geolocation can be carried out by both angle of arrival (AoA) and time difference of arrival (TDOA) techniques, depending on the number of arrays deployed. A single array can calculate a line of bearing to the source of a signal, while a second array can generate a second line of bearing that crosses the first at the source location. A third array adds the possibility of using TDOA in addition. Click here to read more.

Bi-Phase Modulators from 0.5 to 40 GHz Available In-Stock from Pasternack

Pasternack, an Infinite Electronics brand and a leading provider of RF, microwave and millimeter wave products, has launched a new line of bi-phase modulators that includes a comprehensive selection of nine different models covering broad octave frequency bands ranging from 0.5 to 40 GHz. Bi-phase modulators take a TTL level digital bits stream that is encoded onto the RF carrier using 2 Phase Shift Keying (2PSK) modulation, where the 2 phases are separated by 180 degrees. This performance is desirable in communications systems, microwave radio, radar, high-data-rate test & measurement, serial data transmission, base station infrastructure and other industrial and military applications.

Pasternack’s new line of 0° to 180° bi-phase modulators offer impressive features that include TTL command control, low insertion loss of 2.5 dB typical, fast switching speed of 40 nsec typical, low VSWR of 1.8:1 typical and maximum peak RF input power of 0.5 watts. All designs require dual bias voltages and the input and output RF ports are bi-directional. These bi-phase modulators operate across a wide temperature range from -40°C to +85°C. The compact and rugged packages utilize solder pins for TTL, DC bias and ground, and field replaceable SMA or 2.92mm female connectors. All designs are highly reliable, meeting MIL-STD-202 environmental test conditions for humidity, shock, vibration, altitude and temperature cycle. Click here to read more.

New Ericsson AIR Solutions Accelerate 5G Mid-Band Deployment

Ericsson has enhanced their 5G platform with the addition of two new Antenna-Integrated Radio (AIR) solutions, Hybrid AIR and Interleaved AIR, to their Radio System portfolio. These new solutions will allow communications service providers to deploy mid-band 5G networks faster and on a wider scale without adding to their site footprint.

Ericsson has recognized that physical space restrictions at some base station sites are a challenge for communications service providers wishing to extend their footprint to include 5G. The new AIR solutions directly address this issue to enable communications service providers to manage the growing complexity of macro sites and towers while reducing site footprint and optimization costs. Click here to read more.

Advantech Wireless Helping Satcom Operators Migrate from Low C-Band due to Roll Out of 5G

Advantech Wireless Technologies has started supplying its Insat C-band 1000W Redundant, GaN-based Solid State System (SSPB) Solution to a Major Network provider in Latin America. The System includes an on-line Taurus SSPA with a dedicated backup amplifier to ensure maximum availability. Packaged for outdoor applications, Taurus optimizes useable output power by eliminating IFL insertion loss, making it the ideal solution for both mobile and fixed Communication terminals.

Specifically designed for high power and high linearity in 6.725-7.025 GHz, these 1,000 W units are perfect for migrating to the upper end of the C-band spectrum for better separation from interfering 5G traffic. The units are designed to support higher modulation and error-correcting codes, which will allow more users in less spectrum. That in exchange will generate increased revenue for satellite operators, in parallel with OPEX reduction for users. The tremendous backhaul capacity that 5G will require, will need as high as possible power and linearity, and that is what these units provide. Click here to read more.

Raytheon Awarded $2.3 Billion U.S. Missile Defense Radar Contract

Raytheon Missiles & Defense, a Raytheon Technologies business, received a $2.3 billion U.S. Missile Defense Agency production contract for seven Gallium Nitride (GaN) based AN/TPY-2 radars as part of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system. It is designed to protect against oncoming ballistic missile threats. The contract is part of a foreign military sale to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

These highly capable X-band radars are the sharpest eyes in the global missile defense system. The addition of GaN technology delivers capability for threats to be detected, tracked and discriminated with improved radar reliability. Click here to read more.

Tunable Notch Filter from Ranatec for 5G Sees a Rise in Demand

Ranatec, a leading supplier of specialized test and measurement equipment for RF and microwave applications, has announced that it has experienced an increase in demand for 5G test equipment from Asia. This increase in demand requires them to increase their production capacity. The company saw a 250% YoY (Year on Year) increase in the 1st half of 2020 in terms of orders from Asia, as compared to 2019.

The supplier of niche test equipment sees the strong influx of orders from Asia as an indication the Asian market is trending towards heavy investments in 5G technology and development. According to Magnus Kilian, CEO of Ranatec, there has been a lot of interest in 5G test equipment investments this year from Asia, despite the effect that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on markets in the first half of 2020. However, according to Magnus Kilian, the European market appears to be taking a more careful approach to 5G expenditures and development. Click here to read more.

NB-IoT Module Uses Energy Harvesting for Power-Free Operation

HiSilicon (Shanghai) Ltd and Nowi Energy B.V. have developed the 2nd generation of their Energy Autonomous NB-IoT platform. The device acts as a sensor hub that can transmit via NB-IoT while operating indefinitely through its energy harvesting capabilities. It is based on HiSilicon’s Hi2115 NB-IoT solution and Nowi’s leading NH2 energy harvesting power management IC. The solution removes the need for manual intervention (changing batteries) or cabling to supply power in applications, making it a zero maintenance type of module.

Building upon the success of the 2019 collaboration, HiSilicon and Nowi have optimized the design to resolve customers’ challenges and satisfy new, stricter market requirements to broaden the variety of applications addressed. The platform combines connectivity and energy harvesting in the smallest size possible and offers an open slot on which various sensors can be placed depending on the application need. As such the platform can act as the backbone of countless connected sensor solutions. Click here to read more.

Arcadyan Selects Keysight’s 5G Test Platform for Fixed Wireless Access Applications

Arcadyan has selected Keysight’s 5G test platforms to validate consumer premises equipment (CPE) for fixed wireless access applications (FWA). Arcadyan, a Taiwanese-based provider of broadband access, multimedia, and wireless technology solutions, will use Keysight’s UXM 5G Wireless Test Platform to support a 5G fixed wireless access market expected to increase at a CAGR of 97 percent between 2019 and 2026, surpassing USD 46 billion by 2026. This growth is primarily driven by a demand for high-speed broadband and low latency connectivity in homes and businesses, including smart factories that are ramping up deployments of machine-to-machine IoT applications.

Keysight is pleased to support a growing 5G device ecosystem that is accelerating deployments of CPEs for enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) services. The performance of high-speed wireless connectivity applications relies on infrastructure and devices that have undergone rigorous testing according to the latest standards for 5G, 4G LTE, and Wi-Fi. Click here to read more.

Airgain Introduces Embedded Antenna Technology for Wi-Fi 6 in North America

Airgain, a leading provider of advanced antenna technologies used to enable high-performance wireless networking across a broad range of devices and markets, including consumer, enterprise, and automotive, announced it has been chosen to provide embedded antenna technology for a major North American tier one operator’s first product launch of a Wi-Fi 6 (IEEE 802.11ax) enabled dual-band gateway.

The next-generation gateway utilizes an advanced and highly customized embedded antenna solution, supporting dual-band 4x4 2.4GHz and 5GHz Wi-Fi 6 enabled radios, plus support for Bluetooth and Zigbee. Airgain’s embedded antenna solution outperformed competing solutions in terms of optimized throughput and coverage performance, enabling carrier-grade in-home connectivity. The wireless system design allows the flagship Wi-Fi 6 gateway to achieving a higher level of performance, delivering multi-gigabit speeds for a more robust and seamless experience to the tier one operator’s subscriber base. Click here to read more.

Ericsson to Provide Dedicated 5G Standalone Trial Kits for Smart Industries

Independent research has identified significant advantages to industries that were early to adopt and deploy 5G technology to optimize manufacturing sites, factories, mines, ports, and warehouses. In smart manufacturing factories alone, ABI Research estimates that more than 4.3 billion wireless modules will be deployed to enable more than USD $1 Trillion in production value by 2030. For an automotive factory to reconfigure for a new model year, ABI Research found that it would take one year for a wired factory compared to only two months for a wireless factory.

To enable a smooth transition to 5G for industries, Ericsson will provide dedicated network 5G standalone (SA) trial kits. The kits will be available to enterprises through communications service providers on selected low and mid-band spectrum. The kits include hardware and software to support a network to enable enterprises to test first-hand how 5G can enhance their productivity, efficiency, safety, and security. Enterprises will also have access to business development and technical support to help unlock the full value of 5G dedicated networks. Click here to read more.

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Trending RF & Microwave News Stories of the Week (29 June - 3 July, 2020)