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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.
1109 Results
In the satellite sector, components, subsystems and entire satellites must be qualified in a thermal vacuum chamber before they can be used in space. This qualification proves that equipment can not only survive but also function in the harsh conditions encountered during launch and in space.
05-Oct-2022
Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) is an integral part of LTE. Vector signal generators and signal & spectrum analyzers from Rohde & Schwarz support LTE measurements with up to 4 antennas. This Application Note covers 2x2 MIMO in the LTE downlink. Remote control programming is demonstrated by examples for a free-of-charge program.
09-Oct-2014 | AN-No. 1MA143
Vector Network Analyzers (VNA) are gaining popularity in the Signal Integrity community as time domain measurement and analysis tools. VNAs with 8 ports or more can provide significant decreases in test time by migrating from a 4-port measurement system to an 8-port measurement system. For tight tolerance DUTs that are barely within the test limit lines, small increases in accuracy can be realized by testing all of the test parameters at once, because the entire test setup is at the same temperature. This application note discusses the thermal advantages of testing an 8-port DUT with the R&S ZNBT VNA. The use of the ZNBT to assess and debug two differential pairs in a 20-inch backplane is presented.
18-Mar-2020 | AN-No. 1EZ83_0E
The application note guides developers and manufactures of Sigfox Devices to perform the required and recommended measurements with test solutions from Rohde & Schwarz. The note will help bring ultranarrowband IoT devices and applications using Sigfox technology to the market as fast as possible and help ensure the desired quality and performance.For R&D, Pre-certification and QA, all currently defined Uplink- and Downlink- measurements are shown using the compact R&S®FPL1000 Spectrum Analyzer and R&S®SMBV100A Vector Signal Generator.For Production, use of the R&S®CMW100A Communications Manufacturing Test Set is shown for the most essential Uplink RF tests on Sigfox Devices.Python scripts for giving example SCPI commands demonstrate how measurements shown in manual use can easily be automated.
15-Nov-2017 | AN-No. 1MA294
This application notes describes remote operation or monitoring of the spectrum analyzers R&S® FSL3, R&S® FSL6, R&S® FSL18 through a standard web browser. The common cross-platform technology Virtual Network Computing (VNC) is used as a server on the instrument.
07-Jan-2009 | AN-No. 1EF66
For establishing a WLAN connection between R&S®CMW and device under test (DUT), the WLAN properties at the R&S®CMW have to be adapted to the test conditions. These can vary in several aspects, particularly due to the different WLAN standards and characteristics of the DUT. This document describes the critical parameters and provides step-by-step procedures for the configuration.
08-Dec-2015 | AN-No. 1C106
The Doherty Amplifier continues to be rolled out in an increasing number of TxFE (Transmit Frontend) applications, as the quasi-linear amplifier architecture of choice.The advent of 5G, with its inevitable microwave or millimeter wave air interface, increase the design challenges associated with its construction; not least of all because of the potential for increased dispersion in the constituent amplifiers and combiners.This application note describes a measurement-based development methodology by which the Doherty Amplifier may be enhanced, increasing performance and/or performance bandwidth. This methodology is supported with a working example.The methodology may also be extended to balanced, spatially combined and anti-phase (so called "pushpull" or "differential") amplifiers, the latter often itself nested in Doherty configurations.The R&S®Quickstep sequencing software may be downloaded from:
26-Sep-2016 | AN-No. 1MA279
Energy efficiency of RF Frontends (RFFE), especially transmitters, continues to gain greater prominence.Meeting the efficiency challenge is increasingly difficult at higher operating frequencies and bandwidths, such as those proposed for 5G.There is a group of transmitter RFFE architectures whose signal output is constructed from two, or more, efficiently generated components. This signal construction in effect, means that such architectures use predictive, post-correction linearization. Their predictive nature enables distortion to be completely eliminated.The capabilities of multi-channel signal synthesis setups with R&S®SMW200A, in combination with the R&S®FSW analyzer enable measurement, hence development, of these types of transmitters.The document focusses on devices for the 3.5 GHz NR (5G New Radio) candidate band, but its findings are equally applicable to developments and measurements for, for example, K-band satellite applications or mmW NR candidate bands, where efficiency is an even more crucial design target.
01-Aug-2017 | AN-No. 1MA289
Its excellent realtime baseband performance in combination with its ability to easily import the scattering parameters of an active/passive twoport interconnection network via s2p-files make the R&S®SMW200A vector signal generator ideal for high-precision RF and microwave tests requiring deembedding of the device under test (DUT).
11-Oct-2017
With continuously increasing data rates, signal inte grity aspects of high-speed digital designs and the components used become more and more challenging. Particularly at higher data rates, vector network analyzers (VNA) are increasingly replacing traditional time domain reflectometry (TDR) setups for testing passive components such as connectors, cables and PCBs. Users benefit from the higher accuracy, speed and ESD robustness of the VNA, making the VNA the instrument of choice in this field.
20-Sep-2016
Comprehensive test solutions guide for production and R&D
Small cell is a compact base station with smaller form factor and lower transmission power in comparison to the conventional macro base station. It covers relatively small area and serves less users. Usually, small cell can be integrated into the existing mobile network. By the evolution of radio access technology, the role of small cell has been changing through the evolution path. In the 2G/3G time, its role was to provide coverage in corner cases. Later during LTE, networks are not just providing coverage but capacity too. Small cells were then used to provide the addition capacity where required without adding additional spectrum. Now in 5G era, network operators use densification as an important strategy to provide seamless 5G services which demand coverage, capacity and performance too. With use cases requiring the 5G millimeter wave (mmW) rollouts, it makes sense to use small cells for densification due to the propagation characteristics of mmW.In this application note, we will shed light on the testing aspects of a small cell throughout the product life cycle with particular focus on the production test solution for the small cell device under test (DUT) in FR2 (frequency range 2, mmW frequency band) in Over the Air (OTA) environment for option 6 split based on radio communication tester R&S®CMP200 and OTA chamber R&S®CMQ200. The document is complemented with more insights into test solutions used in typical R&D test applications towards the second half of the application note.
19-Jun-2023 | AN-No. 1SL395
The amendment 802.11ad to the WLAN standard defines the MAC and PHY layers for very high throughput (VHT) in the 60 GHz range. This application note provides a brief examination of key 802.11ad parameters, describes the required measurements and test setups and contains several important recommendations for over-the-air (OTA) measurements.
17-May-2017 | AN-No. 1MA260
This application note helps the user to configure a Rohde & Schwarz vector signal generator for LTE FDD repeater conformance testing. It explains step by step how to set up the baseband signal for the various test cases defined in the 3GPP Technical Specification 36.143.The R&S®SMx vector signal generators provide predefined, LTE-conform test models and are therefore ideal for LTE repeater conformance testing. The test cases in TS 36.143 can be set up with a single instrument which provides all necessary test signals including the four specified repeater stimulus signals.
26-Apr-2013 | AN-No. 1GP85
Radio frequencies in bands around 28 GHz are being discussed as candidates for mobile communications of the fifth generation (5G). Beam steering will be a key feature in the context of 5G. It will be a major challenge to test the beam steering capabilities of base stations and user equipment in every phase from research and development through production. Conducted measurements will be mainly replaced by over-the-air measurements of electromagnetic radiation. Rohde & Schwarz offers the R&S®NRPM Over-the-Air (OTA) Power Measurement Solution that perfectly fits such measurement needs.Part of this solution are the R&S®NRPM-A66 antenna modules. They have integrated diode detectors. Thus, there are no cables between the antenna and the detector as in traditional setups. This avoids high and potentially unknown RF losses. The R&S®NRPM-A66 antenna modules with their integrated diode detectors are factory calibrated, which means that the user does not have to calibrate them to achieve highly accurate measurement results.This application note contains theoretical background on OTA power and pattern measurements. It gives step-by-step instructions for the verification of the power level and the radiation pattern of a device under test (DUT) in comparison to a golden device, and it presents an approach for verifying the accuracy of beam steering.
29-Aug-2017 | AN-No. 1GP118
The scope of this application note is to give a comprehensive guide on how the R&S®FSW signal and spectrum analyzer with the option R&S®FSW-K18 may be used to create a Hammerstein model for the R&S®SMW200A vector signal generator’s output stage. This model can then be applied to counteract inherent non-linearities and memory effects and improve the Error Vector Magnitude (EVM) at high output powers of the R&S®SMW200A vector signal generator.
28-Aug-2023 | AN-No. 1GP139
Balanced RF components are advantageous compared to traditional single-ended components, since they cause less EMI, and are less susceptible to EMI. This application note describes the fundamental concepts of differential and common mode signals and of mixed-mode parameters, which are essential for balanced components. Techniques for the measurement of mixed-mode parameters are presented. Examples show the features implemented in the ZVB for balanced device measurement.
20-Sep-2004 | AN-No. 1EZ53
conducted conformance testing according to TS 38.141-1, Rel. 16
3GPP defines the Radio Frequency (RF) conformance test methods and requirements for 5G NR Base Stations (BS) in the technical specifications TS 38.141. This application note describes how all mandatory RF performance tests (TS 38.141-1, chapter 8), according to Release 16, can be performed quickly and conveniently with signal generators from Rohde & Schwarz by either choosing manual operation or a remote control approach.In Addition, a new Python software library comes with this application note to enable the remote control approach of base station testing. This example requires the RsInstrument module which can be found on pypi.org or installed via 'pip' and is provided as is.
24-Oct-2019 | AN-No. GFM315
Simultaneously measure various current levels from μA to A in all phases of IoT device activity – from sleep to receive and transmit mode
01-Oct-2019
This application note describes Methods of Implementations (MOI) for precise, fast and error-free compliance testing of high-speed backplanes and direct attach copper cables (DAC) according to IEEE 802.3bj, IEEE 802.3by, IEEE 802.3cd and IEEE 802.3ck, based on 25 Gb/s, 50 Gb/s and 100 Gb/s signaling per lane with vector network analyzers from Rohde & Schwarz.
07-Apr-2021 | AN-No. GFM356
Signal faults and anomalies can cause electrical and electronic systems to fail. Especially in the field, these errors can lead to system downtimes and produce high costs. Consequently, finding them quickly and efficiently as well as identifying their source are crucial.
30-Dec-2015
The R&S®ZNB vector network analyzer simplifies instrument configuration and calibration using the mixer measurement wizard and SMARTerCal.
01-Oct-2013
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
Analyzing RF pulses is a key aspect of pulsed radar applications, e.g. in air traffic control (ATC), maritime radar or scientific measurements of the ionosphere. It is essential to analyze the pulse envelope in the time domain because it contains important information needed to characterize the application. The R&S®RTO digital oscilloscope is a very useful measurement instrument for analyzing pulse characteristics.
09-Nov-2017
The UWB (Ultra-Wide Band) technology is a low power wide-band technology specified for device to device communication.It is an optimal RF positioning technology that enables accurate and secure peerto-peer distance measurement between mobile devices with robust resistance to interference while consuming very low energy and coexisting well with other radio communication systems.This application note describes how to use the UWB measurement functionality provided by R&S®CMP200 radio communication tester to perform HRP UWB PHY measurements for R&D and production purposes.
19-May-2021 | AN-No. GFM362
radiated conformance testing according to TS 38.141-2, Rel. 16
3GPP defines the Radio Frequency (RF) conformance test methods and requirements for 5G NR Base Stations (BS) in the technical specifications TS 38.141. This application note describes all mandatory RF receiver tests (TS 38.141-2, chapter 7), according to Release 16.Furthermore, this document provides a brief introduction about the different R&S OTA antenna test solutions and how they are applicable for base station conformance testing. Rohde & Schwarz offers suitable solutions for any test case that is mentioned in this application note.
30-Jun-2020 | AN-No. GFM325
This application note describes how to set up 3GPP FDD and LTE multicell and multi-UE scenarios with the R&S®SMU200A with a focus on routing and leveling of the baseband signals. Furthermore, it describes in detail how to determine the correct AWGN settings, i.e. how to calculate the required signal-to-noise ratio for the various scenarios.
10-Aug-2011 | AN-No. 1GP80
5G New Radio (NR) FR1 MIMO or beamforming downlink signal analysis especially the phase measurement of each MIMO layer and the determination of the phase difference between the MIMO layers are essential for the 5G base station product design.In this application note, it describes two test solutions from R&S® to cope with the 5G FR1 downlink MIMO signal analysis challenges either using R&S®RTP/RTO oscilloscope or R&S®NRQ6 frequency selective power sensor as RF frontend to capture the signal and together with R&S®VSE as post-processing tool for the IQ analysis.The aim of this application note is to walk the user through the necessary steps on both test solutions to enable the 5G FR1 downlink MIMO signal analysis.It is assumed that the reader has certain pre-knowledge of 5G NR physical layer. In case a refreshment is needed, please refer to the for further reading.
26-Jun-2020 | AN-No. GFM343
Increasing data rates in high-speed digital designs and wireless communications require SerDes PLLs and clock synthesizers with low additive phase noise and high jitter attenuation. Modern designs often follow a two-stage architecture, consisting of a jitter-attenuator and a frequency-synthesizer stage. Due to their high phase noise sensitivity, phase noise analyzers are the instruments of choice for these tests. To stimulate the PLL, an additional signal source with ultra low phase noise is required.
01-Aug-2018
Functional Testing
Although data services in the context of eMBB, URLLC and mMTC are the pivotal drivers behind the 5G evolution, legacy services like voice and video communications still represent important services that operators want to offer to their subscribers. As part of the technology evolution, we have seen a major change from circuit-switched 2G networks with an initial focus on telephony to fully packet-switched 4G networks focused on internet data communications.This application note focuses on different details of voice services in 5G networks. Besides some theoretical background this document describes the procedure to setup a 5G network with R&S®CMW500 and R&S®CMX500 radio communication testers and how to carry out different functional voice call tests for 5G networks.
06-Oct-2021 | AN-No. 1SL364
Power Added Efficiency (PAE) is a key parameter for the characterization of an amplifier.This application notes introduces two alternative methods how to do the Power Added Efficiency measurement. The first one is based on the R&S ZNB vector network analyzer (VNA) measurement function. Alternatively to this, the PAE tracer macro is introduced. This macro offers to make the PAE at an user selected compression point of the amplifier versus frequency. The PAE tracer macro is provided together with this application note.
22-May-2013 | AN-No. 1EZ64