Trending RF & Microwave News Stories this Week(18-22 June, 2018)

NI Expands RFIC Test Capability to NB-IoT and eMTC Standards

National Instruments has released the NI-RFmx NB-IoT/eMTC measurement software, which complements NI’s existing RF test capabilities for wireless technologies ranging from 802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax to Bluetooth to 2G/3G/4G/5G standards.

NB-IoT and eMTC drive a wide range of machine-type communication applications by delivering on key performance criteria such as extended range and lower power consumption. Compared to existing LTE technology, the NB-IoT and eMTC standards extend range through link budget improvements and improve power consumption through narrower bandwidths and simplified radio designs. Click here to read more.

Fraunhofer IIS Develops IoT Sensors that Directly Transmit Data to GEO Satellites

The Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits (IIS) has demonstrated the direct transmission of sensor data from multiple transmitters via a geostationary satellite. For the test transmission, the institute employed portable, ground-based transmitters equipped with small, omnidirectional C-band antennas. Fraunhofer IIS developed this particular transmission method specifically for Internet of Things applications that use satellites (Satellite IoT). Click here to read more.

Scientists Develop 28-GHz Transceiver for Next-Gen 5G Devices and High-speed Communications

Scientists in Japan have designed and fabricated a tiny, but incredibly fast, reliable, and accurate 28 GHz transceiver meant for stable high-speed 5G communications. The fabricated transceiver developed at the Tokyo Institute of Technology, trumps previous designs in various regards by taking a new approach for beam steering.

The importance of wireless communications is evident in modern societies, and thus, a lot of work has been done on 5G communications as it is the upcoming big step in mobile networks. The new standard for mobile networks promises data rates and speeds at least an order of magnitude higher than those of 4G (LTE), while even allowing for smaller antennas and radio frequency (RF) transceivers because of the higher frequencies used. Click here to read more.

MIT Engineers Configure RFID Tags to Detect Chemicals in the Atmosphere

RFID tags are being used by retailers and manufacturers to track their products in shops and warehouses. These tags are also used to keep tabs on products throughout a supply chain. RFID tags are used to trace everything from casino chips and cattle to amusement park visitors and marathon runners. Often, these tags come in the form of paper-based labels outfitted with a simple antenna and memory chip. When slapped on a milk carton or jacket collar, RFID tags act as smart signatures, transmitting information to a radio-frequency reader about the identity, state, or location of a given product. Click here to read more.

Over-the-Air Integrated Test Solution for Antenna in Package (AiP) 5G, Auto Radar, and WiFi Devices

Multitest has delivered a production interface solution to a customer for OTA testing of a 60 GHz UltraGig single-chip integrated Antenna in Package (AiP). The solution integrates the xWave OTA Contactor with xWave patch antenna in the MT2168XT lead backer.

This integration of an OTA patch antenna into the lead backer of a production pick and place handler is believed to be the first in the industry. This solution offers a unique and reliable production solution testing an AiP device with 60 GHz RF signals both radiating out of an antenna array in the lid and connected through the ball grid array. It leverages knowledge on RF signal integrity and the ability to integrate this interface solution into a state-of-the art test handler for high volume production. In this application an OTA manual actuator clone of the handler lead-backer was also provided to accelerate test program debug activities. Click here to read more.

Lithuanian Scientists Develop Indoor Positioning System Using Wi-Fi Network

The group of scientists from Kaunas University of Technology (KTU), Lithuania have invented an innovative method for tracking the position of people and things indoors using existing wireless networks. The solution can identify a human being or an object within an accuracy of 1 meter, it works with any device having a Wi-Fi function, and can be used by a wide range of applications in day to day life and healthcare.

Outdoors, people and objects can be located using the Global Positioning System (GPS), but this function usually does not work indoors. Although the body of research related to the indoors positioning using WLAN is substantial, the methods offered usually have significant shortcomings: the positioning accuracy is low, the WLAN-based positioning software usually needs to be installed into specific devices, which increases the price of the final product. Click here to read more.

Researchers Develop World's First 300 GHz IC to Enable Wireless Data Rates of 100 Gbps

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation and Tokyo Institute of Technology have jointly developed an ultra high-speed IC for wireless front-ends that operates in the terahertz frequency band. This new IC technology has achieved 100 gigabits per second (Gbps) wireless transmission data rates in the 300 GHz band. The details of the technology were presented at the 2018 IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium (IMS 2018) in Philadelphia last week. Click here to read more.

NASA Has a Deep Space Communications Hub in the Desert

Copper Mountain Technologies Introduces Compact USB VNA from 100 kHz to 18 GHz

At IMS 2018, Copper Mountain Technologies announced the new S5180 Compact USB VNA with a frequency range from 100 kHz to 18 GHz. This new vector network analyzer is as portable as the other VNAs in their compact product series, with an expanded frequency range. The S5180 provides wide dynamic range up to 135 dB, typ. (10 Hz IFBW) and a fast sweep speed.

Copper Mountain Technologies has pioneered metrology-grade USB VNAs that include an RF measurement module and a software application which runs on a Windows PC, laptop or tablet, connecting to the measurement hardware via USB interface. The user can take advantage of the latest OS, processing power, larger display, and reliable performance of an external PC, as well as lower total cost of ownership and simplified maintenance of the analyzer. The result is a faster, more effective test process that fits into the modern workspace in lab, production, field and secure testing environments. Click here for more information on this product. Click here to read more.

Sharp Develops Transparent NFC Antennas which can be Integrated into Video Displays

Sharp Japan has developed a transparent NFC antenna that can be built right into a device's display. This solution can enable payments and authentication by simply holding an NFC-compatible smartphone or IC-card over the screen.

As the NFC antenna is transparent, it can be integrated into the display transforming the entire display's surface into an active region. Fabricated with finely screen-printed silver lines by applying "metal mesh technology" typically used for touch panels, multiple NFC antennas with a light transmittance at 80% cover the entire display panel which is 42 inches diagonally. Compared to traditional RFID tags which require touching or swiping a card onto the tag, here the large area antenna design increases the operational distance up to 3.5cm, with response times of under a second. Although Sharp does not expect the transparent antenna to be used in small displays, it can be integrated in to devices with small screens like smartphone displays. Click here to read more.

R&S Unveils Compact Analog & Vector Signal Generators up to 6 GHz

Rohde & Schwarz has introduced two new compact midrange signal generators (1 GHz, 3 GHz and 6 GHz) that offer versatility and performance in a very small footprint. The R&S SMB100B analog RF signal generator and the R&S SMBV100B vector signal generator set new standards in their class, offering outstanding spectral purity, unprecedented output power and easy, intuitive touchscreen operation. The R&S SMB100B and the R&S SMBV100B specifically address the requirements of RF semiconductor development, telecommunications, and aerospace & defense. Click here to read more.