These peak power meters and sensors provide the fast rise times and wide measurement bandwidth needed to evaluate modulated signals in 3G/4G cellular and WiMAX systems.
Power measurements are among the most important methods of characterizing a wireless system's transmitted signal quality. Whether that system is a military radar or a third-generation (3G) cellular or wideband WiMAX network, the new ML2490A series of peak power meters from Anritsu Co. offer the measurement power needed to accurately characterize the power levels of short pulses, complex modulated waveforms, and continuous-wave (CW) signals. The new power meters feature a measurement bandwidth of 65 MHz and frequency range to 65 GHz, with a generous assortment of automatic measurement functions to simplify both commercial and military power measurements.
The ML2490A series peak power meters consist of the single-channel ML2495A and the dual-channel ML2496A (see figure). Depending upon the external sensor and external hardware (such as couplers and attenuators), the meters can display power levels from ?70 to +200 dBm with resolution from 0.01 to 0.001 dB. Both power meters feature typical rise time of 8 ns and are designed to work with the company's power sensors, such as the model MA2411B with frequency coverage of 0.3 to 40 GHz and power-measurement range of ?20 to +20 dBm, the MA2490A with frequency range of 0.3 to 8 GHz and power-measurement range of ?60 to +20 dBm, and the MA2491A power sensor with frequency range of 0.3 to 18 GHz and power-measurement range of ?30 to +20 dBm. The power meter allows time spans as short as 50 ns to be displayed with 1-ns resolution. The meters can sample input signals continuous or repetitively, building up a trace with fine resolution. The bandwidth is 65 MHz for repetitive sampling and 20 MHz for single-shot measurements.
The wide bandwidth and fast rise time of the meters coupled with these wide-range sensors allows evaluation of average, peak, and peak-to-average power levels of radar and orthogonal-frequency-division-multiplex (OFDM) sideband (WCDMA) signals common to 3G cellular and WiMAX devices. The meters provide numerous functions to simplify these tests, including multiple gates, markers, and dedicated pulse-measurement functions.
The peak power meters offer a variety of triggering functions, including internal triggering on the rising or falling edge of a pulse train and external TTL triggering. The trigger/display capture range can be set from 50 ns to 7 s. As many as four independent gates can be set to measure average, maximum, and minimum power levels. Minimum and maximum measurements include a time stamp to provide an operator with precise position of maximum overshoot and minimum undershoot. The meters feature numerous automatic measurements that make them attractive for evaluating radar systems, including pulse rise time, fall time, and pulse repetition interval (PRI). In addition, they can perform a wide range of statistical measurements, such as probability density function (PDF) and cumulative distribution function (CDF) measurements. The meters can also measure crest factor as well as power-added efficiency (PAE).
The new pulse power meters incorporate 50-MHz and 1-GHz precision calibration sources, automatically selected for optimum frequency when a sensor is attached. P&A: $9300 (ML2495A) and $10,880 (ML2496A); 6 to 8 wks.
Anritsu Co., 490 Jarvis Dr., Morgan Hill, CA 95037-2809; (408) 778-2000, FAX: (408) 776-1744, Internet: www.us.anritsu.com