Search Application Notes & Cards
Learn how to configure Rohde & Schwarz products to fit your application. Search our database by product, technology, or application to find relevant technical documents.
Search Application Notes & Cards
Learn how to configure Rohde & Schwarz products to fit your application. Search our database by product, technology, or application to find relevant technical documents.
133 Results
Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) uses radar wavelengths for airborne or spaceborne ground mapping. The resolution of the SAR ground map depends on the range and cross-range SAR processing resolution. Cross-range resolution is determined by integrating pulses along a flight path for a period of time to create a synthetic aperture. Longer synthetic apertures result in finer cross-range resolution. Range resolution is achieved by radar waveform bandwidth in the form of a linear frequency modulated (LFM) chirp. Wider bandwidth enables finer range resolution.
16-Apr-2021
Modern automotive radar systems occupy very wide bandwidth in order to have a good location resolution. In most cases the bandwidth is a result of frequency modulation or fast frequency hopping techniques, in some cases also pulse modulation is used. Besides the measurement of the frequency variation over time like deviation and linearity, the verification of emissions according to EN or FCC standards is mandatory. ETSI regulations for measuring peak transmission power from radar operating at 77-81 GHz require 50 MHz resolution bandwidth for the measurements. Publications are available that describe the measurements on pulsed UWB or MB-OFDM signals in detail, for frequency-modulated signals the information is limited.This application note provides information how to perform spectral emission measurements on frequency modulated CW signals with spectrum analyzers using RBW filters with very wide bandwidth, and explains the capabilities and the limiting factors of the Rohde & Schwarz FSW signal and spectrum analyzer to perform this measurement.
28-Jun-2019 | AN-No. 1EF107
The R&S®FSW signal and spectrum analyzer provides the high dynamic range needed to accurately measure the ON/OFF power of your transmitter in accordance with 3GPP TS 36.141.
17-Jan-2017
The test case wizard enables the signal generator to set up all required parameters for conformance testing of 5G NR base stations in no time with just a few clicks.
25-May-2021
Noise-Power-Ratio (NPR) measurements are a common procedure and a simple but useful tool to characterize the performance of power amplifiers for satellites or other multi-channel communication systems. The main advantage is the use of wideband signals like noise, multi-carrier CW tones or I/Q modulated signals, which leads to a better simulation of the real environment. This application note provides information how to generate these signals with a vector signal generator and perform NPR measurements with spectrum analyzers. With the R&S®SMW200A vector signal generator any desired test signal can be created. The R&S®FSW spectrum and signal analyzer offers an automated function for NPR measurements. The limiting factors of both a vector signal generator and a spectrum analyzer are explained. Measurement examples show the practical results of NPR measurements.
24-Jun-2019 | AN-No. 1EF108
Rohde & Schwarz signal generators and spectrum analyzers can be used to test IEEE 802.11ax stations in terms of uplink accuracy requirements. Measurements such as residual carrier frequency error and timing accuracy of HE TB PPDU transmissions are supported.
09-Nov-2017
The verification of emissions according to EN or FCC standards is mandatory to avoid any interference with existing users. Besides the common emission tests with measurement bandwidth up to 1 MHz and mean power measurements, most regulations also require to test peak transmission power within a 50 MHz bandwidth to avoid interference with any existing wideband applications, for example radar receivers. This application note provides information how to perform spectral emission measurements on UWB signals with spectrum analyzers using wide bandwidth RBW filters, and explains the capabilities and the limiting factors of the Rohde & Schwarz FSW signal and spectrum analyzer to perform this measurement. The next sections will give further details.
28-Jun-2021 | AN-No. 1EF109
Rohde & Schwarz signal and spectrum analyzers equipped with the R&S®FSx-K30 option form the basis of a solution to accurately measure the noise figure in the millimeterwave frequency range using the Y-factor method.
17-Jul-2017
Frequency allocation plans are under discussion in the US and Europe to open the lower C band for 5G applications. This portion of the spectrum provides 5G with more bandwidth than conventional lower mobile frequency bands and is contiguous while the C band is actually in use for satellite downlinks to satellite earth stations (SES).
18-Mar-2019
The R&S®SMW200A vector signal generator with the R&S®SMW-K78 radar echo generation option tests L-/S-/X-/Ku-band radars up to 40 GHz RF frequency more flexibly than ever before. Since it allows the object range, radial velocity and radar cross section (RCS) of radar echo signals to be configured, it is ideal for radar development, maintenance and training.
08-Sep-2016
Offering bandwidths up to 160 MHz, the signal generators and analyzers from Rohde & Schwarz are ideal for testing IEEE 802.11ac signals
27-Jun-2013
The R&S®SMW200A vector signal generator combined with the R&S®FSW signal and spectrum analyzer offers fast and simple power amplifier testing including envelope tracking and digital predistortion, effectively replacing complex test setups.
22-Feb-2015
Phase distortions in a transmission channel are determined using group delay measurements, they must be as low as possible to maintain good signal quality. Vector network analyzers are normally used to characterize the group delay variations as a measure of phase distortion.This application note provides basic information about the concept of a group delay measurement with spectrum analyzers and signal generators, and how this method simplifies the test setup and improves the measurement speed.Measurement examples show the limiting factors of this approach and help the user to understand and avoid some limitations of this method. In addition the test results are compared to those generated with vector network analyzers.
09-Aug-2017 | AN-No. 1EF98
This application note describes methods using an R&S®ZVA network analyzer, one or two R&S®SMB100A signal generators and an R&S®FSW signal analyzer to accurately measure all the key parameters of frequency converters with embedded local oscillator. A commercial satellite up-converter is used as a device under test example.
30-Apr-2015 | AN-No. 1MA224
Verification of the spectrum allocation and in depth analysis of the transmitted signals is very important in many domains. For example, the IEEE 802.11ad standard makes use of approximately 2 GHz bandwidth in the 60 GHz frequency domain. Researchers and developers of Automotive radar discuss the 79 GHz frequency band with an available bandwidth of up to 4 GHz. Finally the upcoming 5G technology for cellular networks discusses the use of up to 2GHz signals in the cm and mm-wave frequency bands.This technical evolution already indicates the need of signal measurement and analysis in the mm-wave domain with high bandwidth.Therefore, this application note presents a method to measure and analyze signals with an instantaneous bandwidth of up to 2 GHz using new tools on the R&S®FSW Signal and Spectrum Analyzer platform in collaboration with an R&S®RTO Digital Oscilloscope.
16-Jun-2015 | AN-No. 1EF92
Current Radar development is focusing the area of signal processing. This is taken into account by this educational note, where the R&S®SMW / SMBV instruments on the transmitter side and R&S®FSW / FSV instruments on the receiver side are combined to a closed loop Radar system, performing radar detection by means of pulse compression and digital signal processing. Appropriate Rohde & Schwarz sofware tools for such applications are described as well as the interface between the tools and the test instruments. Target reader group are engineering students who want to perform tests using pulsed or chirped signals.
20-Nov-2014 | AN-No. 1MA234
This white paper introduces a novel attribute based architecture for VXIplug&play instrument drivers. The presented architecture uses the attribute based concept of IVI-C instrument drivers to introduce a two-layer design for VXIplug&play instrument drivers. Moreover the use of attributes is shown for the Rohde & Schwarz Spectrum Analyzer (rsspecan) instrument driver.
01-Dec-2012 | AN-No. 1MA170
Connecting simulation and measurements on physical devices
This application note is based on collaborative work between MathWorks® and Rohde & Schwarz. The focus is on linearization of a non-linear device, in our case the RF power amplifier. It is shown how simulation and the integrated functions of the Rohde & Schwarz instruments R&S®SMW200A and R&S®FSW work hand-in-hand with the simulation capabilities from MathWorks in MATLAB / Simulink. The goal is to provide a toolset to enable proper modeling and linearization approaches to optimize and verify the behavior of the power amplifier when used with complex wideband signals as used in 5G NR or latest satellite links.The application note brings code examples and an exemplary block set for MATLAB / Simulink to provide an easy start to replicate and use the described procedure.
05-Aug-2021 | AN-No. 1SL371
RF pulse measurements, to characterize the signal in the frequency domain, are traditionally carried out on an RF spectrum analyzer. For time related pulse parameters, oscilloscopes are widely used. However, the measurement capabilities of state of the art test and measurement equipment has evolved over time and crosses domains. With a combination of R&S®RTO digital oscilloscope and dedicated pulse analysis software R&S®VSE-K6, pulse signals can be analyzed in both domains, frequency and time.The R&S®RTO digital oscilloscopes are unique in that they allow output of I/Q data for processing. This application note focusses on signal measurement using this instrument.Analysis of an L-/S-band ATC RADAR utilizing the R&S®RTO2044 oscilloscope running Vector Signal Explorer Software R&S®VSE and Pulse Analysis personality R&S®VSE-K6 is followed by measurements on an X-band RADAR utilizing R&S®FSW, R&S®FPS, R&S®FSV or FSVA signal & spectrum analyzers with the same dedicated R&S®VSE-K6 software.
18-Oct-2016 | AN-No. 1MA249
IEEE 802.15.4 (ZigBee) uses Offset QPSK with a half-sine pulse-shaping filter as modulation. This application note describes how to set up the Rohde & Schwarz signal analyzers together with the corresponding vector signal analysis (VSA) personality for modulation quality measurements, especially EVM, for ZigBee.
12-Dec-2014 | AN-No. 1EF55
The R&S®SMW200A together with the R&S®FSW is a state of the art testing solution that significantly reduces the required hardware for testing power amplifiers with envelope tracking and/or digital pre-distortion. This application note introduces the test solution in detail and presents corresponding measurement examples.
25-Sep-2014 | AN-No. 1GP104
Enhanced Mobile Broadband, Massive Machine Type Communication, Ultra-reliable and low latency communication have been identified as the requirements to be supported by the 5thGeneration of Mobile Communication, short 5G. 5G is extensively discussed in the wireless industry. A lot of research and pre-development is being conducted worldwide, including an analysis of the waveforms and access principles that are the basis for current LTE and LTE-Advanced networks.In this application note we discuss potential 5G waveform candidates, list their advantages and disadvantages and compare them to Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM), which is used in LTE/LTE-Advanced.
10-Jun-2016 | AN-No. 1MA271
RF physical layer specifications (such as 3GPP TS36.104) describe a variety of requirements that the end equipment needs to meet. This application note provides insight into some of these specifications and how test & measurement equipment can simplify the task of deriving requirements for RF sub-systems.
10-Apr-2013 | AN-No. 1MA221
Signal Generation and Analysis
This Application Note supplements the video series, describing signal generation and signal analysis for Dynamic Spectrum Sharing (DSS) for LTE and 5G NR. The video series is located below this paragraph.In this illustration, a four frame (40 subframes) long LTE sequence will be created, and exemplary MBSFN slots inserted, carrying 5G payloads. That signal sequence will be compiled and played by the SMW signal generator. The FSW signal analyzer LTE and 5G NR personalities are then used to analyze and verify the content of each subframe/slot.Three methods are presented, (1) Manual Entry using the GUI, (2) SCPI command sequence/remote control and (3) configuration file. The latter variants require the download of various files, available at the bottom.The configuration file approach offers the fastest time to initially setup. The SCPI command sequences provides some insight of the functionality and settings at each step, and the supplied MATLAB® script (only core license required) provides a prototype to illustrate the programming of successive slots or subframes. The Manual Entry approach, using the instrument's front panel GUI, provides a step-by-step set-up instruction, which can itself be augmented with SCPI recording, for easy modification and programming.MATLAB® is a registered trademark of The Mathworks, Inc.
30-Mar-2020 | AN-No. GFM337
Test time is a critical parameter when it comes to evaluating the cost of test.This application note describes typical spectrum analyzer measurements in production environments and discusses different approaches to speed them up.
17-Nov-2014 | AN-No. 1EF90
This application note shows how to use Rohde & Schwarz signal generators and analyzers for testing early 5G New Radio components, chipsets and devices. Methods for easy creation and analysis of custom OFDM are explained. The solution provides● a single user interface for signal generation and analysis configuration● Flexible OFDM configuration and signal generation incl. flexible pilot and data allocation● User defined modulation schemes including complex scenarios, e.g. 5G NR PSS
23-Oct-2017 | AN-No. 1MA308
After a communications satellite is on its target orbit, several routines need to be performed in order to ensure proper performance from the transponders in the payload. The on-orbit measurements are a vital part of the maintenance of a live satellite as well. Operating a satellite channel for an on-orbit measurement rather than the intended application comes with significant opportunity cost and hence test duration needs to be minimized as much as possible. Rohde & Schwarz test and measurement equipment recommended in this paper is market leading not only in terms of measurement accuracy but also offers unparalleled speed of measurement. This application note focuses on satellite post-launch or on-orbit measurement and monitoring strategies used for satellite functionality checks when running maintenance routines. A complementary paper treats pre-launch payload measurements.
25-Nov-2016 | AN-No. 1MA263
3GPP TS36.141 defines conformance tests for EUTRA base stations (eNodeB). Release 14 added several tests, especially for enhanced License Assisted Access (eLAA).This application note describes how all required receiver (Rx) tests (TS36.141 Chapter 7) can be performed quickly and easily by using vector signal generators from Rohde & Schwarz. A few tests additionally require spectrum analyzers from Rohde & Schwarz.Examples illustrate the manual operation. A free software program enables and demonstrates remote operation.The LTE base station transmitter (Tx) tests (TS36.141 Chapter 6) are described in Application Note 1MA154.The LTE base station performance (Px) tests (TS36.141 Chapter 8) are described in Application Note 1MA162.
11-May-2016 | AN-No. 1MA195
The constantly decreasing size of components and the available board space form a challenge to place adequate test connections for RF instruments. Recent improvements in the availability and use of high performance differential building blocks in RF circuits intensify the problems of connecting test equipment. Using oscilloscope probes is a possibility to perform measurements by connecting to printed circuit board lines and chip contacts where only a minimal area is required to make contact. This application note provides information on how to use oscilloscope probes in RF measurements using spectrum analyzers, and show the results of differential measurements with a spectrum analyzer.
28-Jun-2013 | AN-No. 1EF84
Digital pre-distortion (DPD) is a common method to linearize the output signal of a power amplifier (PA), which is being operated in its non-linear operating range.Most PAs operate in their non-linear range for efficiency reasons. The drawback of higher efficiency is the non-linear operating range. In order to maintain signal quality, many transmitters employ DPD. Implementing real-time DPD in a transmitter is a challenging task and often ends in PA models, which are specific to the signal transmitted.Even though these complex models are required for transmitter development, they are not needed during PA verification and development.This article describes an approach to generate a pre-distorted signal based on a hard-clipper. The resulting waveform pushes the output of the DUT as close to the hard-clipper as possible.Due to the waveform approach, the algorithm compensates all memory effects.
13-Sep-2017 | AN-No. 1EF99