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This is Page 3 of the May 2016 homepage archives (click here for Page
1,
2,
3).
 The USA's Federal Communications Commission
has issued a $34.9M fine against a Chinese electronics manufacturer and online retailer,
for selling signal jamming devices to U.S. consumers. So-called 'jammers'
are radio frequency transmitters that intentionally block, jam, or interfere with
wireless communications, such as cellphone calls, GPS systems, Wi-Fi networks, and
first- responder communications. It is a violation of federal law to market, sell,
import, or use a signal jammer in the United States. "In today's mobile world, cellular
..."
 "Radio amateurs in the US, Russia, Germany,
and the Netherlands topped the field in a European Space Agency (ESA) Education
Office competition to be the first to hear signals from three new, student-built
CubeSats. All of the satellites were launched from Guiana on April 25 as part of
ESA's 'Fly Your Satellite!' program, and ESA challenged the Amateur Radio
community, offering prizes to the first three radio amateurs to submit a recorded
signal from OUFTI-1 from France, e-st@r-II from Italy, and AAUSAT4
..."
 In a Scientific American article
titled "Elemental Urgency," Jennifer Hackett reported on a paper published
in 2013 by Yale University's Thomas Graedel et al regarding the availability (or
unavailability) of the raw elements - and suitable substitutes - used extensively
in modern manufacturing. Unlike half a century ago when most products were made
from relatively common and easily obtainable elements like lead, iron, tin, nickel,
aluminum, carbon, zinc, silicon, and even silver and gold, many more elements are
now regularly included in mass manufacturing processes. Rhenium (Re), used in high
strength, temperature alloys
...
Guerrilla RF, a leading provider of high performance MMICs, today introduces
new additions to the company's family of
high linearity gain blocks featuring a unique combination of simple-application
schematic, flat gain and high compressed output power which operate from 50 MHz
up to as high as 8 GHz. The GRF201X family of devices is offered in a 1.5 x 1.5
mm DFN-6 package and the GRF301X family is packaged in the popular SOT-89. Devices
from both families provide strong linearity measured over a wide temperature range
 "Headaches and trouble sleeping? You may
be suffering from a 'tech hangover.' If you have a sore head and struggled to get
out of bed this morning, last night's glass of wine might not be to blame - you
could have a
Technology Hangover. New research has revealed more than one in
three Brits (36%) suffer from regular, debilitating tech hangovers, leaving them
drained, exhausted and in pain. The research revealed physical symptoms such as
eye pain cause concern for 36% of Brits and
..."
 "Light waves could in principle be used to
drive future transistors. Since the electromagnetic waves of light oscillate approximately
one million times in a billionth of a second, i.e. at petahertz (PHz) frequencies,
optoelectronic computers could attain switching rates 100,000
times higher than current digital electronic systems. However, to achieve this goal,
we will need a better understanding of the sub-atomic electron motion induced by
the ultrafast electric field of light
..."
Notable Tech Quote: Vadim Makarov
 "You need to be a bit older than a teenager.
And you need to have access to an optic lab. You don't have this technology in basements
- yet." - Vadim Makarov, February
2016
Scientific American, regarding cracking of RSA encryption
using quantum computers. Mr. Makarov and his team successfully decrypted an supposedly
secure quantum transmission system designed by
ID Quantique, using a portable
suitcase of equipment.
 Byron Goodman published a very thorough
diode modulator article in a 1953 issue of QST magazine.
It was one of the first of such articles that used the very recently available semiconductor
diodes rather than the previously used vacuum tubes. Single-balanced bridge and
ring modulator circuits are presented, along with the theory behind their operation.
It would be a few years more before double balanced mixers with their abilities
to reject even intermodulation products, and triple balanced mixers with very high
overall spurious product rejection, would become commonplace
...
Rohde & Schwarz has expanded its portfolio of midrange signal and spectrum
analyzers. The new
R&S FSVA offers a 160 MHz analysis
bandwidth over its entire frequency range, making it the only analyzer in its class
to do so at frequencies between 26.5 GHz and 40 GHz. With its enhanced phase noise
performance, the instrument offers users very high accuracy in spectral measurements
on narrowband modulated signals and in phase noise measurements. The advanced features
of the R&S FSVA include more than the improved phase noise of typ. -117 dBc
 Well, at least the good news is that robots
won't
commit suicide by jumping off the building.
Maybe human workers will be confined to the ground floor. "Apple and Samsung supplier
Foxconn
has reportedly replaced 60,000 factory workers with robots. One factory has 'reduced
employee strength from 110,000 to 50,000 thanks to the introduction of robots,'
a government official told
the South China Morning Post. Xu Yulian,
head of publicity for the Kunshan region, added: 'More companies are likely to follow
suit.' China investing ..."
 "It's midday, and your phone's battery is
dangerously close to the 20% mark. If you're like the majority of people, that red
icon will leave you feeling panicked, annoyed and hunting for a spare charger. LG
has dubbed this condition 'Low Battery Anxiety' and says that nearly
9 out of 10 people suffer from the fear of losing power on their phone. The company
polled a random sample of more than 2,000 adult smartphone users in the US earlier
this year
..."
 For the sake of avid cruciverbalists amongst
us, each week I create a new
crossword puzzle that has a theme related to engineering, mathematics,
chemistry, physics, and other technical words. You will never be asked the name
of a movie star unless he/she was involved in a technical endeavor (e.g., Hedy Lamar). Enjoy!
...
 "Researchers have developed a table-top instrument
that obtains measurements more normally acquired in national high magnetic field
laboratories. The advance means that research into the development of next generation
electronic devices employing 2D materials can now be done at most research universities.
Dr Darren Graham and a team of researchers from Manchester University's Photon Science
Institute collaborated with colleagues from
..."
 "Report of Partial Findings from the National Toxicology Program Carcinogenesis
Studies of Cell Phone Radiofrequency Radiation in Hsd: Sprague Dawley® SD rats
(Whole Body Exposures)" 5-19-2016. "CONCLUSIONS:
Under the conditions of these 2-year studies, the hyperplastic lesions and glial
cell neoplasms of the heart and brain observed in male
rats are considered likely the result of whole-body exposures
to GSM- or CDMA-modulated RFR. There is higher confidence in the association
between RFR exposure and the neoplastic lesions in the heart than in the brain.
No biologically significant effects were observed in the brain or heart of female
rats regardless of modulation." So, there is good news here per modern day
thinking - only males will die from it!
Triad RF Systems today introduced the
TA1029 PA, designed for broadcast applications requiring linear
power for COFDM digital video transmission. It utilizes GaN devices for high efficiency
while maintaining 30 dB ACPR with a COFDM video signal. The unit can be operated
from a 9-36 VDC supply voltage range. This class AB GaN module is designed
for both military and commercial applications. It is capable of supporting any signal
type and modulation format, including but not limited to 3-4G
 Rob Spiegel, of Design News, recently
posted the results of a
salary survey conducted by PayScale website
that listed the top-paying 15 engineering jobs. Petroleum engineering ranks highest
with early career pay at $101k and mid-career pay at $168k. Next up is nuclear engineering
with entry at $68k and mid at $121k. Down at #5 is electrical & communications
engineer with entry at $65k and mid at $116k. CS follows at $69k and $115k, respectively,
which evidently begins higher but ends lower. Electrical and computer engineering
is #7 at $67k and $114k. Plain old electrical engineering is $66k and $108k, then
mechanical engineering
...
Antenova, manufacturer of antennas and RF antenna modules for M2M, is shipping
its first orders for the
TransferJet
coupler, Zoma, which the company announced in September 2015, and is collaborating
with partner Icoteq to build
TransferJet designs for customers worldwide. Antenova provides evaluation boards
for customers to test the Zoma coupler with their designs. TransferJet is a close
proximity wireless transfer technology that radiates very low power radio waves
 "German researchers have set a new world
record for
wireless data transmission at six
gigabits per second. They sent the entire contents of a DVD in less than ten seconds
using radio waves. The data traveled from the Uni-Center Cologne to the Fraunhofer
Institute for High Frequency Physics and Radar Techniques FHR in the city of Wachtberg,
nearly 37 kilometers (23 miles) away. This demonstrates that it is possible to wirelessly
transmit large amounts of data across long distances. The technology could be used
to improve satellite
..."
 In the RF Power Division e2V partners with our
customers in a wide variety of markets, all around the world. Over 90% of the world's
radiotherapy machines contain our technology, we bring vehicles and boats to a safe
stop, protecting people's lives, we stop boats colliding at sea, our technology
detects and deceives radar threats, we control the kicker magnet in CERN's large
hadron collider, and much much more. Do you want to join us and contribute to our
future success? We are looking for a Head of Sales for our USA sales team with experience
in managing a small ...
 "MID technology (molded interconnect device)
represents a solution, allowing electrical structures, such as antennas, to be applied
to nearly any surface. HFT uses laser direct structuring in its development work.
With LDS, a laser beam structures a three-dimensional part made of an
LDS-doped plastic. The laser beam transfers
the desired circuit layout onto the substrate while activating the additive at the
same time. In a subsequent electro-less metallization
..."
 It didn't take much in the early days of radio
to capture the curiosity of consumers with buzz phrases like a "Mystic Hand" to
keep the radio tuned properly - really just AFC control, and a "Phantom Conductor"
circuit that boosted the volume of high level audio (a nonlinear amplifier). Here
are 4 more Radio Service Data Sheets from Radio-Craft magazine.
Crosley Model 1316 (in Model 167 Console) Radio Service Data Sheet,
Westinghouse Model WR 207 & WR 208 5-Tube Dual-Band Superheterodyne
Radio Service Data Sheet,
RCA Victor "High-Fidelity Electrola," Model R-99 Radio Service Data
Sheet.
 "In a
video interview from his home in Hawaii,
Gordon
Moore shared his views on the future of technology including the future of his
landmark prediction that has fueled the semiconductor industry since 1965. He also
showed at 87 the humble engineer can still laugh at himself. 'It would not surprise
me at all if we come to end of scaling in this coming decade, but I'm impressed
by engineers who keep overcoming
..."
 "The
world's first
bendable smartphone made using graphene,
which was first developed in Britain, is set to go on sale. Made by a company in
China, the device's graphene-based screen is so flexible that it can be worn as
a chunky bracelet. The revolutionary material combines being both extremely thin
– one atom - and strong – 200x stronger than steel
..."
 "Nokia and the Saudi Telecom Company (STC)
have conducted a test of
MulteFire technology, which combines the performance of LTE with the simplicity
of Wi Fi deployment in unlicensed spectrum bands such as 5GHz. As data demand continues
unabated, mobile operators want to explore more opportunities in other spectrum
bands, for example the 5 GHz band
..."
 "Using Amateur Radio to enhance engineering
education will be the discussion topic during a May 24 session at the
IEEE International Microwave Symposium
(IMS), taking place this week in San Francisco. For the fourth consecutive year,
the ARRL will be represented at the IMS. This year's theme is, 'Connecting minds,
exchanging ideas.' The IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques Society sponsors the
conference and hosts meetings of its various technical committees. Dubbed 'The World
Series of RF,' the IMS annually attracts technology and engineering professionals
involved in all aspects of microwave theory and practice
..."
 Back in the days when I built a lot of prototype
electronic gear, project enclosures were generically referred as a "Bud Box." Lab stock rooms always had a good variety of sizes and
configurations of the soft aluminum and sometimes plastic boxes that were easily
drilled, punched, filed, and painted to make professional looking equipment. In
reality, not all the project boxes were made by Bud industries, but just as everyone
knows you're talking about a cola when you say "Coke," it was understood that a
"Bud Box" was a chassis for a home-brewed circuit. They are still seen in construction
articles of electronics hobby magazines
...
 "The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
(DARPA) is working now to develop a backup system to be used by service members
in the event that access to the Global Positioning System, or GPS, is denied to
them by adversaries. The 'Spatial, Temporal and Orientation Information in Contested
Environments' project, or STOIC, is meant to provide position navigation and timing
in situations where GPS is denied to U.S. forces. 'Our main goal is a
backup position navigation and timing system when GPS
..."
 "Ravi Shankar Prasad says with spectrum issues
out of the way, auction will happen in two to three months. India's much-discussed
upcoming spectrum auction will likely get underway in late July at the
earliest judging by comments made by the country's communications minister this
week. 'Issues regarding spectrum have been addressed
..."
 "Wireless mice and keyboards are the perfect
accessories for a world in which devices increasingly are shuffling off their connection
coils, but those accessories - especially untethered rodents - also can create new
threats for those who use them. One such threat is
Mousejack. The attack exploits a vulnerability found in 80 percent
of wireless mice. With US$15 worth of off-the-shelf hardware and a few lines of
simple code, a wireless
..."
 Electronics World magazine often
published
electronics-themed crossword puzzles. Unlike
RF Cafe engineering crosswords
that use only technical words and clues, this one does include some unrelated words.
A couple clues I was surprised to see pertain to radar; e.g., 32A: Small visible
mark on a radar or scope screen, and 44A: Identification Friend or Foe. You'll
need to print this out on paper to work it
...
 "In 2010 the Nobel Prize in physics was awarded
for the discovery of the exceptional material
graphene, which consists of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged
in a honeycomb lattice. But graphene research did not stop there. New interesting
properties of this material are still being found. An international team of researchers
has now explained the peculiar behavior of electrons moving through narrow constrictions
in a graphene layer. The results have been published in the journal Nature Communications
..."
 "A team of scientists working at the U.S.
Department of Energy's (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory and led by Northern Illinois
University physicist and Argonne materials scientist Zhili Xiao has created a new
material, called 'rewritable magnetic charge ice,' that permits an unprecedented
degree of control over local magnetic fields and could pave the way for new computing
technologies. The scientists' research report on development of magnetic charge
ice is published in the May 20, 2016 issue
..."
P1dB, an RF and Microwave component supplier, announces a line of RF Signal Balancing
Attenuators with equal group delays. The
P1AT-SAMF-6G2W series attenuators are a cost effective solution
for amplitude balancing parallel signals while maintaining the same group delay.
P1dB's SMA attenuators can also be used to introduce an amplitude taper on a phased
array antenna without affecting phase. The SMA attenuators operate to 6 GHz and
are available from 0 to 10 dB in 1 dB steps
 In my continuing effort to make archival info
available to vintage radio enthusiasts, here are four more Radio Service Data Sheets
from Radio-Craft magazine:
AMRAD Model 81 ("Bel Canto" Series) Receiver,
Radiolas "Super VIII" (AR-810, "Semi-Portable" (AR-812), 24 and 26
Radio,
Fada 103 Fadalette, Stewart-Warner Series 108, DeWald 54 Dynette Sets,
RCA Victor R-27 and Philco 53 Ultra-Midget A.C.-D.C. Radio Receivers.
All major search engines visit the RF Cafe homepage content as often as ever hour,
so posting links to the pages here helps to get them registered. Your indulgence
is appreciated. Lots more will follow.
 "The professional social network
LinkedIn told members Wednesday that data from some 100 million
users stolen in a 2012 hack had been leaked online, and recommended a change in
passwords. LinkedIn had said in 2012 that some 6.5 million user records may have
been breached, but this week learned that a much wider set of data had leaked. 'Yesterday,
we became aware of an additional set of data that had just been released that claims
to be email and hashed
..."
offers the industry's largest portfolio of high-performance standard and
customized RF and microwave filters and filter-related products for military, commercial,
aerospace and defense, and industrial applications up to 40 GHz. Anatech has
introduced 3 new designs: a 910-920 MHz cavity bandpass filter with "N" connectors,
a 890.5-915.5 MHz cavity bandpass filter with SMA connectors, and a 902-928 MHz
cavity bandpass filter with "N" connectors for outdoor use
 "We all know there exists a great void in
the public educational system when it comes to exposure to STEM courses. One educator
named Dori Roberts decided to do something to change this system. Ms. Roberts taught
high school engineering for 11 years and noticed there was a real void in quality
STEM education at all levels of the public educational system. According to Forbes,
Dori said, 'I started
Engineering For Kids after noticing a
real lack of math, science and engineering programs to enroll
..."
 This rather extensive article from a 1947
issue of QST magazine describes the method used by author Philip Erhorn
to experimentally determine optimum
spacing for the parasitic elements of his antenna. Unless you
have electromagnetic field simulation software available for designing antennas,
the procedure typically involves beginning with published formulas for element length
and spacing, then resorting to a cut-and-test method of finding a combination that
works best for your installation and goals. Almost certainly no two Hams end up
with identical configurations because differences in terrain
...
plans to shake things up at IMS by announcing several new models that will
push the limits of current vector network analyzer technology at the 2016 International Microwave
Symposium in San Francisco this week. New models include a patented one-port R60
vector reflectometer, two new two-port two-path compact models S5065 and S5085,
and finally CobaltFx, an entirely new approach to mmWave frequency extension up
to 110 GHz created in collaboration with Farran Technology, Ltd
 "Researchers at the Moscow Institute of Physics
and Technology (MIPT) have proposed a new
tunnel transistor based on bilayer graphene
that could reduce its power consumption, allowing a significant increase in processors'
clock speeds. In their simulations, the MIPT researchers calculated that the clock
speed could be increased by as much as two orders of magnitude. 'The point is not
so much about saving electricity—we have plenty of electrical energy,' said Dmitry
Svintsov of MIPT
..."
 "Marketing firm RnRMarketResearch predicts
that the worldwide
electronic warfare market will grow at
a CAGR of 4.29% during the forecast period of 2016 to 2021 to reach $25.36B by 2021
with the electronic support segment leading the overall EW market growth. The growing
number of wars and transnational disputes, emergence of cognitive electronic warfare
technology, increased system reliability and efficiency due to the introduction
of TWT-based systems, and advancements due
..."
Bliley Technologies, leader in high performance frequency control devices, today
announced the world's lowest power ovenized oscillator, the
LP102 OCXO. Offering
exceptional stability and phase noise performance in a product that consumes only
135mW, the LP102 represents a major innovation in the frequency control industry.
"The goal with our LP102 product line was to offer the highest performance that
is expected from a Bliley part, but with a power budget that is a fraction of standard
OCXOs," stated
 "Pupils at St Thomas More (STM) Cathedral
School in Arlington, Virginia, have begun tracking the orbit of
STMSat-1, the 1U CubeSat they built and
which was deployed on May 16 from the International Space Station. It is object
41476. After being place in orbit, the CubeSat had continued roughly in the same
orbit as the ISS and of other satellites deployed on May 16. Emily Laura at St Thomas
More told ARRL on May 19 that STMSat-1 will turn itself on once its batteries
..."
 everything
RF, which provides the only online searchable product database specifically
for the RF & Microwave Industry, is providing in-depth coverage this week (May
22-27) of the 2016 International Microwave
Symposium (IMS) show in San Francisco, California. The IMS 2016 event offers
technical sessions, interactive forums, plenary and panel sessions, workshops, short
courses, industrial exhibits, application seminars, historical exhibits, and a wide
variety of other technical and social activities including a guest program. everything
RF ...
Optenni Ltd announces a new version of the Optenni Lab™ matching circuit optimization
and antenna analysis software featuring a new workflow for the optimization of switchable
matching circuits. After seven years of intense development, Optenni Lab has become
the leading professional matching circuit optimization software on the market, with
many unique innovative features that are not found in any other software. With
Optenni Lab 3.3, we have added new features and usability improvements
to speed up
 "It was first released in 2004, and eventually
sold over 130 million units. Now, Motorola is set to bring back the
Razr flip phone - as an android handset.
The firm, now owned by Lenovo, has teased the new handset with an ad promising it
will 'flip back to the Razr days of yesteryear and get ready for the future.' The
phone is set to be unveiled at a Lenovo event on 9th June. Because of its striking
appearance and thin profile, the Razr was initially marketed as an exclusive fashion
..."
 This is Part II of a 3-part series of articles
on
magnetostriction devices. At audio and low IF frequencies, the
use of ferrite elements to construct relatively high-Q resonant circuits for filtering
was a big deal in the middle of the last century. Although not presented in this
article, design formulas and tables were published to implement the familiar Butterworth,
constant-k, Chebyshev, Gaussian, and other types. Tuning, particularly for higher
order filters, could be a chore since it involved a cut--and-try method on the ferrite
rods. However, that is what was available in the day, and it evidently worked well
enough to be worth the trouble for desired
...
 "While the European Commission's decision
to block CK Hutchison's planned acquisition of Telefonica's British mobile operator
O2 is credit negative for both Telefonica and CKHH's UK telecoms operations, its
consequences will be mixed for
Europe's
telecoms sector, says Moody's Investors Service today in a new report. 'The
failed deal will likely accelerate fixed-mobile consolidation in the UK with
Telefonica
looking for another buyer for O2. On the other hand, we expect
..."
Pasternack, a leading provider of RF, microwave and millimeter wave products,
introduces the new
PEM009-KIT 60 GHz development system which offers designers the
ability to perform product development and experimentation of single and multi-carrier
high bandwidth modulation covering 57 to 64 GHz in the globally unlicensed ISM frequency
spectrum. Applications include baseband development up to 7 Gbps data rates using
WiGig/WiFi 802.11ad and 802.11aj IEEE standards, GigE wireless LAN, FMCW Radar,
uncompressed HD video, RFID, radiometry
 "The rising cash holdings of U.S. corporations
is increasingly in the hands of a few U.S. companies, with just 5 tech firms having
grabbed 1/3 of it. Apple, Microsoft, Google, Cisco System and Oracle are sitting
on $504B, or 30%, of the $1.7T in cash and cash equivalents held by U.S. non-financial
companies in 2015, according to Moody's Investors Service
..." All these companies are headed by
major supporters of a political party supposedly committed to ending this gross
unbalance. You get what you vote for.
Wolfspeed, true patrons
of RF and Microwave Engineering education, are sponsoring FREE access to Dr Fornetti's
masterpiece, Conquer Radio Frequency: A Multimedia Conceptual Guide to RF &
Microwave Engineering, Based on AWR Microwave Office Video Tutorials. The material
takes an original approach to explaining the fundamental principles behind the design
of passive and active RF & Microwave circuits. It illustrates how to design,
test and characterise practical circuits using NI AWR Microwave Office. The simulator
allows Dr Fornetti to dig deeper into the phenomena
 EngineringJobs.com recently released a report
titled "Where the
Engineering Jobs Are: July 2015." The data is nearly a year old, but at least
in this sluggish economy the situation does not change very rapidly, so it is likely
still a good reflection of today's status. Rather than rank states by absolute number
of engineering jobs, this system uses per capita engineering job number. Doing so
attempts to normalize the result so that states with very large populations do not
artificially dominate over states with small populations. Still, if you are looking
for an engineering job, your best chance
...
 "DX Engineering
has announced two new acquisitions. It has acquired exclusive rights to Clifton
Laboratories' ham radio product line, and it has purchased TW Antennas. Clifton
Laboratories manufactured preamplifiers and filters, which DX Engineering will now
produce. DX Engineering said that part numbers and design specifications will remain
the same. The company will manufacture more than a dozen Amateur Radio products
and will offer parts and tech support for owners of Clifton Laboratories legacy
products. TW Antennas is the maker of the TransWorld Antenna
..."
 "Hamvention has begun! Clouds loomed all
day, and finally gave way to rain in the afternoon. At the ARRL EXPO, Hamvention
visitors had the opportunity to meet and greet ARRL leadership like CEO Tom Gallagher,
NY2RF; CFO Barry Shelley, N1VXY, and ARRL President Rick Roderick, K5UR. There was
also a 'Meet the Authors' table, where Glen Popiel, KW5GP – author of High Speed
Multimedia for Amateur Radio and Arduino for Ham Radio – and J.K. George, N3BB –
author of Contact Sport: A Story of Champions, Airwaves, and a One-Day Race around
the World
..."
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